Agricola, Alexander (EN)

Agricola Alexander, Ackerman, *circa 1457 Gandawa, †15 August 1506 Valladolid, Dutch composer and singer. In the epitaph of his death in Symphoniae iucundae… (published by G. Rhav, 1538) he is recognised as a Belgian. Based on the same epitaph, Agricola’s year of birth was incorrectly calculated (1546), archival documents indicate a later date. He was the illegitimate son of Ghent townspeople: Lijsbette Naps, a merchant, and Heinric Ackerman, the manager of a wealthy house. There is no information about his musical education. G. Crétin, in his lament for Ockeghem’s death, mentions Agricola as a fellow student at the master’s school. In 1476, the musician appeared in Cambrai. The next mention of him comes from 1491, when he voluntarily left the French royal court to go via Mantua to Florence, where on 1 October, he was employed as a singer in the cathedral band. He met H. Isaac there. Called to return by King Charles VIII, he resigned from this job on 1 June 1492, but before he returned to his French employer at the end of the year, he spent a few more weeks at the Neapolitan court of King Ferdinand I. Attempts to employ Agricola in Naples the following year failed, but the musician came to this city again at the beginning of 1494, already being in the service of Piero the Unfortunate. His fate in the next 6 years is unknown. From 16 August 1500, he served as chapellain et chantre in the band of Philip the Fair, Duke of Burgundy, in Brussels; he took part in both of the prince’s trips to Spain (1501, 1505/1506). During the second journey, he died – like Philip – of the plague. On 22 July 1506, his name appears for the last time in the band’s accounts.

Among Agricola’s 5 masses published by Petrucci, Missa Malheur me bat and Missa Je ne demande stand out for their great freedom in developing the cantus firmus melody. As a composer belonging to the generation of Josquin des Prez and H. Isaac, Agricola combined the late Burgundian heritage of G. Dufay with Dutch polyphony vocal by J. Ockeghem. He often used the same musical arrangement both for the motet text and for the secular chanson (e.g. the motet Ave que sublimaris ad sidera is a counterfactual of the chanson Comme femme), on the other hand, he often arranged the same melody in completely different styles (compare e.g. three versions of D’un autre amer and two of Tout a par moy). Most of his chansons are in the rondeau form. Agricola’s compositional style is characterised by a wealth of decorative figurations, which are an individual feature of his work.

Literature: H. Kinzel Der deutsche Musiker A. Agricola in seinen weltlichen Werken, Prague 1934; P. Muller A. Agricola Seine Missa In minen zin, Marburg 1939; E.R. Lerner The Sacred Music of A. Agricola, 4 vol., Yale University. 1958; E.R. Lerner The “German” Works of A. Agricola, “The Music Quarterly” XLVI, 1960, M. Picker A Letter of Charles VIII of France Concerning A. Agricola., in: Aspects of Medieval and Renaissance Music, G. Reese’s festschrift, ed. J. LaRue, New York 1966, ²1978; A.W. Atlas A. Agricola and Ferrante I of Naples, “Journal of American Musicological Society” XXX, 1977; D. Kämper Instrumentale Stilelemente bei A. Agricola, “Tijdschrift van de Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muziekgeschiedenis” XXVIII, 1978; R.H. Oswin Florence, Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale, Manuscript Magliabechiano XIX 178. A Late 15th Century Source of Secular Music, dissertation, University of Auckland 1982; H.M. Brown A “New” Chansonnier of the Early Sixteenth Century in the University of Uppsala. A Preliminary Report, “Musica Disciplina” XXXVII, 1983; A.W. Atlas Music at the Aragonese Court of Naples, Cambridge 1985; S.F. Weiss Bologna Q18. Some Reflections on Content and Context, „Journal of American Musicological Society” XLI, 1988; A.W Atlas, A.M. Cummings Agricola, Ghiselin and Alfonso II of Naples, “Journal of Musicology” XVII, 1989; I. Cholij Borrowed Music. ‘Allez regrets’ and the Use of Pre-Existent Material, w: Companion to Medieval and Renaissance Music, ed. T.W. Knighton, D. Fallows, London 1992. R.C. Wegman Agricola, Bordon and Obrecht at Ghent: Discoveries and revisions, “Revue belge de musicologie/Belgisch tijdschrift voor muziekwetenschap” LI, 1997; J. Rifkin Alexander Agricola and Cambrai: A postscript, „Tijdschrift van de Koninklijke Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muziekgeschiedenis” LIV, 2004; F. Fitch Agricola and the rhizome: An aesthetic of the late cantus firmus Mass, “Revue belge de musicologie/Belgisch tijdschrift voor muziekwetenschap” LIX, 2005; W. Edwards Alexander Agricola and intuitive syllable deployment, “Early Music” XXXIV, 2006; F. Fitch Agricola and the rhizome II: Contrapuntal ramifications, “Troja: Trossinger Jahrbuch für Renaissancemusik” VI, 2006; R.C. Wegman “Pater meus agricola est”: The early years of Alexander Agricola, “Early Music” XXXIV, 2006; P. Woetmann Christoffersen Alexander Agricola’s vocal style: “Bizarre” and “surely”, or the flower of the singer’s art?, “Troja: Trossinger Jahrbuch für Renaissancemusik” VI, 2006; F. Fitch Text, Music, and Mannerist Aesthetics in Agricola’s Songs, “Troja: Trossinger Jahrbuch für Renaissancemusik” VII, 2007; F. Fitch “Virtual” ascriptions in Ms. AugsS 142a: A window on Alexander Agricola’s late style, “Journal of the Alamire Foundation” IV, 2012; M. Roth Agricola und das Verkehrte: Zum Umgang mit satztechnischen Idiosynkrasien in Musik des späten 15. Jahrhunderts, “Zeitschrift der Gesellschaft für Musiktheorie” XV, 2018.

Literatura:

H. Kinzel Der deutsche Musiker A. Agricola in seinen weltlichen Werken, Praga 1934; P. Muller A. Agricola Seine Missa In minen zin, Marburg 1939;

E.R. Lerner The Sacred Music of A. Agricola, 4 t., Yale University. 1958;

E.R. Lerner The „German” Works of A. Agricola, „The Music Quarterly” XLVI, 1960, M. Picker A Letter of Charles VIII of France Concerning A. Agricola., w: Aspects of Medieval and Renaissance Music, księdze pamiątkowej G. Reese’a, red. J. LaRue, Nowy Jork 1966, ²1978;

A.W. Atlas A. Agricola and Ferrante I of Naples, „Journal of American Musicological Society” XXX, 1977;

D. Kämper Instrumentale Stilelemente bei A. Agricola, „Tijdschrift van de Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muziekgeschiedenis” XXVIII, 1978;

R.H. Oswin Florence, Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale, Manuscript Magliabechiano XIX 178. A Late 15th Century Source of Secular Music, dysertacja, University of Auckland 1982;

H.M. Brown A „New” Chansonnier of the Early Sixteenth Century in the University of Uppsala. A Preliminary Report, „Musica Disciplina” XXXVII, 1983;

A.W. Atlas Music at the Aragonese Court of Naples, Cambridge 1985;

S.F. Weiss Bologna Q18. Some Reflections on Content and Context, „Journal of American Musicological Society”XLI, 1988;

A.W Atlas, A.M. Cummings Agricola, Ghiselin and Alfonso II of Naples, „Journal of Musicology” XVII, 1989;

I. Cholij Borrowed Music. ‘Allez regrets’ and the Use of Pre-Existent Material, w: Companion to Medieval and Renaissance Music, red. T.W. Knighton, D. Fallows, Londyn 1992. R.C. Wegman Agricola, Bordon and Obrecht at Ghent: Discoveries and revisions, „Revue belge de musicologie/Belgisch tijdschrift voor muziekwetenschap” LI, 1997;

J. Rifkin Alexander Agricola and Cambrai: A postscript, „Tijdschrift van de Koninklijke Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muziekgeschiedenis” LIV, 2004;

F. Fitch Agricola and the rhizome: An aesthetic of the late cantus firmus Mass, „Revue belge de musicologie/Belgisch tijdschrift voor muziekwetenschap” LIX, 2005;

W. Edwards Alexander Agricola and intuitive syllable deployment, „Early Music” XXXIV, 2006;

F. Fitch Agricola and the rhizome II: Contrapuntal ramifications, „Troja: Trossinger Jahrbuch für Renaissancemusik” VI, 2006;

R.C. Wegman „Pater meus agricola est”: The early years of Alexander Agricola, „Early Music” XXXIV, 2006;

P. Woetmann Christoffersen Alexander Agricola’s vocal style: „Bizarre” and „surely”, or the flower of the singer’s art?, „Troja: Trossinger Jahrbuch für Renaissancemusik” VI, 2006;

F. Fitch Text, Music, and Mannerist Aesthetics in Agricola’s Songs, „Troja: Trossinger Jahrbuch für Renaissancemusik” VII, 2007;

F. Fitch „Virtual” ascriptions in Ms. AugsS 142a: A window on Alexander Agricola’s late style, „Journal of the Alamire Foundation” IV, 2012;

M. Roth Agricola und das Verkehrte: Zum Umgang mit satztechnischen Idiosynkrasien in Musik des späten 15. Jahrhunderts, „Zeitschrift der Gesellschaft für Musiktheorie” XV, 2018.