| Over the course of this study, more than a hundred motets and Masses by about sixty composers active throughout Europe between 1460 and 1590 are examined in order to construct historical, geographical, and stylistic frameworks for the axial-tenor repertory, which comprises the earliest works composed for five voices. The tenor motets of Johannes Regis establish the axial-tenor model, features of which include predominance of sparse textures, varied vocal orchestration, textural delineation of the tenor by long note values, and placement of the tenor as an axial-voice between two upper and two lower voices.;Regis's axial-tenor motets served as a prototype for dozens of Franco-Flemish composers of Josquin's generation, many of whom were imported to the papal chapel and elsewhere in Italy beginning in the 1480s. By the turn of the century, the papal chapel had become a thriving hub for the cultivation of axial-tenor writing; in subsequent generations, this decidedly "Netherlandish" style was disseminated throughout Europe and, by the end of the sixteenth century, had come to be revered and emulated by historically conscious composers including Palestrina, Lassus, and Rogier.;Analyses of six motets and three Masses spanning all three periods of the repertory's development confront numerous questions concerning formal and temporal organization, cantus-firmus placement and text usage, motivic development, harmony, voice ranges and functions, and cleffing. In addition to providing a useful table listing the titles, composers, and sources of all known axial-tenor works, the study includes texts and translations of Regis's motets and the other works analyzed; a new edition of Regis's Clangat plebs is also included in one of the appendices. |
