Andrea da Firenze
Encyclopedia
Andrea da Firenze (died 1415) was an Italian
composer and organist
of the late medieval
era. Along with Francesco Landini
and Paolo da Firenze
, he was a leading representative of the Italian ars nova
style of the Trecento
, and was a prolific composer of secular songs, principally ballate
.
, for which he hired Francesco Landini
as a consultant. Among the surviving records are the receipts for the wine that the two consumed during the three days it took to tune the instrument.
Evidently he and Landini were successful, for in 1387 Andrea received a similar commission to build an organ for Florence Cathedral. A commission recorded in 1382 for a "Maestro Andrea" to build an organ in Rieti
, between Florence and Rome
, may have been his as well, but has not been conclusively identified. The two men were evidently close friends, from the evidence of their time together, as well as the references found in their music.
Andrea was also active within his order as an administrator. In 1380 he became prior of the Florentine Servite monastery, SS Annunziata; in 1393 he took on the additional role of prior
of the monastery in Pistoia
. From 1407 to 1410 he led the entire Servite order in Tuscany
.
. Thirty are known, with eighteen being for two voices and twelve for three; in addition, one ballade in French may be his work, based on stylistic similarities and a contemporary attribution of it to a name similar to his. The main source for his work is the Squarcialupi Codex
, which also includes, in the section containing Andrea's music, a colorful illustration of a man playing an organ, probably Andrea himself.
The two-voice ballate are usually for two singing voices; two of them include an instrumental tenor. Not all of the three-voice ballate have text in all three voices, and the third voice sometimes may have been played on an instrument.
Compared to Landini's music, in which refinement, elegance, and a memorable melodic line were the clear goals of the composer, Andrea's music is dramatic, restless, and sometimes disjunct, and includes sharp dissonance
s to highlight certain passages in the text. One of his ballate includes a melodic leap of an augmented octave, highlighting the word maladetto (accursed), causing it to leap out from the rest of the music.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
composer and organist
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
of the late medieval
Medieval music
Medieval music is Western music written during the Middle Ages. This era begins with the fall of the Roman Empire and ends sometime in the early fifteenth century...
era. Along with Francesco Landini
Francesco Landini
Francesco degli Organi, Francesco il Cieco, or Francesco da Firenze, called by later generations Francesco Landini or Landino was an Italian composer, organist, singer, poet and instrument maker...
and Paolo da Firenze
Paolo da Firenze
Paolo da Firenze was an Italian composer and music theorist of the late 14th and early 15th centuries, the transition from the musical Medieval era to the Renaissance...
, he was a leading representative of the Italian ars nova
Ars nova
Ars nova refers to a musical style which flourished in France and the Burgundian Low Countries in the Late Middle Ages: more particularly, in the period between the preparation of the Roman de Fauvel and the death of the composer Guillaume de Machaut in 1377...
style of the Trecento
Music of the trecento
The Trecento was a period of vigorous activity in Italy in the arts, including painting, architecture, literature, and music. The music of the Trecento paralleled the achievements in the other arts in many ways, for example, in pioneering new forms of expression, especially in secular song in the...
, and was a prolific composer of secular songs, principally ballate
Ballata
The ballata is an Italian poetic and musical form, which was in use from the late 13th to the 15th century. It has the musical structure AbbaA, with the first and last stanzas having the same texts. It is thus most similar to the French musical 'forme fixe' virelai...
.
Life
Since Andrea was a member of the Servite religious order, whose records have largely survived intact, more is known about his life than is usually the case for fourteenth century composers. He entered the order in 1375, though at what age is not known. One of his first activities within the order was to carry out a commission to build an organ for the Servite house in FlorenceFlorence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, for which he hired Francesco Landini
Francesco Landini
Francesco degli Organi, Francesco il Cieco, or Francesco da Firenze, called by later generations Francesco Landini or Landino was an Italian composer, organist, singer, poet and instrument maker...
as a consultant. Among the surviving records are the receipts for the wine that the two consumed during the three days it took to tune the instrument.
Evidently he and Landini were successful, for in 1387 Andrea received a similar commission to build an organ for Florence Cathedral. A commission recorded in 1382 for a "Maestro Andrea" to build an organ in Rieti
Rieti
Rieti is a city and comune in Lazio, central Italy, with a population of c. 47,700. It is the capital of province of Rieti.The town centre rests on a small hilltop, commanding a wide plain at the southern edge of an ancient lake. The area is now the fertile basin of the Velino River...
, between Florence and Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, may have been his as well, but has not been conclusively identified. The two men were evidently close friends, from the evidence of their time together, as well as the references found in their music.
Andrea was also active within his order as an administrator. In 1380 he became prior of the Florentine Servite monastery, SS Annunziata; in 1393 he took on the additional role of prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
of the monastery in Pistoia
Pistoia
Pistoia is a city and comune in the Tuscany region of Italy, the capital of a province of the same name, located about 30 km west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno.-History:...
. From 1407 to 1410 he led the entire Servite order in Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
.
Music
All of Andrea's surviving music with reliable attribution is in the genre of the ballataBallata
The ballata is an Italian poetic and musical form, which was in use from the late 13th to the 15th century. It has the musical structure AbbaA, with the first and last stanzas having the same texts. It is thus most similar to the French musical 'forme fixe' virelai...
. Thirty are known, with eighteen being for two voices and twelve for three; in addition, one ballade in French may be his work, based on stylistic similarities and a contemporary attribution of it to a name similar to his. The main source for his work is the Squarcialupi Codex
Squarcialupi Codex
The Squarcialupi Codex is an illuminated manuscript compiled in Florence, Italy in the early 15th century...
, which also includes, in the section containing Andrea's music, a colorful illustration of a man playing an organ, probably Andrea himself.
The two-voice ballate are usually for two singing voices; two of them include an instrumental tenor. Not all of the three-voice ballate have text in all three voices, and the third voice sometimes may have been played on an instrument.
Compared to Landini's music, in which refinement, elegance, and a memorable melodic line were the clear goals of the composer, Andrea's music is dramatic, restless, and sometimes disjunct, and includes sharp dissonance
Consonance and dissonance
In music, a consonance is a harmony, chord, or interval considered stable, as opposed to a dissonance , which is considered to be unstable...
s to highlight certain passages in the text. One of his ballate includes a melodic leap of an augmented octave, highlighting the word maladetto (accursed), causing it to leap out from the rest of the music.