Marchetto da Padova

Marchetus de Padua, also Marchus, Marchettus or Marcheto, was an Italian music theorist and possibly composer of the 14th century. He is the author of two traditional music treatises Lucidarium in arte musicae Planae and pomerium in arte musicae mensuratae.

Life

Little is known about his biography. There is evidence that a Marchetus in 1305 teachers in Kathredale of Padua was, and the Office still held in July 1306. Around the middle of the year 1307 he had donated proceeds of a benefice of Kathredale.

Work

Lucidarium in arte musicae Planae

This document was written in the years 1317 and 1318. Literally translated the title: Declaration of art of simple music ( Gregorian chant ). A remarkable approach of this work is that Marchetus divides the Pythagorean whole tone ( ratio 9:8 ) in five parts.

He uses the following names for the four resulting intervals:

In various types of music are different sized semitones can be used. In the liturgical unanimity, however, only the Semitonium Enarmonicum is used, which corresponds to the usual small semitone.

Pomerium in arte musicae mensuratae

This treatise was taken shortly after the former, but not later than in 1319, the translation of the title means. Orchard the art of mensural music. In this paper, for the first time in history, a mensurales system is described that allows to divide briefs both binary ( by 2) and ternary ( by 3) in semibreves. Briefs can also be divided by multiples of 2 or 3:

• In Tempus Perfectum approximately between three and 12 semibreves
• In the imperfect tense contrast between two and eight semibreves

Be to differentiate different lengths of semibreves necks used.

Generally at a transmission in modern notation that per Brevis unit, a clock is written. The division level used is often listed by the first letter in points. Examples:

• . q. for Quaternaria ( quartering )
• . t. for Ternaria ( trisection )
• I. for Senaria imperfecta ( imperfect six- division )
• . p. for Senaria perfecta ( perfect six- division )

The six- division can be accomplished in two different ways. The Senaria imperfecta is a Binaria - Division (division ) in a first plane, while the Senaria perfecta here assumes a tripartite division. Thus, these two semibreves in Senaria Imperfecta be divided into three minims, while the Senaria the three semibreves perfecta be divided into two minims.