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Christopher Page describes this notation as a kind of "tablature" [1], and a similar system is used
in treatises of this same epoch providing the first known descriptions of Western European
polyphony. Hucbald's treatise, reflecting the Carolingian revival of classical studies, shows a lively
interest in music not only as an academic or philosophical disciple, but as an art practiced by
instrumentalists as well as singers. It remains an interesting question whether a six-stringed
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instrument of the kind described by Hucbald, and his use of it to notate a melody, may have helped
to inspire the hexachord system of Guido and his followers.
Thus the six steps of the hexachord are associated with these initial syllables of the first six
phrases of the hymn:
T
Ut
T
Re
S
T
T
Mi Fa
Sol
La
This hexachord structure places a special emphasis on the central semitone mi-fa, the step E-F in
the hexachord of C-A, known as the "natural" hexachord. This step serves as a pivotal landmark in
navigating a melody; mi is always located immediately below a semitone, and fa immediately
above it.
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we notate middle C as C4, is "gamma ut" at G2; the highest note is typically E5, giving an overall
range of two octaves plus a sixth. Here it bears emphasis that medieval pitch is flexible, and that
singers were free to sing a melody at any comfortable pitch level.
From "gamma ut" comes the term gamut, referring to the full range of the system and to its
complete set or network of hexachords; more generally, for example, we speak of "running the
gamut" in the sense of covering a full range of possibilities.
As the following diagram shows, the standard medieval gamut or system of musica recta ("proper
music") spans its musical space with three kinds of hexachords. Hexachords on G (with B-natural)
are known as durum or "hard"; hexachords on C as "natural"; and hexachords on F (with Bb) as
molle or "soft." Note that both "flavors" of the fluid or mutable step B/Bb - the "hard" flavor
B-natural and the "soft" flavor Bb - are integral elements of the system.
G-E
hard
E5
D5
C5
B4
Bb4
A4
G4
F4
E4
D4
C4
B3
Bb3
A3
G3
F3
E3
D3
C3
B2
A2
G2
C-A
F-D
natural soft
E la
D sol
C fa
B mi
B -A re
G ut
F -E la
D sol
C fa
B mi
B -A re
G ut
F -E la
D sol
C fa
B mi
A re
Gammaut
-----la
sol
fa
mi
re
ut
--la
sol
fa
mi
re
ut
-la
sol
-fa
mi
re
ut
-la
sol
-fa
mi
re
ut
note name
Ela
Dlasol
Csolfa
Bmi
Bfa
Alamire
Gsolreut
Ffaut
Elami
Dlasolre
Csolfaut
Bmi
Bfa
Alamire
Gsolreut
Ffaut
Elami
Dsolre
Cfaut
Bmi
Are
Gammaut
In medieval and Renaissance usage, it is common to name a particular note on the gamut by
specifying the set of possible syllables it can represent in any available hexachords. Thus D3, for
example is known as dsolre, since it might be sung as either sol in the hard hexachord on gammaut
(G2), or re in the natural hexachord on C3.
Note that D4 an octave higher, however, is known as dlasolre, since it may serve not only as sol or
re, but additionally as la in the soft hexachord on F3; D5 is dlasol, since it can be sung within the
standard system only as la of the soft hexachord on F4 or sol of the hard hexachord on G4.
Similarly, C3 is cfaut, being either fa of the hard hexachord on gammaut or ut of the first natural
hexachord in the gamut; C4 is csolfaut, serving not only as fa or ut but also as sol of the soft
hexachord on F3; and C5 is csolfa, serving only as sol in the soft hexachord on F4 or fa in the hard
hexachord on G4.
When a note belongs to more than one hexachord, it is conventional to name its alternative
syllables in descending order from la to ut: Thus E3 is elami; G3 is gsolreut; and A3 (or A4) is
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alamire. The euphonious "alamire," incidentally, was taken up as the pen name of one music scribe
of the early Renaissance now honored, for example, by the name of the early music ensemble
Alamire.
The fluidity or mutability of B/Bb may be clearer if we consider its name "bfabmi" - that is, this
note may have either a "hard" aspect (shown by a "square B," the origin of the natural and sharp
signs, and also of the German "h" for B-natural), or a "soft" aspect (shown by a "rounded B," the
origin of the flat-sign, here "b").
In fact, the square-B sign is virtually identical to the modern natural sign, and the round-B sign to
the modern flat sign. However, following the helpful usage of Peter Urquhart, we might best refer
to these two hexachord-associated symbols as "mi-signs" and "fa-signs" respectively. They
indicate that a given note - specifically B/Bb, in the standard untransposed gamut we are now
considering - should be sung either as the hexachord step mi with a semitone above, or as fa with a
semitone below. As the hexachord system expands, these mi-signs and fa-signs may apply to other
degrees than B/Bb, applications involving transposition of the gamut (Section 1.6) or the
"invention" of new accidental steps not part of the basic gamut (Section 2).
Natural : C3-A3
Hard
D3
E3
F3
G3
re
mi
fa
sol (la)
\
re
: G3-E4
A3
B3
C4
D4
mi
fa
sol
Starting in the natural hexachord, we would sing the first notes of the ascending Dorian octave
D3-E3-F3-G3 as re-mi-fa-sol, then making a mutation or shift on the fifth note A3 to the hard
hexachord on G3, singing this and the remaining notes (A3-B3-C4-D4) as re-mi-fa-sol. The
"bridge" note, A3, is common to both hexachords, serving as la in the first, and re in the second.
Some treatises suggest that singers, at least as a kind of training exercise, might sing the "bridge"
note of a mutation with the syllables of both the old hexachord and the new, for example in our
last example (N showing "natural hexachord" and H showing "hard hexachord"):
D3
re
N
E3
mi
N
F3
fa
N
G3
sol
N
A3
la-re
N - H
B3
mi
H
C4
fa
H
D4
sol
H
In usual practice, one might guess it more likely that only the syllable of the new hexachord would
actually be sung; but this pedagogical technique emphasizes the point that in order for a usual or
"proper" mutation to occur, the bridge note must belong to both the old hexachord and the new.
While mutations between natural and hard hexachords, or natural and soft hexachords, may be
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most common, it is also possible at times to mutate between hard and soft hexachords. This might
occur, for example, in chants in the Lydian or F mode, also known as tritus, where both bmi
(B-natural) and bfa (Bb) may appear in the same melody. Here S stands for the soft hexachord on
F3, and H for the hard hexachord on G3:
F3
ut
S
A3
mi
S
C4
sol
S
D4
la
S
C4
B3
sol-fa mi
S - H H
C4
fa
H
A3
Bb3 A3
re-mi fa mi
H -S S
S
G3
re
S
F3
ut
S
Certain treatises offer guidelines on where and how to make a mutation: For example, mutate
between hexachords no sooner than is necessary. However, this technique was likely more of a
fine art than an exact science, being somewhat analogous to decisions regarding phrasing - or
possibly to choices of when to reposition the hands on a keyboard.
While normal mutation can solve routine problems of singing chant, and also of negotiating
medieval and Renaissance polyphony, there remain certain unusual intervals and passages which
require an "improper" or "false" mutation - a "quantum jump" between notes without the benefit of
a common "bridge" between hexachords.
A direct tritone leap such as F3-B3, although rather rare, presents this kind of problem: The first
note Ffaut is found only in the natural hexachord on C3 or soft hexachord on F3, while the second
note Bmi is found only in the hard hexachord on G3.
Another problematic interval in many positions is the major sixth, which occurs at the opening of
Guillaume de Machaut's monophonic virelai Ay mi!: A3 B3 D3. Here B3 or Bmi is found only in
the hard hexachord on G3, and D3 or Dsolre only in the hard hexachord on G2 or the natural
hexachord on C3.
Additionally, especially in the Renaissance, singers may use certain "shortcuts" to sing a single
note a step above or below the range of the current hexachord, where normal mutation would be
quite possible (see Section 3.4).
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|
|
|
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In navigating the 20 steps of the regular gamut shown on the hand, we may find it helpful to note
that medieval octaves are often counted from A to A. Thus above gammaut (represented by the
capital Gamma of the Greek alphabet), or G2, we have A-G (A2-G3), a-g (A3-G4), and aa-ee
(A4-E4). Note that while B2 occurs only as Bmi in this regular gamut, B3 and B4 are counted as
single fluid steps realizable as either mi (B-natural) or fa (Bb) - thus bfabmi and bbfabbmi.
Touring the complete gamut, we start at Gammaut near the top of the thumb and move in a
spiral-like pattern, first proceeding down the thumb (Gammaut-Bmi, G2-B2), and then from left to
right along the base joints of the fingers (Cfaut-Ffaut, C3-F3), continuing up the smallest finger
(Gsolreut-bfabmi, G3-Bb3/B3); then across the tops of the other three fingers (csolfaut-elami,
C4-E4), then down the index finger to the second lowest joint (ffaut-gsolreut, F4-G4); then across
the same joints of the third and fourth fingers (aalaremi-bbfabbmi, A4-Bb4/B4), then up the fourth
finger a joint to csolfa (C5), then to the same joint on the third finger, ddlasol (D5); and finally a
leap to the highest note eela (E4), located above the tip of the middle finger.
It is sometimes suggested that a choir director may actually have pointed to the joints of this hand
- or of an actual human hand - in order to indicate the desired notes. In any case, the hand could
serve as a convenient mnemonic device.
It symbolized the "regular" notes of music, or musica recta, including the seven diatonic tones
plus Bb. The additional "invented" accidentals were described as extra manum or "outside the
hand" - belonged to new hexachords not part of Guido's basic system (see Section 2).
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la
sol
fa
mi
--
F-D
etcetera
......
mi
re
ut
---
Bb-G
.....
-la
sol
-fa
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D4
C4
Bb3
A3
G3
F3
E3
D3
C3
D
C
B
A
G
F
E
D
C
re
ut
-la
sol
fa
mi
re
ut
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la
sol
fa
mi
re
ut
mi
re
ut
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tetrardus or Mixolydian modes on G, where if used often it would make this mode resemble
protus (in effect approaching the same result as G Dorian with a Bb signature).
One author compares an explicit fa-sign for Bb with a bell rung to announce a meal; one does not
always need such a sign to eat a meal, or to sing Bfa when it seems appropriate.
Generalizations about inflections in the different modes are indeed generalizations: For example,
one beautiful version of the chant Veni Creator Spiritus in tetrardus or G Mixolydian features a
variation between Bmi and an appearance of Bfa in the final phrase. Such guidelines do suggest,
for example, that one should not promiscuously use Bb in this mode simply in order to avoid the
characteristic melodic outline of the tritone between Bmi as the third degree of the mode and F as
the step below the final G. [3]
While tritus or Lydian is indeed a mode which often favors Bb, there can be great variation
between chants, which may lean toward Bfa or Bmi. There may be a tendency in chants favoring
both flavors of BfaBmi to use Bmi (B) in ascending and Bfa (Bb) in descending, but the
exceptions may be as significant as such a generalization.
It has been suggested that the use of Bb tends to increase in later medieval interpretations of
plainsong, with this accidental (part of the musica recta system) often introduced in places where
B-natural was favored in earlier practice, for example in some chants in the Lydian mode on F.
How freely performers may have introduced Bb inflections not indicated in the chant manuscripts
remains an open question; while modern editions may typically specify such inflections explicitly,
with the understanding that they should occur only when specified, the remarks of some medieval
theorists suggest an element of performer discretion, at least in some times and places.
To Section 2 - Expanding the gamut: Musica ficta and "invented" hexachords.
To Table of Contents.
Margo Schulter
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