Gherardello da Firenze: Caccia, "Tosto che l'alba"

Gherardello da Firenze (c. 1350): Caccia, "Tosto che l'alba" ("As soon as the dawn appears"): Canon for two voices with tenor.

Transcription by: Jordan Alexander Key
Website: http://www.jordanalexanderkey.com/

Performance transcription:
https://www.academia.edu/30502533/Ghe...

Comparative manuscript score:
https://www.academia.edu/30502490/Ghe...

Manuscript pictured in the video:
Bibliothèque Nationale [F-PN], MS fonds italien 568 “Pit”, no. 40 fol. 25v-26r

For complete commentary and analysis:
http://www.jordanalexanderkey.com/sin...


Gherardello’s “Tosto che l’alba” attempts to musically portray sounds and excitement of a hunt. First, a rapid compound meter gives the piece an upbeat, ebullient feel that one might themselves have as they leave home the morning of the season's first hunt.

The off-beat hocketting texture first heard in m. 9 heightens the excitement and ebullience. The hunters are waking, getting ready, and heading out, and one can image them talk over each other and tripping over themselves in the excited preparation for their day in the mountains. By m. 11, the music has broken out into full swing, with all voices “awakened” (participating) and with the rhythmically excited arrival at high F, our new high point.

From m. 11, the piece skips along as the hunters prepare for their day of adventure. Until about m. 18, we are firmly oriented about F-major, which ornaments the excited rhythm with a sense of joyousness. However, by m. 18 we begin to move from an F-major center, and by m. 23 we are firmly in a new A-minor center once everyone is “in place” “on the mountain’s side”. The A-minor mood persists until the Ritornello. With the major to minor move, we add a sense of anxiety – a move from simple excitement upon waking for the hunt to the excitement of the hunt itself, a mood tinged with adrenalin as everyone waits for the approaching kill.

The music from m. 23 to 30 has a confined range and doesn’t break out into melodic extremes until “Sta' avvisato!” (“Watch out!”) in m. 30. Here, the melody does a literal “call”, all re-percussed on high F. As used before to call everyone awake, high F is used again to call everyone’s attention. After this call to attention, the melody drops, more quietly imploring to “beat the bushes” in search of the allusive prey.

Once “the horn is sounding” again in m. 34, both voices break into the high extreme of their range. The "comes" (or following canonic voice) calls out again with “Sta' avvisato!” (“Watch out!”) and the "dux" (or leading voice) hits the piece's highest point on high-A, calling out “Ayò, ayò! A te la cerbia vene!” (“Hey, hey! The deer is coming your way!”), either imitating the hunter’s excited call or the sound of the aforementioned horn. Furthermore, both canonic voices cleverly coincide their climatic calls, each reinforcing the other’s excitement and solidly bringing the piece to its climax.

This high range and excitement are maintained until the second voice (the comes) does its call on high-A. After this call in m. 40 through 42, the music winds down when the dog, “Carbon”, has clearly caught the prey. The piece moves quickly from a strong center in A-minor back into the original center of F-major, guiding the emotional transition away from the anticipation of the kill and back to the jubilation of the beginning.

The hunt is not over however! The mood of the music suddenly changes with the arrival of the Ritornello (“refrain”) section, accompanied by a dramatic shift in modality to G-minor (or G-Dorian to be precise). One of the hunters “who was up on the mountain” calls out to remind us that there is more hunting to be had. While we might be satisfied with our first success, the day is long from over. He calls out, “Now to the other deer!” and then he blows his horn. The singing voices cleverly imitate the sound of alpine horn calls in m.s 52 through 56 with the perfect-fourth leaps between high D’s and G’s. The piece then comes to a quick close with a cadence from G-minor to the original tonal center of F.


English translation of lyrics:

As soon as the dawn of a fine day appears
It awakens the hunters.
“Get up! It is time! Rouse the dogs!”
“Up the mountain now, with the good dogs on their leashes,
and the hounds down on the plain,
and on the mountain’s side every one in place.”
“There, I see one of our best hounds sniffing!”
Watch out!”
“Beat the bushes on every side
the horn is sounding!”
“Hey, hey! The deer is coming your way!”
Carbon has caught it in his mouth and is holding it!”
...
The man who was up on the mountain called out:
“Now to the other deer!” And he blew his horn.