VDM Verlag The North French Kyrie Chant: A Historical and Stylistic Study of the Repertory before 1200

The Kyrie chant is an important type of medieval ecclesiastical song distinct from and also somewhat younger than, the songs in the Gregorian repertory. Kyrie melodies are first notated in manuscripts from the tenth century. This book aims to expand and differentiate our view on melodic and formal particulars for the Kyrie chant. In the first part, the early Kyries in north French manuscripts are examined. Then the north French repertory is compared to corresponding repertories from other geographical areas. By comparing the north French Kyrie repertory to the Aquitanian Kyrie repertory, the author succeeds in giving an overview of the Kyrie chants in the west Frankish area. Also, the concluding discussions on a small group of Kyrie chants found in early west Frankish and east Frankish manuscripts, result in findings that further substantiate a new perspective on the Kyrie chant. The book incorporates a detailed musical study, studies of chant transmission and a transcription of each melody in the north French repertory and will be of interest to scholars of medieval musicology as well as chant scholars and readers who wish to appreciate, or perform, the Kyrie chants. About the Author Marit Johanne Høye, PhD, studied Musicology at the Grieg Academy in Bergen, the University of Oslo and at NTNU in Trondheim, where she defended her doctoral thesis in 2008. She combines musicological research with concert performances, playing the renaissance traverse, and works with medieval music and music in oral transmission.