The Sound of Medieval Song Ornamentation and Vocal Style According to the Treatises

The Sound of Medieval Song is a study of how sacred and secular music was actually sung during the Middle Ages. The source of the information is the actual notation in the early manuscripts as well as statements found in approximately 50 theoretical treatises written between the years600-1500. The writings describe various singing practices and both desirable and undesirable vocal techniques, providing a fairly accurate picture of how singers approached the music of the period. Detailed descriptions of the types and uses of improvised ornament indicate that in performance themusic was highly ornate, and included trill, gliss, reverberation, pulsation, pitch inflection, non-diatonic tones, and cadenza-like passages of various lengths. The treatises also provide evidence of stylistic differences in various geographical locations. McGee draws conclusions about the kind of vocal production and techniques necessary in order to reproduce the music as it was performed during the Middle Ages, aligning the practices much more closely with those of the Middle East than has ever been previously acknowledged.

Timothy J. McGee studied at Universities of Notre Dame, Yale, Connecticut, and Pittsburgh. He is Founding Director of The Toronto Consort.