An Agnus Dei Trope in the Context of Eucharistic Devotion in Thirteenth-Century Cologne
Open Access
Author:
Ropchock, Alanna Victoria
Graduate Program:
Musicology
Degree:
Master of Arts
Document Type:
Master Thesis
Date of Defense:
None
Committee Members:
Marica Susan Tacconi, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor Marica Susan Tacconi, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Keywords:
trope Corpus Christi Cologne Eucharist cantatorium medieval chant Germany
Abstract:
In the later Middle Ages, many new practices and traditions began as a result of the increasing reverence for the Eucharist, which was declared by the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 to be the true presence of Christ’s Body under the substance of the bread, or Host. The feast of Corpus Christi was probably the most significant tradition to come from medieval Eucharistic devotion. By the middle of the fourteenth century, it was celebrated as a major feast throughout the western Christian world, and it was especially popular in Cologne. The prevalence of Eucharistic devotion in Cologne undoubtedly had an impact on the city’s liturgical music, particularly on the music for Eucharistic rituals. Among a body of service books from the church of Saint Kunibert that has received little scholarly attention, there is a cantatorium that contains an Agnus Dei trope. Initial research of the trope indicated that the text is unusual, despite the melody being a variant of a common Agnus Dei melody. Although the cantatorium dates from around 1250, the trope was added later by an additional scribe. By studying the trope’s notation, the other chants that were added to the cantatorium, and a notated missal from Saint Kunibert from ca. 1330, the approximate date of the trope’s addition and its connection to the Eucharistic devotion in Cologne can be ascertained.
