Seminar in Medieval and Renaissance Music - Emperor Frederick III as patron of music
28th January 2021, 5:00 pm
Grantley McDonald (University of Oxford)
Discussants: Reinhard Strohm (University of Oxford), Andreas Zajic (University of Vienna) and Catherine Saucier (Arizona State University)
Abstract: Frederick III (born 1415, ruled 1440–1493) was the first Habsburg to be crowned as Holy Roman Emperor. This paper will discuss several aspects of his musical patronage during his long reign. Firstly, it presents new evidence for the membership of his chapel. Secondly, it discusses problems presented by the surviving sources of polyphonic music containing music written by musicians associated with Frederick’s court, such as Johannes Brassart and Johannes Tourout. Thirdly, it presents a chant book from Frederick’s collection, which appears to record the liturgy of St Jerome’s convent in Vienna, a religious house founded in 1378 for fallen women. This paper presents a sometimes unexpected view of the cultural programme of this pivotal figure in fifteenth-century Imperial politics.
This seminar will be held on Zoom. If you would like to attend, please register using this form.