Lionpainter had used 'troubador', which gave Helm a great opportunity to
refer to one of his books about this. I am exploring further from a Griceian
point of view, since, 'improvisation' has a lot of implicatura to it.
Three main styles of Occitan lyric poetry have been identified: the trobar
leu (light), trobar ric (rich), and trobar clus (closed, hermetic).
The first was by far the most common.
The wording is straightforward and relatively simple compared to the ric
and literary devices are less common than in the clus.
This style was the most accessible and it was immensely popular.
The most famous poet of the trobar leu was Bernart de Ventadorn.
The trobar clus regularly escapes modern scholarly interpretation.
This should appeal the Griceian in us.
Words are commonly used metaphorically and symbolically and what a poem
appears to be about on its surface is rarely what is intended by the poet or
understood by audiences "in the know".
Thus this type provides a great illustration of that fine distinction
('ignored by Witters and hardly mentioned by Austin") that Grice makes between
utterer's meaning and expression meaning.
The clus style was invented early by Marcabru but only favoured by a few
masters thereafter.
The trobar ric style is not as opaque as the clus, rather it employs a
rich vocabulary, using many words, rare words, invented words, and unusual,
colourful wordings.
Modern scholars recognise several "schools", too, in the troubadour
tradition.
Among the earliest is a school of followers of Marcabru, sometimes called
the "Marcabrunian school": Bernart Marti, Bernart de Venzac, Gavaudan, and
Peire d'Alvernhe.
These poets favoured the trobar clus or ric or a hybrid of the two.
They were often moralising in tone and critical of contemporary courtly
society.
Another early school, whose style seems to have fallen out of favour, was
the "Gascon school" of Cercamon, Peire de Valeira, and Guiraut de Calanso.
Cercamon was said by his biographer to have composed in the "old style" (la
uzansa antiga) and Guiraut's songs were d'aquella saison ("of that time").
This style of poetry seems to be attached to early troubadours from
Gascony and was characterised by references to nature: leaves, flowers, birds,
and their songs.
This Gascon "literary fad" was unpopular in Provence in the early 13th
century, harming the reputation of the poets associated with it.
Ithe late 13th century a school arose at Béziers, once the centre of
pre-Albigensian Languedoc and of the Trencavel lordships, in the 1260s–80s.
Three poets epitomise this "school":Bernart d'Auriac, Joan Esteve, Joan
Miralhas, and Raimon Gaucelm.
All three were natives of Béziers and lived there.
All three were members of the urban middle class and no courtesans.
Miralhas was possibly a potter and Bernart was a mayestre (teacher).
All three were supporters of the French king Louis IX and the French
aristocracy against the native Occitan nobility.
They have been described as "Gallicised". Raimon Gaucelm supported the
Eighth Crusade and even wrote a planh, the only known one of its kind, to a
burgher of Béziers.
Joan Esteve and Bernart both composed in support of the French in the
Aragonese Crusade.
The Béziers are a shining example of the transformation of Occitania in
the aftermath of the Albigensian Crusade, but also of the ability of
troubadours to survive it.
Troubadours, at least after their style became established, usually
followed some set of "rules", like those of the Leys d'amors.
Initially all troubadour verses were called simply "vers", yet this soon
came to be reserved for only love songs and was later replaced by canso,
though the term lived on as an antique expression for the troubadours' early
works and was even employed with a more technically meaning by the last
generation of troubadours, when it was thought to derive from the Latin word
"verus" (truth) and was thus used to describe moralising or didactic pieces.
The early troubadours developed many genres and these only proliferated as
rules of composition came to be put in writing.
The known genres are -- from A to Z:
alba (morning song)— the song of a lover as dawn approaches, often with a
watchman warning of the approach of a lady's jealous husband,
arlabecca — a song defined by poetic metre, but perhaps once related to
the rebec
canso, originally vers, also chanso or canço— the love song, usually
consisting of five or six stanzas with an envoi
cobla esparsa— a stand-alone stanza
comiat— a song renouncing a lover
crusade song (canso de crozada)— a song about the Crusades, usually
encouraging them
dansa or balada— a lively dance song with a refrain
descort— a song heavily discordant in verse form and/or feeling
desdansa— a dance designed for sad occasions
devinalh— a riddle or cryptogram
ensenhamen— a long didactic poem, usually not divided into stanzas,
teaching a moral or practical lesson
enuig— a poem expressing indignation or feelings of insult
escondig— a lover's apology
estampida— a dance-like song
gap— a boasting song, often presented as a challenge, often similar to
modern sports chants
maldit— a song complaining about a lady's behaviour and character
partimen— a poetical exchange between two or more poets in which one is
presented with a dilemma by another and responds
pastorela— the tale of the love request of a knight to a shepherdess
planh— a lament, especially on the death of some important figure
plazer— a poem expressing pleasure
salut d'amor— a love letter addressed to another, not always one's lover.
Cfr. Elgar.
serena— the song of a lover waiting impatiently for the evening (to
consummate his love)
sestina— highly structured verse form
sirventes— a political poem or satire, originally put in the mouth of a
paid soldier (sirvens)
sonnet (sonet)— an Italian genre imported into Occitan verse in the 13th
century
tenso— a poetical debate which was usually an exchange between two poets,
but could be fictional
torneyamen— a poetical debate between three or more persons, often with a
judge (like a tournament)
viadeira— a traveller's complaint
All these genres were highly fluid.
A cross between a sirventes and a canso was a meg-sirventes
(half-sirventes).
A tenso could be "invented" by a single poet; an alba or canso could be
written with religious significance, addressed to God or the Virgin.
A sirventes may be nothing more than a political attack.
The maldit and the comiat were often connected as amaldit-comiat and they
could be used to attack and renounce a figure other than a lady or a lover,
like a commanding officer (when combined, in a way, with the sirventes).
Peire Bremon Ricas Novas uses the term mieja chanso (half song) and
Cerverí de Girona uses a similar phrase, miga canço, both to refer to a short
canso and not a mixture of genres as sometimes supposed. Cerverí's mig (or
meig) vers e miga canço was a vers in the new sense (a moralising song) that
was also highly critical and thus combined the canso and thesirventes.
Among the more than one hundred works of Cerverí de Girona are many songs
with unique labels, which may correspond more to "titles" than "genres",
but that is debatable:peguesca (nonsense), espingadura (flageolet song), libel
(legal petition), esdemessa (leap), somni (dream), acuyndamen (challenge),
desirança (nostalgia), aniversari (anniversary),serena (serene).
Most "Crusading songs" are classified either as cansos or sirventes but
sometimes separately. Some styles became popular in other languages and in
other literary or musical traditions. In French, the alba became the aubade,
the pastorela the pastourelle, and the partimen the jeu parti. The sestina
became popular in Italian literature.
The troubadours were not averse to borrowing either. The planh developed
out of the Latin planctus and the sonnet was stolen from the Sicilian
School. Interestingly, the basse danse (bassa dansa) was first mentioned in
the
troubadour tradition (c. 1324), but only as being performed by jongleurs.
Troubadours performed their own songs.
Jongleurs (performers) and cantaires (singers) also performed troubadours'
songs.
They could work from chansonniers, many of which have survived, or
possibly from more rudimentary (and temporary) songbooks, none of which have
survived, if they even existed. Some troubadours, like Arnaut de Maruelh, had
their own jongleurs who were dedicated to singing their patron's work.
Arnaut'sjoglar et cantaire, probably both a singer and a messenger, who carried
his love songs to his lady, was Pistoleta.
The messenger was commonplace in troubadour poetry; many songs reference a
messenger who will bring it to its intended ear. A troubadour often stayed
with a noble patron of his own and entertained his court with his songs.
Court songs could be used not only as entertainment but also as propaganda,
praising the patron, mocking his enemies, encouraging his wars, teaching
ethics and etiquette, and maintaining religious unity.
The court was not the only venue for troubadour performance.
Competitions were held from an early date. According to the vida of the
Monge de Montaudon, he received a sparrow hawk, a prized hunting bird, for his
poetry from the cour du Puy, some sort of poetry society associated with
the court of Alfonso II of Aragon.
The most famous contests were held in the twilight of the troubadours in
the 14th and 15th centuries. The jocs florals held by the Consistori del Gay
Saber at Toulouse, by Peter IV of Aragon at Lleida, and the Consistori de
la Gaya Sciència at Barcelonaawarded floral prizes to the best poetry in
various categories, judging it by its accordance with a code called the Leys
d'amors.
Troubadour songs are still performed and recorded today, albeit rarely.
Troubadour songs were usually monophonic.
Fewer than 300 melodies out of an estimated 2500 survive.
Most were composed by the troubadours themselves.
Some were set to pre-existing pieces of music.
Raimbaut de Vaqueyras wrote his Kalenda maya ("The Calends of May") to
music composed by jongleurs at Montferrat.
Beginning in the early 13th century, the spread of Occitan verse demanded
grammars and dictionaries, especially for those whose native tongue was not
Occitan, such as the Catalan and Italian troubadours, and their imitators.
The production of such works only increased with the academisation of the
troubadour lyric.
Razos de trobar, "Explanations of composition", by Raimon Vidalc: a prose
guide to poetic composition that defends the superiority of Occitan over
other vernaculars. Occitan–Italian dictionary.
Donatz proensals, "Provençal Donatus", by Uc Faiditc: an Occitan imitation
of Latin grammarian Aelius Donatus. A rhymary and Latin–Occitan dictionary
designed for Italians.
Doctrina de compondre dictats, "Doctrinal of understanding sayings",
Anonymous, possibly Raimon Vidallate: a catalogue and explanation of the
different poetic genres. It expands on the Razos and may be the concluding
section
of the Regles of Jaufre de Foixa.
Lo breviari d'amors, "Breviary of love", by Matfre Ermengau, a pious
encyclopedia, the last section of which, "Perilhos tractatz d'amor de donas,
seguon qu'en han tractat li antic trobador en lurs cansos", is an Occitan
grammar.
Doctrina d'acort, "Doctrinal of concordance" by Terramagnino da Pisa, a
condensed verse adaptation of the Razos, poorly preserved in the manuscripts.
Regles de trobar, "Rules of composition", Jaufre de Foixa, Sicilia,
contains many examples of troubadour verse, designed to augment the Razos de
trobar.
Mirall de trobar, "Mirror of composition", Berenguer d'Anoia, mainly
covers rhetoric and errors, and is littered with examples of troubadour verse.
Cançoneret de Ripoll, "Little Chansonnier of Ripoll", Anonymous,
Roussillon or Cerdagne: a chansonnier containing a unique grammar, including a
catalogue of poetic genres, expands on theDoctrina de compondre dictats and
the
Leys d'amors.
Leys d'amors, "Laws of love", by Guilhem Molinier1328–37, Toulouse, prose
rules governing the Consistori del Gay Saber and the Consistori de
Barcelona.
Leys d'amors,"Laws of love", Anonymous, Toulouse: verse adaptation of the
prose Leys.
Leys d'amors, "Laws of love", Joan de Castellnou, Toulouse, an expanded,
prose version of the previous Leys.
Doctrinal de trobar, "Doctrinal of composition", Raimon de Cornetc,
Dedicated to Peter IV of Aragon, identical in structure to the Leys of Guilhem
Molinier.
Glosari, "Glossary", by Joan de Castellnou: a commentary on the Doctrinal
de trobar.
Compendi, "Compendium", by Joan de Castellnou, a catalogue of all the
"vices" one can commit by transgressing the Leys etc.
Libre de concordances or Diccionari de rims)"Book of concordances" or
"Dictionary of rhymes"), by Jaume March, an Occitan rhymary for Catalans.
Torcimany, "Translation", by Luys d'Averçólate, a rhymary and Catalan–
Occitan dictionary.
Some 2,600 poems or fragments of poems have survived from around 450
identifiable troubadours.
They are largely preserved in songbooks called chansonniers made for
wealthy patrons.
Troubadour songs are generally referred to by their incipits, that is,
their opening lines.
If this is long, or after it has already been mentioned, an abbreviation
of the incipit may be used for convenience.
A few troubadour songs are known by "nicknames", thus D'un sirventes far
by Guilhem Figueira is commonly called the Sirventes contra Roma. When a
writer seeks to avoid using unglossed Occitan, the incipit of the song may be
given in translation instead or a title may even be invented to reflect the
theme of the work. Especially in translations designed for a popular
audience, such as Ezra Pound's, English titles are commonly invented by the
translator/editor. There are examples, however, of troubadour songs given
Occitan titles in the manuscripts, such as an anonymous pastorela that begins
Mentre per una ribeira, which is entitled Porquieira.
The number of Occitan parchment chansonniers given as extant varies
between authors, depending on how they treat fragmentary and multilingual
manuscripts.
Conventionally, fragments are classified as fragments of the surviving
chansonnier they most closely resemble and not as chansonniers in their own
right. Some chansonniers have received both Occitan and French letters:
troubadour D is trouvère H, W is M and X is U.
The lettering (siglas) was introduced by Karl Bartsch, who placed sources
he considered more reliable higher in the alphabet.
This system is imperfect, however, since many of the chansonniers produced
for an Italian audience are heavily edited and do not necessarily more
closely resemble the original compositions.
While parchment chansonniers are more durable, paper ones also exist and
have received lower-case siglas.
Cheers,
Speranza
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