Jacobus Gallus
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Jacobus Gallus (a.k.a. Jacob(us) Handl, Jacob(us) Händl; between 15 April and 31 July 155018 July 1591) was a late-
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
composer of presumed Slovene ethnicity.Skei/Pokorn, Grove online Born in
Carniola Carniola ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region still tend to identify with its traditional parts Upp ...
, which at the time was one of the
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
lands in the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
, he lived and worked in
Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...
and
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
during the last decade of his life.


Life

Gallus's name has been Slovenianized as ''Jakob Petelin'' (''petelin'' means 'rooster'; ''Handl'' and ''gallus'' mean the same in German and Latin, respectively). However, Gallus never used the name ''Petelin''. He was probably born in Reifnitz (now Ribnica, southern
Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
), although Slovene folk tradition also claims his birthplace to be at Šentviška Gora in the
Slovenian Littoral The Slovene Littoral, or simply Littoral (, ; ; ), is one of the traditional regions of Slovenia. The littoral in its name – for a coastal-adjacent area – recalls the former Austrian Littoral (''Avstrijsko Primorje''), the Habsburg poss ...
. He used the
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
form of his name, to which he often added the adjective ''Carniolus'', thus giving credit to his homeland
Carniola Carniola ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region still tend to identify with its traditional parts Upp ...
. Gallus most likely was educated at the Cistercian
Stična Abbey Stična Abbey (, also ; , Latin: ''Sitticum'') is the oldest monastery in Slovenia. It is the only Cistercian order, Cistercian monastery in the country still operating (the other was Kostanjevica Abbey in Kostanjevica na Krki). Its mother house ...
in Carniola. He left Carniola sometime between 1564 and 1566, traveling first to Austria, and later to
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
,
Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...
and
Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...
. For some time he lived at the
Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...
Melk Abbey Melk Abbey () is a Benedictine abbey above the town of Melk, Lower Austria, on a rocky outcrop overlooking the Danube river, adjoining the Wachau valley. The abbey contains the tomb of Saint Coloman of Stockerau and the remains of several member ...
in Lower Austria. He was a member of the
Viennese Viennese may refer to: * Vienna, the capital of Austria * Viennese people, List of people from Vienna * Viennese German, the German dialect spoken in Vienna * Viennese classicism * Viennese coffee house, an eating establishment and part of Viennese ...
court chapel in 1574, and was choirmaster (''Kapellmeister'') to the bishop of Olomouc between 1579 (or 1580) and 1585. From 1585 to his death he worked in
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
as
organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...
to the Church of St. John on the Balustrade (). Gallus died on 18 July 1591 in Prague.


Work

Gallus represented the
Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...
in Bohemia, mixing the polyphonic style of the High Renaissance
Franco-Flemish School The designation Franco-Flemish School, also called Netherlandish School, Burgundian School, Low Countries School, Flemish School, Dutch School, or Northern School, refers to the style of polyphonic vocal music composition originating from Franc ...
with the style of the Venetian School. His output was both sacred and secular, and hugely prolific: over 500 works have been attributed to him. Some are for large forces, with multiple choirs of up to 24 independent parts. His most notable work is the four-part ''Opus musicum'' (1586–1590), a collection of 374
motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Eng ...
s that cover the liturgical needs of the entire ecclesiastical year. The motets were printed in the Prague printing house of Georgius Nigrinus, which also published 16 of his 20 extant
mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...
es. The motet ''O magnum mysterium'' comes from the first volume (printed in 1586), which covers the period from the first Sunday of
Advent Advent is a season observed in most Christian denominations as a time of waiting and preparation for both the celebration of Jesus's birth at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. It begins on the fourth Sunday before Chri ...
to the
Septuagesima Septuagesima () is the ninth Sunday before Easter, the third before Ash Wednesday. The term is sometimes applied to the seventy days starting on Septuagesima Sunday and ending on the Saturday after Easter. Alternatively, the term is sometimes ap ...
. His motets show evidence of influence by the
Venetian polychoral style The Venetian polychoral style was a type of music of the late Renaissance and early Baroque eras which involved spatially separate choirs singing in alternation. It represented a major stylistic shift from the prevailing polyphonic writing of the ...
, with their use of the '' coro spezzato'' technique. His wide-ranging, eclectic style blended archaism and modernity. He rarely used the ''
cantus firmus In music, a ''cantus firmus'' ("fixed melody") is a pre-existing melody forming the basis of a polyphonic composition. The plural of this Latin term is , although the corrupt form ''canti firmi'' (resulting from the grammatically incorrect trea ...
'' technique, preferring the then-new Venetian polychoral manner, yet he was equally conversant with earlier imitative techniques. Some of his
chromatic Diatonic and chromatic are terms in music theory that are used to characterize scales. The terms are also applied to musical instruments, intervals, chords, notes, musical styles, and kinds of harmony. They are very often used as a pair, es ...
transitions foreshadowed the breakup of
modality Modality may refer to: Humanities * Modality (theology), the organization and structure of the church, as distinct from sodality or parachurch organizations * Modality (music), in music, the subject concerning certain diatonic scales * Modalit ...
; his five-voice motet ''Mirabile mysterium'' contains chromaticism worthy of
Carlo Gesualdo Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa (between 8 March 1566 and 30 March 1566 – 8 September 1613) was an Italian nobleman and composer. Though both the Prince of Venosa and Count of Conza, he is better known for writing madrigals and pieces of sacred ...
. He enjoyed
word painting Word painting, also known as tone painting or text painting, is the musical technique of composing music that reflects the literal meaning of a song's lyrics or story elements in programmatic music. Historical development Tone painting of word ...
in the style of the
madrigal A madrigal is a form of secular vocal music most typical of the Renaissance (15th–16th centuries) and early Baroque (1580–1650) periods, although revisited by some later European composers. The polyphonic madrigal is unaccompanied, and the ...
, yet he could write the simple '' Ecce quomodo moritur justus'' later used by
George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...
in his funeral anthem '' The Ways of Zion Do Mourn''. His secular output, about 100 short pieces, was published in the collections ''Harmoniae morales'' (Prague 1589 and 1590) and ''Moralia'' (
Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...
1596). Some of these works were madrigals in Latin, an unusual language for the form (most madrigals were in Italian); others were songs in German, and others were compositions in Latin. Critical editions of Gallus works have been prepared by Edo Škulj and published by the Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (ZRCSAZU).


Commemoration

Gallus has been commemorated with the naming of the central hall in the
Cankar Centre The Cankar Centre or Cankar Hall () is the largest Slovenian convention, congress and culture center. The building was designed by the architect Edvard Ravnikar and was built at the southern edge of Republic Square in Ljubljana between 1977 and 1 ...
''Gallus Hall'' (). Part of the right embankment of the river
Ljubljanica The Ljubljanica (), known in the Middle Ages as the ''Leybach'', is a river in the southern part of the Ljubljana Basin in Slovenia. The capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, lies on the river. The Ljubljanica rises south of the town of Vrhnika and ...
in
Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...
, stretching from St. James's Bridge to the Cobbler's Bridge, has the name '' Gallus Embankment'' (). This is also the name of the left embankment of the river Bistrica in the town of Ribnica, his birthplace. A monument with a
bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...
head of the composer, work by the architect
Jože Plečnik Jože Plečnik () (23 January 1872 – 7 January 1957) was a Slovenian architect who had a major impact on the modern architecture of Vienna, Prague and of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, most notably by designing the iconic Triple Bridge a ...
and the sculptor Lojze Dolinar from 1932, as well as a stone plaque from 1973 also commemorate him there. The plaque was originally installed already in 1933 but destroyed during World War II. The Slovenian Public Fund of Cultural Activities annually awards the deserving musicians the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Gallus Badges () and the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Gallus Citations (). Gallus was depicted on the front side of the now-obsolete 200- tolar banknote of the Republic of Slovenia.


Notes


References

* Tomasz Jeż
"The Motets of Jacob Handl in Inter-confessional Silesian Liturgical Practice"
in ''De musica disserenda'' III/2, 2007, pp. 37–48. *
Gustave Reese Gustave Reese ( ; November 29, 1899 – September 7, 1977) was an American musicologist and teacher. Reese is known mainly for his work on medieval and Renaissance music, particularly with his two publications ''Music in the Middle Ages'' (1940 ...
, ''Music in the Renaissance''. New York, W.W. Norton & Co., 1954. * Allen B. Skei/Danilo Pokorn: "Jacobus Handl", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 23 March 2008)
(subscription access)
* Edo Škulj, ''Clare vir – Ob 450-letnici rojstva Iacobusa Gallusa'', Ljubljana (Družina) 2000, , * Edo Škulj (ed.), ''Gallusovi predgovori in drugi dokumenti,'' Ljubljana (Družina-Cerkveni glasbenik) 1991


External links



* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gallus, Jacobus 1550 births 1591 deaths People from Ribnica, Ribnica Renaissance composers Composers from the Holy Roman Empire Classical composers Male classical composers