Issac Vossius's de Poematum Cantu et Viribus Rhythmi 1673 On the Music of Poetry and Power of Rhythm |
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| Author:
| Martens, Peter |
| Series title: | Music Theory in Britain, 1500-1700: Critical Editions Ser. |
| ISBN: | 978-0-7546-6999-9 |
| Publication Date: | Jan 2021 |
| Publisher: | Routledge
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| Book Format: | Hardback |
| List Price: | USD $149.95 |
Book Description:
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Dr Peter Martens provides the very first edited English translation of, and commentary on, De Poematum, the late seventeenth-century work of Continental musical humanism. This treatise plays an important but poorly understood role in the development of rhythmopoeia; Isaac Vossius continues the arguments of figures such as Vincenzo Galilei and Marin Mersenne - desiring to link linguistic rhythm, music, and the passions - by proposing a practical, if undemonstrated, method for doing so...
More DescriptionDr Peter Martens provides the very first edited English translation of, and commentary on, De Poematum, the late seventeenth-century work of Continental musical humanism. This treatise plays an important but poorly understood role in the development of rhythmopoeia; Isaac Vossius continues the arguments of figures such as Vincenzo Galilei and Marin Mersenne - desiring to link linguistic rhythm, music, and the passions - by proposing a practical, if undemonstrated, method for doing so based on ancient poetic feet. Vossius, or more correctly, De poematum, was often cited during the century after its publication, and no modern treatment of rhythmopoeia seems complete without a citation or very short excerpt from this work. There is little secondary literature that focuses on this treatise, but what does exist links this work directly to John Dryden's composition of his 1687 and 1697 St. Cecilia odes, and their musical settings by Giovanni Battista Draghi and Jeremiah Clarke, respectively. In Dean Mace and H. Neville Davies' debate over the extent of Vossius's influence on these works can be found a rich picture of the contentious issues surrounding text-setting and musical affect that so occupied a great many writers in late-seventeenth-century England. A full translation and accompanying discussion of Vossius's own sources and musical influences allows English-language students and scholars to access and study this work in the depth and to the degree it deserves.