In a study as deep as it is broad, Art Song of the Burgundian Era, 1415-1480 presents a rich and thorough survey of art song in the heart of the fifteenth century, during a 65-year period characterized by the rise of French repertory and the arrival of a musical style that crossed linguistic and national lines. Across the five sections of the book, David Fallows defines and describes in detail all of the elements that characterize this remarkable repertory. The first major section on Musical Techniques defines the voicings, textures, texts and structures that make up the repertoire. Following this, Historical Background defines the major forces in the music's development, and its key composers, poets, performers, and themes. Survival looks at the evidence of the music and its practice through sources and key citations of its music and poetic text. Forms lays out the key forms of this repertoire--the ballade, rondeau, and virelai--as well as less common song forms. The book concludes with a section on the language repertories that define art song in this period. An important work of history in its own right, this volume also serves as a guide to the repertory included in Fallows's Catalogue of Polyphonic Songs, 1415-1480 (OUP 1999).
