Josquin Des Prez

Missa L'homme armé sexti toni

Missa L'homme armé sexti toni is a L'homme armé mass by Josquin des Prez well into his career, composed some time in the late 15th century. It is thought to be the second of two L'homme armé masses

Background#

When assembling the whole of Missa L’homme armé sexti toni, musicologists used nine total sources, but none of these primary sources contained a perfect picture of the Mass. In general, the Italian sources include much more ornamentation than the more basic Northern sources and most modern editions use a mix of both to create a cohesive final piece.

The L’homme armé melody#

L’homme armé or “The armed man” is a song originating from the early 15th century, and while the text is not used in Missa L’homme armé sexti toni, the song is about the fear that comes during times of war. The harmonic fabric of Renaissance composition relies heavily upon writing around the cantus firmus, so the original L’homme armé melody may be elongated, shortened, reversed, transposed, or cut up and spread across vocal lines.

Kyrie#

This mass opens with “Kyrie eleison” which translates to “Lord, have mercy”. Josquin utilizes classic Renaissance compositional practices of canon and imitation to set the stage for his unorthodox parody mass and this imitative writing pervades much of this opening section.

Gloria#

As is common practice, the Gloria begins with an incipit.

Credo#

The Credo also begins with an incipit.

Sanctus#

The Sanctus contains seven sections, which is more than the other Mass Ordinary movements. The movement finishes with an encore of the Osanna as indicated by “Osanna ut supra” written at the end.

Agnus Dei#

The first Agnus Dei is a standard four voice texture, but in the second Agnus Dei, Josquin removes the tenor voice, creating a slightly emptier sound that is full of canons and repetition. In the final Agnus Dei (referred to as Agnus Dei III in scholarly material), Josquin utilizes six voices, adding another superius and altus voice. Additionally, Josquin implements a crab canon where the tenor sings the cantus firmus at the same time as the bassus sings the cantus firmus in reverse, causing both voices to line up in the middle only for a moment before splitting once more.

Composer: Josquin Des Prez