Dunstable, John (EN)

Dunstable John, *probably between 1380 and 1390, †24 December 1453 London, English musician and composer. There is a lack of detailed information about his life and work. From 17th-century sources and epitaphs that are now lost, we know that he was a renowned musician, as well as an astronomer and mathematician; treatises on mathematics and astronomy copied by Dunstable have been preserved in the libraries of Oxford and Cambridge. One of the treatises (preserved in Cambridge, St John’s College Library, No. 162) mentions that Dunstable was a canon and musician to Prince John of Bedford. Indeed, Dunstable held the position of canon at Hereford Cathedral from 1419 to 1440, and it cannot be ruled out that between 1422 and 1435 he resided permanently or temporarily in Paris alongside the Duke of Bedford, who, following the death of his brother, King Henry V of England, served as regent in France. Prince Bedford often travelled with his court; for instance, on 17 June 1426 he was at St Albans Abbey for the solemn celebration of the monastery’s patron saint’s feast day. Dunstable was buried in 1453 at St Stephen’s Church in Walbrook. Dunstable’s name was mentioned repeatedly in various sources, for example in Martin Le Franc’s poem Le champion des dames (1437–42), and particularly in musical treatises of the 15th and 16th centuries, including those by J. Tinctoris, J. Hothby, F. Gaffurius, G. Spataro, G. del Lago, S. Heyden. In 17th-century and later literature, much false information about Dunstable was reported and repeated; certain writings were erroneously attributed to him, and he was confused with other contemporaries.

Dunstable enjoyed great renown amongst his contemporaries and was frequently mentioned alongside Dufay and Binchois as a composer worthy of emulation. J. Tinctoris held him in particularly high regard, considering him the leader of the English musical school at the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries and the creator of a musical style heralding a new era in the history of music. It is therefore no surprise that the significance of Dunstable’s work for the development of European music of that period has long been a subject of research, and in particular the connection between this issue and the question of English influences on the music of other European centres (especially on the composers of the Burgundian school) has led to numerous disputes and controversies centring on the question of the sound of European music in the early 15th century Dunstable was one of the most talented co-founders of the English school; in his work, he synthesised and presented its entire compositional and technical legacy in a classical form. Hence, the characterisation of Dunstable’s work coincides almost entirely with the description of the English school’s style. In his work, Dunstable drew upon many sources: first and foremost the tradition of native music (English descant, gymel, conductus), then to certain achievements of 14th-century foreign composers, mainly French and Italian (ballade technique, isorhythm, syllabic treatment of the text), as well as to contemporary Burgundian music (descant-type melody).

Among the most characteristic features of the English school, which are fully reflected in Dunstable’s work, the most notable is a new approach to the tonal structure of a piece. This involves, amongst other things, avoiding unprepared dissonances or reducing them solely to the role of embellishments and ornaments (passing tones, secondary tones, substitute tones, etc.). Here, for the first time, the principle of preparing dissonances—used in the melody as fundamental notes—was realised, a practice that would endure for several centuries. Dunstable also drew upon the traditional English polyphonic musical pursuit of a full sound through the extensive use of imperfect consonances (in particular thirds and sixths), developing the so-called panconsonant style. The resulting change in the conception and treatment of tonal structure was of fundamental importance in the history of music and became one of the factors behind the Renaissance breakthrough in music.

Dunstable’s works serve as prime examples of melodic development in the spirit of the English school; they are characterised by a cantilena, flowing and expressive melodic style, a calm and simple rhythm, and the use of all manner of melismas and ornaments. A hallmark here is the characteristic melodic progression, built from a spread triad, a sixth and descending seconds, usually appearing at the beginning of the composition. In terms of other means of shaping form and texture, Dunstable’s works also exhibit the characteristics of the English school (e.g. the treatment of voices, particularly the preference for a long-note tenor and descant technique), which in no way diminishes his individual contribution in this regard. The prominent role of the chant in Dunstable’s oeuvre is particularly noteworthy. The fixed melodies in his works derive mainly from the local version of plainchant, which differs from the Roman version, and they typically appear either as a variably treated cantus planus in the tenor, or as ornamented and embellished melodic lines in the discant. At times, the plainchant served as material upon which Dunstable based the construction of the other voices (apart from the cantus firmus); ornamented, treated variationally, and divided into fragments, it is sometimes difficult to detect and identify. Dunstable’s entire output is characterised by a richness of means and melodic inventiveness, an emphasis on the emotional expressiveness of melody, combined with a lack of interest in rhythmic experimentation characteristic of the music of other centres at that time.

Given the current state of research, it is difficult to establish a precise chronology of Dunstable’s works or to trace the development of his musical style. He probably began his creative career with isorhythmic compositions and mass settings in the ballade style, as well as those based on the old English descant and the gymel technique, before moving on to a developed descant technique.

Dunstable composed exclusively vocal music, for three and four voices, based mainly on religious texts. Dunstable’s three surviving secular works, among which O rosa bella gained considerable popularity thanks to its melodic expressiveness, represent the 14th-century style of the ballade and the rondeau. The core of his output, both in terms of quantity and quality, consisted, in accordance with the practice of the time, of motets and settings of the Mass ordinary.

Dunstable’s motet compositions are highly varied in terms of form and technique. Dunstable composed isorhythmic motets, free cantilena-style motets, motets based on a plainchant cantus firmus, and other variations of the genre, though he did not treat individual types of motets in a formulaic manner, combining various techniques and compositional approaches. Of his 32 motets, 12 feature the use of isorhythm throughout the entire piece, in fragments, or in one of the voices (most often the tenor). These compositions, which are expansive, multi-textual, and in three parts, were likely intended for major church ceremonies. Most of the isorhythmic motets belong to Dunstable’s earliest compositions, drawing on 14th-century French traditions; some, however, such as Salve scema sanctitatis, already show close ties to Dunstable’s characteristic tenor technique and the melodic style typical of the English school

Cantilena-style motets are the most numerous in Dunstable’s oeuvre. This is the most diverse type. It includes: 1) works employing a developed descant technique, entirely the composer’s own invention, free in form, with a richly developed melismatic melody in the highest voice (e.g. the group of Marian motets intended for the Divine Office); 2) works in a mixed, melismatic-declamatory style, not associated with a specific cantus firmus, whose texture, on the one hand, clearly alludes in parts to the old conductus (the note against note technique), whilst on the other hand demonstrating melodic inventiveness and freedom in the treatment of the material across all voices. The note against note structure is embellished by melismas placed at the ends of phrases. At the same time, the composer took care to ensure the proper declamation of the text, as a result of which the rhythm of the piece is determined by the structure of the verbal text (e.g. Quam pulcra es, Descendi in ortum meum). Since the time of Dunstable, this style has become characteristic of much of 15th-century English music; 3) works in the descant-tenor style, in which two elements play an equal role in shaping the form: the descant – as the dominant voice; with a characteristic melody, employing colouration and variation of material derived from the composer’s own invention or from other sources, most of which remain undiscovered to this day, and the tenor – as the structural basis of the composition, sustained in long note values, unornamented, most often taken from the chant (Specialis virgo). Such structures were introduced into compositional practice for the first time by Dunstable.

The cantus firmus technique plays a significant role in Dunstable’s oeuvre, even though few motets based on this compositional approach have survived. These are primarily works featuring a long-note cantus firmus in the tenor part, recurring several times throughout the piece with slight variations, or works with a cantus firmus in the treble part slightly modified by the use of ornaments (Ave Regina, Regina caeli), and less frequently with a cantus firmus in the middle voice (Crux fidelis). Works based on the cantus firmus also tend to employ a variable number of voices in specific sections of the piece, with a particular preference for two-voice structures. Only occasionally did Dunstable use the fauxbourdon technique in his motets (Ave maris Stella), and he rarely drew upon the practice of the gymel (Crux fidelis).

Dunstable’s principal contribution to the development of the Mass lies in his significant advancement of the process of establishing a unified Mass cycle. This can be observed even in the few surviving examples of the genre. Dunstable combined individual sections of the Ordinary, mainly isorhythmic ones, into Mass pairs, and subsequently into 3- and 4-part cycles based on the same cantus firmus. In the development of the cycle, the tenor part played a unifying role in all sections. The individual parts were also often linked by a common leading motif, and the plainchant cantus firmus placed in the tenor was repeated throughout all the parts of the cycle with variational variations (Missa Rex saeculorum). In this way, Dunstable’s oeuvre includes an isorhythmic Mass cycle and a variational tenor Mass. Dunstable’s Ordinaries employ a tenor cantus firmus; most also make use of isorhythm (which distinguishes English music in this respect, as in other European centres isorhythm was found mainly in the motet), as well as other technical devices such as the old-style descant (the Sanctus – Agnus Dei), the later English descant style (Gloria – Credo – Sanctus and the 3-part Gloria – Credo pair), the descant-tenor style (the Gloria – Credo super Jesu Christe Filii Dei pair), and the gymel (the Sanctus – Agnus Dei pair). A few Mass movements were written in the ballade style.

As a classic representative of the English school, Dunstable’s work extends far beyond the local confines of a single centre, not only because of the international significance of the compositional and technical achievements of English musicians of that period, but also because it helped to bring the school’s achievements to the European continent. Unlike the works of other English composers, Dunstable’s compositions were known and popular in many musical centres across Europe from the very beginning. Consequently, they became, for a considerable time, a symbol of the achievements of the English school at the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries.

Literature: C. Stainer Dunstable and the Various Settings of “O rosa bella”, “Sammelbände der Internationalen Musikgesellschaft” II, 1900 No. 1; Ch.W. Pearce, W.B. Squire Notes on Dunstable, “Zeitschrift der Interenationalen Musikgesellschaft” 1904 No. 12; Ch. van den Borren The Genius of Dunstable, “Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association” XLVII, 1921; H. Davey History of English Music, 2nd edition London 1921; E.F. Jacob J. Dunstable’s Hymn to St Alban, in: Illustration to the Life of St Alban, ed. W.R.L. Lowe, E.F. Jacob, M.R. James, Oxford 1924; R. von Ficker Die frühen Messenkompositionen der Trienter Codices, “Studien zur Musikwissenschaft” XI, 1924; H. Besseler Von Dufay bis Josquin, ein Literaturbericht, “Zeitschrift für Musikwissenschaft” XI, 1928/29 No. 1; M. Bukofzer Über Leben und Werke von Dunstable, “Acta Musicologica” VIII, 1936; M. Bukofzer J. Dunstable and the Music of His Time, “Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association” LXV, 1938/39; K. Jeppesen Eine musikhistorische Korrespondenz des frühen Cinquecento, “Acta Musicologica” 1941 Nos. 1–4; G. de Van A Recently Discovered Source of Early Fifteenth Century Music. The Aosta Manuscript, “Musica Disciplina” II, 1948 No. 1–2; G. de Van The Manuscript Bologna Liceo Musicale Q 15 (olim 37), “Musica Disciplina” II, 1948 Nos. 3–4; H. Besseler Bourdon und Fauxbourdon, Leipzig 1950; M. Bukofzer Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Music, London 1950, reprint New York 1964; H. Besseler The Manuscript Bologna Biblioteca Universitaria 2216, “Musica Disciplina” IV, 1952 Nos. 1–3; M. Bukofzer J. Dunstable. A Quincentenary Report, “The Musical Quarterly” XL, 1954 No. 1; R. L. Greene J. Dunstable. A Quincentenary Supplement, “The Musical Quarterly” XL, 1954 No. 3; F. L. Harrison Music in Medieval Britain, London 1958, 2nd edition 1963; J.M. Chomiński Historia harmonii i kontrapunktu, vol. 1, Krakow 1958; NOHM, vol. 3: Ars Nova and the Renaissance. 1300–1540, ed. A. Hughes and G. Abraham, 1960; S.E. Brown junior The Motets of Ciconia, Dunstable and Dufay, Indiana University of Pennsylvania 1962 (thesis); E. Kovarik A Newly-Discovered Dunstable – Fragment, “Journal of the American Musicological Society” XXI, 1968 No. 1; M. and I. Bent Dufay, Dunstable, Plummer. A New Source, “Journal of the American Musicological Society” XXII, 1969 No. 3; R.E. Stahura A Stylistic Study of the Works of J. Dunstable, Indiana University of Pennsylvania 1969 (thesis); D.R. Hewlett A Possible Date for a Dunstable Motet, “The Music Review” XXXVI, 1975 No. 2; O. Burstyn Early 15th-Century Polyphonic Settings of Songs Antiphons, “Acta Musicologica” 1977 No. 2; A. Wathey Dunstable in France, “Music and Letters” LXVII, 1986; K. Hortschansky J. Dunstables Motette “Veni Sancte Spiritus-Veni Creator”. Zur Frage der Konstruktionsprinzipien, in Festschrift for A. Forchert, ed. G. Allroggen and D. Altenburg, Kassel 1986; G. Curtis Musical Design and the Rise of the Cyclic Mass, in: Companion to Medieval and Renaissance Music, ed. T.W. Knighton and D. Fallows, London 1992; P. Lanzilotta “Novae artis fans et origo”. J. Dunstable nel 6 centenario della nascita, “Studi musicali” XXII, 1993; K. Hortschansky Dunstable, Dante und die Zahlensymbolik. Nochmals zur Motette “Veni Sancte Spiritus”, in: De musica et cantu. Studien zur Geschichte der Kirchenmusik und der Oper, Festschrift for H. Hucke, ed. P. Cahn and A.-K. Heimer, Hildesheim 1993; D. Fallows Dunstable, Bedyngham and “O rosa bella”, “Journal of Musicology” XII, 1994; B. Gagnepain Du motet à teneur à la messe sur cantus firmus au temps de Dufay. Etapes d’une démarche unitaire, “Cahiers de l’IHRMES” (Institut d’Histoire et de Recherches sur la Musique aux Etats de Savoie) II, 1994; F. Carboni and A. Ziino Un elenco di composizioni musicali della seconda metà del Quattrocento, in Festschrift for F.A. D’Accone, Stuyvesant 1996; M. Bent A New Canonic Gloria and the Changing Profile of Dunstable, “Plainsong and Medieval Music” V, 1996.