By the “middle third” of the century (ca. 1335–70), the Avignon styles had spread throughout France.
The Agnus Dei sampled in Ex. 9-14 comes from a manuscript that originated in Cambrai, at the far
northern end of the kingdom, near the border of what was then the Duchy of Burgundy. It is in the
“simultaneous” or homorhythmic style reminiscent of the conductus, and like the conductus it carries a
single liturgical text in all voices. That, plus the uniform rhythm producing chord progressions in which
the individual lines are blended, suggests the possibility of choral performance. If that was indeed an
option for this music, then we are dealing with the earliest choral polyphony in the European tradition.
(Still, the earliest explicit call for chorus—as opposed to unus, “one” singer—in polyphonic church
music is not found until nearly a century later, in Italian manuscripts of the 1430 s.)
VOTIVE FORMULARIES
Another spur to the composition of Mass Ordinary settings was the growth of votive Masses—Masses
celebrated not according to the church calendar but on special occasions. Such an occasion might be
institutional, such as the dedication of a church or the installation of a bishop. Or it might be personal,
marking the Christian sacraments or rites of passage (birth, christening, marriage, burial). Or—and this
was the most frequent reason of all—it might be a posthumous memorial service. To have such a Mass
celebrated in church on one’s own behalf or on behalf of a loved one, one had to purchase it with a
donation. Many votive Masses were “Lady Masses,” Masses in honor of “Our Lady” (Notre Dame) the
Virgin Mary, the intercessor supreme.
EX. 9-14 Agnus Dei from Cambrai, 1328 (Fascicle IV, no. 1), mm. 1–18