Johannes Cesaris (

fl. ''Floruit'' (; abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for "they flourished") denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indicatin ...

1406 – 1417) was a French composer of the late

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

era and early

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass id ...

. He was one of the composers of the transitional style between the two epochs, and was active at the

Burgundian Burgundian can refer to any of the following: *Someone or something from Burgundy. *Burgundians, an East Germanic tribe, who first appear in history in South East Europe. Later Burgundians colonised the area of Gaul that is now known as Burgundy (F ...

court in the early 15th century.

Life and career

Little is known about his life, excepting the years he was active in

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, ...

. He was a cleric for the

Duke of Berry Duke of Berry (french: Duc de Berry) or Duchess of Berry (french: Duchesse de Berry) was a title in the Peerage of France. The Duchy of Berry, centred on Bourges, was originally created as an appanage for junior members of the French royal fami ...

in 1406, and ''maître des enfants'' (choirmaster to the boys) at the cathedral there from 1407 to 1409. In 1417 he was probably the organist at

Angers Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the pr ...

cathedral. A Pierre Cesaris, possibly a relative, was active in Bourges until 1443. There is a reference in a contemporary poem, ''Le champion des dames'' by

Martin le Franc Martin le Franc ( – 1461) was a French poet of the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance. Life and career He was born in Normandy, and studied in Paris. He entered clerical orders, becoming an apostolic prothonotary, and later becoming secretar ...

to Johannes Cesaris being a popular composer in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

in the early part of the century (this is the same manuscript that contains the famous portraits of

Guillaume Dufay Guillaume Du Fay ( , ; also Dufay, Du Fayt; 5 August 1397(?) – 27 November 1474) was a French composer and music theorist of the early Renaissance. Considered the leading European composer of his time, his music was widely performed and rep ...

and

Gilles Binchois Gilles de Bins dit Binchois (also Binchoys; – 20 September 1460) was a Franco-Flemish composer of early Renaissance music. A central figure of the Burgundian School, Binchois and his colleague Guillaume Du Fay were deeply influenced by the ...

Music

Of his works, one

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 pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Marga ...

, two

ballade Ballad is a form of narrative poetry, often put to music, or a type of sentimental love song in modern popular music. Ballad or Ballade may also refer to: Music Genres and forms * Ballade (classical music), a musical setting of a literary ballad ...

s, and five rondeaux survive, as well as a sixth rondeau which has a contested attribution (it may be by

Passet Passet is a mountain pass on the island of Kongsøya in Kong Karls Land, Svalbard. It is located at the western side of Kongsøya, and separates the mountain of Sjögrenfjellet to the west from Tordenskjoldberget to the east. South of the pass is t ...

). Stylistically, they span both the manneristic complexities of the ''

ars subtilior ''Ars subtilior'' ( Latin for 'subtler art') is a musical style characterized by rhythmic and notational complexity, centered on Paris, Avignon in southern France, and also in northern Spain at the end of the fourteenth century.Hoppin 1978, ...

'', which was the predominant style in

Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label=Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune ha ...

in the 1390s, and the relatively simple song style of the early 15th century as it was developing in the courts of France and Burgundy. His motet ''A virtutis ignitio/Ergo beata/Benedicta filia'', for four voices with three simultaneously sung texts, is

isorhythm Isorhythm (from the Greek for "the same rhythm") is a musical technique using a repeating rhythmic pattern, called a ''talea'', in at least one voice part throughout a composition. ''Taleae'' are typically applied to one or more melodic patterns o ...

ic in all parts. One of the secular songs, the rondeau ''A l'aventure va Gauvain,'' is in a style which suggests the later generation, and may have been written later than 1417; indeed many of his pieces are from manuscripts dated from early to mid-century. One of his pieces, the ballade ''Le dieus d'amours'', was copied into the famous

Chantilly Codex The Chantilly Codex (''Chantilly, Musée Condé MS 564'') is a manuscript of medieval music containing pieces from the style known as the ''Ars subtilior''. It is held in the museum at the Château de Chantilly in Chantilly, Oise. Most of the co ...

, the

illuminated manuscript An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, th ...

which is the primary source for the Avignon repertory of the ''ars subtilior''.

Editions

''Cesaris's works are included in the following collections:'' *

Recording

* Arnold de Lantins, ''Missa Verbum Incarnatum'', Ricercar CD RIC 207, sung by the Capilla Flamenca Psallentes. Contains the motet ''A virtutis ignitio'' by Cesaris, as well as music by

Arnold de Lantins Arnold de Lantins (fl. 1420s – before 2 July 1432) was a Netherlandish composer of the late medieval and early Renaissance eras. He is one of a few composers who shows aspects of both medieval and Renaissance style, and was a contemporary o ...

and

Johannes Brassart Johannes Brassart (also Jean Brasart) ( – before 22 October 1455) was a composer of the early-Renaissance Burgundian school. Of his output, only sacred vocal music has survived, and it typifies early-15th-century practice. Life He was mo ...

. *

Gothic Voices Gothic Voices is a United Kingdom-based vocal ensemble specialising in repertoire from the 11th to the 15th century but also performing contemporary music, particularly pieces with medieval associations. The group was originally formed in 1980 ...

Christopher Page Christopher Page (born 1952) is a British expert on medieval music, instruments and performance practice, together with the social and musical history of the guitar in England from the sixteenth century to the nineteenth. He has written numero ...

, ''Lancaster & Valois: French & Engl Music 1350-1420'',

Hyperion Records Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label. History Hyperion is an independent British classical label that was established in 1980 with the goal of showcasing recordings of music in all genres and from all time period ...

CDH55294. Contains 2 rondeaux ''Se vous scaviez, ma tres douce maistresse'' and ''Mon seul voloir/Certes m’amour'' by Cesaris.

References

* * ____. "Cesaris, Johannes", ''

Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and the ...

'', ed. L. Macy (accessed July 19, 2005)
grovemusic.com
(subscription access). *

Gustave Reese Gustave Reese ( ; 29 November 1899 – 7 September 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. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cesaris, Johannes French classical composers French male classical composers Burgundian school composers 15th-century French composers