Ludwig Senfl: New Edition of the Collected Works III

Since the nineteenth century, Ludwig Senfl (c.14901543) has been recognized as one of the most important Renaissance composers in the German speaking lands. Although the outstanding quality of his extensive uvre has been acknowledged since the dawn of musicology, the major part is still inaccessible in an edition and has so far been not accordingly recognised by scholars and performers alike. This is all the more astonishing as Senfl was active in two of the most important musical centres of the early sixteenth century: at the court of Emperor Maximilian I he launched his career as a singer and composer; and from 1523 he worked in Munich as court composer for Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria. The New Senfl Edition (NSE) aims to fill this gap by publishing Senfls oeuvre in a critical edition that will provide a comprehensive overview of the composers work based on up-to- date research. In comparison to earlier, unfinished editions, the NSE offers numerous advantages: the repertoire to be edited is organised systematically, and the transcriptions as well as the critical apparatus are conceived according to uniform, up-to-date editorial guidelines. Works surviving only in fragmentary form along with works whose authorship remains uncertain have been included in the edition to complete the picture, whereas clearly misattributed works have been excluded. After the first edition of the complete motets (for 48 voices), the canons and the new edition of Senfls Magnificat settings and polyphonic mass ordinaries, the aim of the third module of the long-term project will now be to work out the core repertoire in Senfls liturgical oeuvre: the polyphonic liturgical settings for Mass and Liturgy of the Hours in the course of the church year. The almost 300 individual movements will be divided into three volumes (High Feasts, Saints days, settings for the Liturgy of the Hours). These will be published as volumes 68 of the New Senfl Edition in the series Denkmäler der Tonkunst in Österreich. Since the number of details known about Ludwig Senfls biography is extraordinarily high, but difficult to grasp in their scattered form, a further aim of the research project will be to develop an interactive map of Senfls world. This map, which will be realised on the projects homepage, will be designed to enrich the edition through the digital integration of contextual material on a scale that would be unimaginable without electronic storage media. Materials such as facsimiles and letters along with other archival materials, scribal samples, images, and sonic resources will be gathered together into an interactive platform that will expand our knowledge about both the compositions presented in the NSE and Senfls working environments.

The research project Ludwig Senfl: Sämtliche Werke (New Senfl Edition) III is the third of six modules in which the works of Ludwig Senfl (c.1490-1543) are systematically edited in a critical edition. The aim of this long-term project is to provide a comprehensive overview of Senfl's oeuvre based on up-to-date research. The importance of this renaissance composer, who - together with his famous contemporaries N. Gombert, C. Festa and C. Janequin - can be considered one of the leading composer personalities of the generation between H. Isaac and O. di Lasso, was already recognised in the 19th century. Nevertheless, his extensive oeuvre, which encompasses all the vocal genres of the time, has so far only been insufficiently accessible. This is all the more surprising as Senfl was active at two central courts of the time: at the court of Emperor Maximilian I he pursued a career as a singer and composer from an early age; from 1523 he was active as court composer for Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria. In the completed third module, for the first time, all of Senfl's Proper settings were compiled in a new edition-that is, those liturgical sections which change throughout the church year. Furthermore, with a view to reaching a wider public, the website 'Senfl's World' was also developed. Based on numerous entries, which also include primary and secondary sources, and featuring a wide array of illustrations, this online resource clearly presents the countless connections of Senfl with his contemporaries, places, compositions, events, manuscripts, prints, and other sources (https://senfls-world.humap.site/map). The editions were divided into three volumes, which constitute Volume 6, Volume 7, and Volume 8 of the New Senfl Edition. Volume 6 contains the Proper settings for the Temporale (a total of 107 compositions), Volume 7 those for the Sanctorale (a total of 68 compositions), and Volume 8 offers the first complete new edition of Senfl's Proper settings for the Divine Office (a total of 104 compositions). For the edition of each composition, all sources were consulted, either in the original or in the form of digital reproductions. While particular emphasis was placed on clear legibility in the musical text, the Critical Commentaries provide comprehensive information on the set Latin text (including translations into German and English), the cantus firmus used (including a reproduction of the plainchant melody), and the liturgical performance practice. Similarly, the source situation has been clearly presented, the dependency relationships between the sources described, a detailed and concise overview of the variant readings prepared, and further contextual information on the work outlined. The volumes will be published in the Denkmäler der Tonkunst in Österreich series.