MUSIC, MUSICIANS, AND THE HOUSE OF LORRAINE DURING THE FIRST HALF OF THE SIXTEENTH-CENTURY (FRANCE)

This study of music and musicians at the court of Lorraine has several aims. It offers a chronological survey of musical institutions at the ducal capital, Nancy, as they were sponsored by Rene II and Antoine de Lorraine. Rich repositories of archival documents survive from the ducal household, providing a wealth of information on official sponsorship and how it influenced the careers of musicians who served in the ducal choir, chamber ensemble, or ceremonial bands. This dissertation also places the duchy on the musical map of Renaissance Europe. The heirs of Rene enjoyed almost unrivaled access to the rulers and households of neighboring courts, often using their influence to promote the interests of musicians while indulging their own artistic tastes. Antoine\u27s younger brothers Claude de Guise and Cardinal Jean de Lorraine helped to foster musical ties that linked Lorraine with France, the Empire, and with the Papacy in Rome. The effect of these international links upon musical life at Nancy was rich and varied. The music of Pierrequin de Therache, leading composer at court during the early sixteenth century, was widely distributed in France, the Netherlands, and Italy, though this same perspective is not so evident in the style of his music. The Lorraine chansonnier (Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, f. fr. Ms 1597), on the other hand, bears eloquent witness to changing and international approaches to French secular music about 1500 as they were known at court. By 1530, musicians at Nancy turned their gazes almost exclusively towards the French royal court for their inspiration. Mathieu Lasson, leader of Antoine\u27s private choir, owned his reputation principally to the Parisian printer Pierre Attaingnant. And study of Lasson\u27s music shows that the composer was well aware of the stylistic vogue then in full swing at Paris and at the royal court of France. Indeed, manuscript fragments recently discovered at Nancy show that music from Paris was known there early in the 1530\u27s. Included are complete transcriptions of all major works by Therache and Lasson, pertinent archival documents, a roster of singers at court, and an index of musicians