Music Library Special Collections
March / April 2023 Display
Second grand concert
Piano concerto no. 2 in F minor, op. 21
Chopin, Frederic, 1810-1849
“Facsimile edition of the manuscript held in the National Library in Warsaw (Mu. 215), edited by the Fryderyk Chopin Institue Warsaw, Bernardinum Pelplin, Yshodo Co. Ltd. Tokyo, 2005” – Colophon
Limited ed. Of 500 numbered copies
- Created when Chopin was around 20 years old.
- Chopin’s first love was his inspiration for this piece. (Click the link below to find out who it was)
- The manuscript was evacuated out of Poland in the face of the German invasion in September of 1939. Many other manuscripts were lost or destroyed making this manuscript a valuable artifact.
- Click here to view information in the JMU catalog.
- Click here to learn more about this piece and the manuscript.
Allein zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 33: Kantate zum 13. Sonntag nach Trinitatis (komponiert zum 3. September 1724)
Bach, Johann Sebastian, 1685-1750
Facsimile score consists of 12 folios, reproduced from the autograph score held by the Scheide Library, Princeton, NJ.
The 11 facsimile parts are reproduced from the original parts held by the Bach-Archiv Leipzig, Thomana-Sammlung.
The text booklet is reproduced from the copy held by the Russische Nationallbibliothek St. Petersburg.
- Published to commemorate the 325th anniversary of Bach’s birth on March 21st, 2010.
- Limited edition of 100 copies.
- One of the few works by Bach for which material from the first performance is almost complete and have been preserved.
- Click here to view information in the JMU catalog.
- Click here to learn more about this piece and this facsimile reproduction.
Messiah: HWV 56: autograph, the British Library, London
Handel, George Frideric, 1685-1756
Reproduction of the holograph full score, London, British Library.
The facsimile is opened to the beginning of the Hallelujah Chorus, which is in the 3rd part, Easter.
- First performed on April 13, 1742 with high acclaim.
- In 2009, The British Library and Barenreiter together made the autograph score to mark the 250th anniversary of Handel’s death.
- Click here to view information in the JMU catalog.
- Click here to learn more about this piece and this facsimile reproduction from the publisher.
January / February 2023 Display
The Eaton Choirbook was written in the years 1500 – 1504. It was originally used for religious services in the college’s chapel. The chapel choir would gather around the book to sing from it (can you imagine being the person who had poor vision & couldn’t see the notes clearly?). This book is the earliest of the Tudor Choirbooks and is the most complete one to have survived until present day. As a matter of fact, the choirbook was given the honor of being inscribed on the UK UNESCO Memory of the World Register just this past year (joining the ranks of documents such as the Magna Carta and the Domesday Book). It was the first manuscript of music to receive this honor. This facsimile as a whole is definitely one marvelous work – the art in it is spectacular (and sometimes a bit creepy)…
Click here to view information in the JMU catalog.
Le Chansonnier Cordiforme
Chansonnier de Jean de Montchenu
The book gets its name from Jean de Montchenu, a nobleman, apostolic prothonotary, Bishop of Agen (1477) and later of Vivier (1478-1497) who commissioned the work. The music repertoire consists of French and Italian songs written by Dufay Ockegem, Busnois and their contemporaries. Limited editions of the 1380 copies are bound in red velvet after the original; 2-part slipcase covered in green leather.
When closed this manuscript is shaped like a heart; when open it becomes two hearts, joined, representing two lovers who send love messages to one another in each one of the songs. When the word “heart” appears in the texts, it is represented by a pictogram. Two full-page illustrations appear in the codex. In the first, Cupid throws arrows at a young girl while at his side Fortune spins his wheel. In the other, two lovers approach on another lovingly. Throughout the manuscript, the borders include animals, birds, dogs, cats and all kinds of flowers and plants highlighted in abundant and delicate gold.
Click here to view information in the JMU Catalog.
The Winchester Troper is a collection of sacred music compiled through the years 500 AD until 1400 AD.
An interesting observation is that the notation changes as one progresses through the book. The notation in the beginning of the book is strictly neumes, but closer to the end the notation looks increasingly similar to the notation we use today.
Click here to view information in the JMU Catalog.
Codex Las Huelgas
(Códice de canto polifonico)
Discovered by two monks in 1904, the Códice de canto polifonico, or Codex Las Huelgas, is a liturgical codex copied sometime between 1300 and 1325. It was preserved in the Las Huelgas convent founded by Alfonso VIII in Burgos, Spain. This codex is an important piece of musical and cultural history, as there is a strong possibility it was created for the use of the Las Huelgas nuns, who may have performed many of the pieces contained within. The codex comprises both monophonic and polyphonic pieces, in forms popular from the 11th to the 14th century. Nearly 190 pieces are included, and over half of them are unique to this manuscript.
This facsimile reproduction of the original Codex was created as a joint project of the publishing company Testimonio and the National Heritage agency of Spain. Using state of the art processes, specially manufactured paper, and great attention to detail, the codex has been faithfully reproduced here within leather binding, which is tooled in a 13-15th century Gothic style. 980 copies were created.
One of the last pages of the Las Huelgas Codex, shows an image of a seated man, who is receiving a blessing from a divine hand. The hand is giving him what looks to be a chained book, while the man proclaims “in manus tuas domine commendo spiritum” (“into your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit”). This leaf is very worn and faded, with some holes, but the vibrant red color and the man’s upturned eye can still be seen.
Click here to view information in the JMU Catalog.
Le Roman de Fauvel: in the edition of Mesire Chaillou de Pesstain: a reproductions in facsimile of the complete manuscript, Paris, Bibliotheque nationale, fonds francais 146.
Gervais de Bus' great poetic narrative written between 1310 and 1314 with interpolations of over 150 monophonic songs and polyphonic motets, including some of the works of Phillipe de Vitry. The name Fauvel is derived from the first letters of Flaterie, Avarice, Vilanie, Variété, Envie, Lascheté. Men of all walks and conditions try to cleanse Fauvel. The Roman is a sharp attack on the failings of the medieval church and the political establishment.
Click here to view information in the JMU Catalog.