Josquin Desprez
Acknowledged by his contemporaries to be the finest composer of his time, Josquin Desprez consistently lives up to that reputation in his music as shown in the tiny sampling of his work below.
Much revision of Josquin’s biography and oevre has taken place in connection with the ‘New Josquin Edition’, completed in 2016. In one version of his early life he is said to have been a chorister along with Mouton at the Collegiate Church of St. Quentin around 1460 placing his birth around 1450. His place of birth is not known, but likely near the place of his death, Condé-sur-L’Escot. In 1483 Josquin returned to Condé to claim his inheritance from his aunt and uncle, who may have been killed by the army of Louis XI in May 1478.
In 1484 Josquin is known to have been in the service of the Sforza family in Milan. While in their employ, he made one or more trips to Rome, and possibly also to Paris. He probably became a member of the Cardinal Ascanio Sforza musical retinue in the same year. No doubt due to the Cardinal’s frequent presence in Rome, Josquin’s name soon appears in the lists of the Papal Chapel, arguably the finest choral establishment of the age. But the presence of Josquin’s name in the Papal Chapel lists is rather sporadic . . . it might mean that he was occupied elsewhere.
Frequent appearances at the court of Louis XII of France around 1500 intimate that Josquin is inclined to return to his homeland, but one last brief episode in Italy betrays the superb reputation he had established as a composer. Ercole I d’Este, Duke of Ferrara, in searching for a star to be his maestro di cappella received a letter from his agent comparing Henricus Isaac and Josquin Desprez stating that Isaac, a fine composer, will produce music when you want it, whereas Josquin is a better composer but composes only when he wants to; furthermore, he wants 200 ducats while Isaac wants only 120 ducats. Ercole chose Josquin, and paid him 200 ducats when he became maestro in April 1503, the highest paid musician on record. Another indication of his acclaim at this time is the 1502 print by the leading printer in Venice of a whole volume of settings of the Ordinary of the Mass devoted to those only by Josquin.
Plague broke out in Ferrara in July, 1503; the Ducal Court and 2/3rds of the population had fled the city by September . . . Josquin also left and was installed as Provost of the Collegiate Church of Notre Dame in Condé-sur-l’Escot, Northern France, in May 1504. He died there in 1521, his will specifying that two of his motets be sung in front of his house on feast days with procession. The Church at Condé, potentially a monument to the greatest composer that France has produced, was destroyed in the Revolution in 1793.
(A major problem in the attribution of individual works arises from Josquin’s widespread fame: Fame sells . . . so publishers and other promoters tended to attach Josquin’s name to anything they offered to the public. So much so that the ‘New Josquin Edition’ states that of the 335 works originally assigned to him only 143 can definitely be authentically counted as Josquin’s work.)
Ave Maria gratia plena
This is the first motet in the first book of motets ever printed, ie. Petrucci ‘Motetti A’ (1502), “Ave Maria” a4 by Josquin Desprez has not lost it’s popularity with today’s vocal ensembles. Moreover, there are over a dozen 15th and 16th century manuscript sources of the work.
The text is like a sequence with five rhymed couplets, each couplet refers to events in the life of Mary—Conceptio, Nativitas, Annuntiatio, Purificatio, Assumptio. This is entirely different from the Gregorian “Ave Maria”, a liturgical Sequence for the Annunciation.
Several scholars place the motet’s origin in Josquin’s Milan years, around 1470.
Josquin Desprez "Ave Maria"
Ave Maria, gratia plena,
Dominus tecum, Virgo serena.
Ave cujus conceptio, Solemni plena gaudio,
Coelestia, terrestria Nova replet laetitia.
Ave cujus nativitas Nostra fuit solemnitas,
Ut Lucifer, lux oriens, Verum solem praeveniens.
Ave pia humilitas, Sine viro foecunditas,
Cujus annunciatio Nostra fuit salvatio.
Ave vera virginitas, Immaculata castitas,
Cujus purificatio Nostra fuit purgatio.
Ave praeclara omnibus Angelicis virtutibus,
Cujus fuit assumptio Nostra glorificatio.
O Mater Dei, Memento mei. Amen
Hail Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with you, Virgin serene.
Hail whose conception, full of solemn joy,
heaven and earth newly fills with happiness.
Hail whose birth was our solemnity,
so that like a torch, the rising the true sun might herald.
Hail blessed humility, without original sin,
whose annunciation has been our salvation.
Hail true virginity, spotless chastity,
whose purification has been our cleansing.
Hail foremost among all angelic virtues,
whose assumption has been our glorification.
O mother of God, remember me. Amen.
Benedicite omnia opera_
This long catalogue of ‘who and what should be blessing the Lord’ is found in ‘Novum et insigne opus musicum’ printed by Hans Ott and Hieronymus Formschneider, Nuremberg, 1537. 16 years after his death Josquin was very much in demand even in increasingly Protestant Germany. The volume was, however, dedicated to the Catholic Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, whose Chapelmaster, Arnold von Bruck, would have found it very useful.
Josquin Desprez "Benedicite omnia opera"
1.Benedicite, omnia opera Domini, Domino;
laudate et superexaltate eum in saecula
2.Benedicite, caeli, Domino, benedicite,
angeli Domini, Domino
3.Benedicite, aquae omnes, quae super caelos
sunt, Domino, benedicite omnes virtutes
Domini, Domino
4.Benedicite, sol et luna, Domino, benedicite,
stellae caeli, Domino
5.Benedicite, omnis imber et ros, Domino,
benedicite, omnes venti, Domino
6.Benedicite, ignis et aestus, Domino,
benedicite, frigus еt aestus, Domino
7.Benedicite, rores et pruina, Domino,
bеnedicite, gelu et frigus, Domino
8.Benedicite, glacies et nives, Domino,
benedicite, noctes et dies, Domino
9.Benedicite, lux et tenebrae, Domino,
benedicite, fulgura et nubes, Domino
10.Benedicat terra Dominum: laudet
et superexaltet eum in saecula
11.Benedicite, montes et colles, Domino,
benedicite, universa germinantia in
terra, Domino
12.Benedicite, maria et flumina, Domino,
benedicite, fontes, Domino
13.Benedicite, cete, et omnia, quae
moventur in aquis, Domino, benedicite,
omnes volucres caeli, Domino
14.Benedicite, omnes bestiae et pecora,
Domino, benedicite, filii hominum, Domino
15.Benedic, Israel, Domino, laudate
et superexaltate eum in saecula
16.Benedicite, sacerdotes Domini, Domino,
benedicite, servi Domini, Domino
17.Benedicite, spiritus et animae iustorum,
Domino, benedicite,sancti et humiles
corde, Domino
18.Benedicite, Anania, Azaria, Misael, Domino,
laudate et superexaltate eum in saecula
19.Benedicamus Patrem et Filium cum Sancto
Spiritu; laudemus et superexaltemus eum
in saecula
20. Benedictus es in firmamento caeli
et laudabilis et gloriosus in saecula. Amen
Descendi in hortum meum
Josquin Desprez "Descendi in hortum meum"
Descéndi in hórtum méum
Ut vidérem póma convállium
Et inspícerem si floruíssent vínea
Et germinássent mála púnica. Alleluya.
Revértere, revértere
Ut intueámur te. Alleluya
I went down to my garden
to look at the fruits of the valleys
and to see if the vines were blossoming
and the pomegranates were sprouting. Alleluia.
Turn around, turn around,
that I may gaze upon you. Alleluia.
De tous biens playne
Borrowing the tenor and superius from Hayne van Ghizeghem, Josquin superimposes a unison canon at one beat separation to remarkable effect.
From Petrucci’s first collection, ‘Odhecaton’, 1501
Josquin Desprez "De tous biens playne"
De tous biens plaine est ma maistresse
Chascun lui doit tribut d’onneur;
Car assouvye est en valeur
Autant que jamais fut deesse
My mistress is full of every virtue.
Everybody needs to pay her homage,
because she is as full of every virtue
as any goddess ever was.
El grillo
“El grillo” is found in Petrucci’s publication of Frottole, 1504, with the attribution Josquin d’Ascanio. Musicologists have presumed “Ascanio” referred to Josquin Desprez’s association with the music establishment of Cardinal Ascanio Sforza.around 1485. Recent scholarship has placed this in some doubt and has questioned the attribution to Josquin Desprez.
Josquin Desprez "El grillo"
El grillo è buon cantore
Che tienne longo verso
Dalle beve grillo canta
El grillo è buon cantore
Ma non fa come gli altri uccelli
Come li han cantato un poco
Van’ de fatto in altro loco
Sempre el grillo sta pur saldo
Quando la maggior è’l caldo
Al’ hor canta sol per amore
The cricket is a good singer
Who can hold a long note.
Go on, drink, cricket, and sing.
The cricket is a good singer.
But he is not like the other birds,
who sing a little
then go somewhere else
The cricket stands firm.
When the weather is at its hottest
He sings alone for love.
En l’ombre d’un buissonnet
A 1504 Petrucci print identifies this as Josquin’s setting.
Josquin Desprez "En l'ombre d'un buisson"
En l’ombre d’un buissonnet,
Tout au long d’une rivière,
J’ai trouvé là le fils Marguet
Qui priait sa dame chère,
En disant par sa manière:
“Je vous aime fin cœur doux.”
Adonc répondit la bergère:
“Robin comment l’attendez vous.”
In the shade of a bush,
just along a brook,
Robin junior found Marguet,
And he suited his beloved lady,
and spoke in this way:
“I love you with a sweet heart.”
The shepherdess answers him:
“Robin, how do you mean this?”
Fortuna d’un gran tempo
An untexted piece from Petrucci’s Canti A of 1501. One wonders if Isaac told Josquin about the carnival songs of Florence!
Josquin Desprez "Fortuna d'un gran tempo"
La spagna
The tune of La spagna originated as a basse danse in the 15th century . . the dance is a slow and courtly in triple meter. Josquin adds four other instruments to the basse danse tune in a rather dense polyphonic texture. In this performance the tune is played on the slide trumpet (sackbut!).
Josquin Desprez "La spagna"
L’homme armé
This strange truncated version of the familiar melody a4 is found in Petrucci’s ‘Odhecaton canti B’ of 1502. The ‘New Josquin Edition’ considers the attribution to Josquin to be doubtful.
Josquin Desprez "L'homme armé"
Missa Da pacem – Sanctus
The Mass, based on the Gregorian antiphon for peace, was first published by Ott in 1539 and comprises volume 20 of ‘Das Chorwerk’.
Recent studies have claimed that at least some sections of this Mass were written by Noel Bauldeweyn, a contemporary and countryman of Josquin. But in a recent concert (April 2026) in St. Paul Jordi Savall was still listing Josquin as the composer.
Josquin Desprez "Missa Da pacem - Sanctus"
Missa De Beata Virgine – Kyrie
In the 16th century Josquin’s ‘Missa De Beata Virgine’ had the most exposure of any of his mass settings, which is rather surprising in that due to the variety of chant sources used from one movement to the next it is the least unified . . . and perhaps the most challenging to the listener. Adding to this variety is that in the “Kyrie” and “Gloria” four voices are used, while the “Credo”, “Sanctus” and “Agnus” employ five, and four different cadence notes are used. The first appearance of the whole mass was in Petrucci’s 1514 collection of Josquin’s Masses, written quite late in his life.
The choice of this Mass setting for the fourth LP release in 1976 of Concentus Musicus likely was influenced by a 1968 New York Pro Musica workshop in Madison, WI, lead by John White, which featured a performance of the Kyrie and Gloria.
Josquin Desprez "Missa De Beata Virgine - Kyrie"
Missa De Beata Virgine – Gloria
Josquin Desprez "Missa De Beata Virgine - Gloria"
Missa De Beata Virgine – Credo
Josquin Desprez "Missa De Beata Virgine - Credo"
Missa De Beata Virgine – Sanctus
Josquin Desprez "Missa De Beata Virgine - Sanctus"
Missa De Beata Virgine – Agnus
Josquin Desprez "Missa De Beata Virgine - Agnus"
Missa Gaudeamus – Sanctus
‘Miss Gaudeamus’ by Josquin Desprez was first published by Petrucci in Misse Josquin (“Liber Primus Missarum Josquin “), Venice, 1502. That a whole book devoted to Masses by Josquin should be one of the first publications of music ever printed offers some insight into the high regard in which Josquin was held in his 60th year. It is a paraphrase mass based on the Gregorian Introit for the Feast of the Assumption, “Gaudeamus omnes in Domino”, which appears most often in the superius but can be found in all 4 voices at some point in the five sections.
Josquin Desprez "Missa Gaudeamus - Sanctus"
Missa Gaudeamus – Agnus
Perhaps the most appealing music in the “Agnus” is the canon in “Agnus II” . . . at the unison for two sopranos. The repeated motiv of the rising 5th in the superius in “Agnus III” has almost a pleading effect.
Josquin Desprez "Missa Gaudeamus - Agnus"
Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae – Kyrie
Petrucci included Josquin’s “Dux Ferrariae” Mass in his 2nd volume of Josquin’s Mass settings of 1505. The cantus firmus is derived from the vowels in the title . . . re, ut, re, ut, re, fa, mi, re . . in the c hexachord. It appears primarily in the tenor . . . an instrument is often used in this performance. It is not known whether it was written when Josquin was actually in the employ of Duke Ercole I in 1503, or used as a sampler for prospective employment.
Josquin Desprez "Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae - Kyrie"
Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae – Gloria
The cantus firmus Mass may be the older form of Mass construction but that does not mean it is any less effective as the closing bars of the “Gloria” bear witness. How could the Duke not choose Josquin!
Josquin Desprez "Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae - Gloria"
Missa Pange lingua – Agnus I & III
Despite the severe deficiencies in recorded sound we include this track because the ‘Pange lingua’ mass is considered by many to be the finest of Josquin’s settings of the Ordinary. It takes pride of place in the major anthology of Renaissance choral works, ‘Das Chorwerk’ as Volume I. Furthermore it was the first mass setting included in the Concentus repertoire . . . introduced and directed by William Pohl, it significantly influenced the future direction of the ensemble.
Based upon the Gregorian hymn, it is one of Josquin’s later settings . . . but oddly not included in any contemporary printed edition.
Josquin Desprez "Missa Pange lingua - Agnus I & III""
Magnus es tu Domine – Tu pauperum
A motet in two partes printed by Petrucci in ‘Motetti C’ of 1504, the segunda pars “Tu pauperum” is heard more frequently as it is not so “difficult” (more homorhythmic) for performer and listener.
Josquin Desprez "Magnus es tu Domine"
Magnus es tu Domine, et magnus nomen
tuum uberrime fons omnium gratiarum inclyta
proles summi Dei et Deus summe bonus
languentis animae suave refrigerium
lacrymantis dulce solatiu m unica
merces super norum civium.
Tu pauperum refugium, tu languorum remedium,
spes exsulum, fortitudo laborantium,
via errantium, veritas et vita.
Et nunc Redemptor, Domine,
ad te solum confugio; te verum Deum adoro,
in te spero, in te confido, salus mea,
Jesu Christe, adjuva me, ne unquam
obdormiat in morte anima mea.
Mille regretz
Josquin Desprez "Mille regretz"
Mille regretz de vous abandonner
Et d’eslonger vostre fache amoureuse,
Jay si grand dueil et paine douloureuse,
Quon me verra brief mes jours definer.
I regret a thousand times my leaving
And forsaking your loving nature,
It causes me so great pain and sorrow,
That it seems my days are numbered.
Nymphes des bois
Josquin Desprez "Nymphes des bois"
Nymphes des boys deesses
des fontaines,
Chantres expers de toutes nations,
Changéz voz voix fort cleres et haultaines
En cris trenchantz et lamentations.
Car atropos, tres terrible satrappe,
A vostre okgam atrape en sa trape.
Vray tresorier de musique et chef doeuvre.
Grant dommage est que la terre le coeuvre.
Acoultrez vous dhabitz de doeul,
Josquin, perchon, brumel, compere,
Et pleurez grosses larmes doeuil,
Perdu avez vostre bon pere
Requiescat in pace.
Nymphs of the woods, goddesses
of the fountains,
Expert singers of all nations,
Change your voices, so clear and high
Into strident cries and lamentations.
For Atropos, that terrible Satrap,
Has trapped your Ockeghem in her trap.
True treasurer of music and eminent craftsman.
A great pity it is that the earth covers him.
Put on your mourning cloaks,
Josquin, Piersson, Brumel, Compère,
And shed big tears from your eyes,
You have lost your good father.
May he rest in peace. Amen.
Petite camusette
Josquin Desprez "Petite camusette""
Petite camusette A la mort m’avez mis.
Robin et Marion S’en vont au bois joli,
Ils s’en vont bras à bras, Ils se sont endormis.
Planxit autem David
One of the masterworks of Josquin this motet in four partes is printed in ‘Motetti C’, 1504, by Petrucci. It was also chosen as an example printed in Henricus Glareanus “Dodecachordon’ of 1547. The text is from 2 Samuel, the lament by David on the death in battle of Saul and Jonathon. One unifying element is the use of the Gregorian reciting tone from the ‘Lamentations’ in three of the partes at the words, “How the mighty are fallen” Glareanus comments on the expressive alternation of relative subdued and then more exclamatory passages that imitate the lamentation of the bereaved.
Josquin Desprez "Planxit autem David"
Planxit autem David planctu huiuscemodi
super Saul et Ionathan, filium eius:
Considera, Israel, pro his qui mortui
sunt super excelsa tua vulnerati.
Incliti, Israel, super montes tuos interfecti sunt:
quomodo ceciderunt fortes in proelio.
Nolite annuntiare in Geth,
neque annuntietis in conpetis Ascalonis:
ne forte laetentur filiae Philisthim,
ne exultant filiae incircumcisorum.
Montes Gelboe, nec ros, nec pluviae
veniant super vos, neque sint agri primitiarum:
quia ibi abiectus est clypeus fortium
et clypeus Saul, quasi non esset unctus oleo.
A sanguine interfectorum, ab adipe fortium
Sagitta Ionathae nunquam rediit retrorsum
et gladius Saul non est reversus inanis.
Saul et Ionathas amabiles et decori in vita sua,
in morte quoque non sunt divisi:
aquilis velociores, leonibus fortiores.
Filiae Israel, super Saul flete,
qui vos vestiebat coccino in deliciis suis,
qui praebebat ornamenta aurea cultui vestro.
Quomodo ceciderunt fortes in praelio.
Ionathas in excelsis tuis occisus est.
Doleo super te, frater mi Ionathan, decore nimis,
et amabilis valde super amorem mulierum.
Sicut mater amat unicum filium suum,
sic ego te diligebam. Quomodo ceciderunt robusti,
et perierunt arma bellica.”
David then lamented with a lamentation
over Saul and his son Jonathan:
“Think, Israel, on those who are dead,
wounded upon your heights. Famous men,
Israel, have been killed upon your mountains:
how the mighty have fallen in battle!
Do not tell this in Gath, you should not tell this
at the crossroads in Ashkelon, in case by chance
the daughters of the Philistines rejoice,
and the daughters of the uncircumcised exult.
Mountains of Gelboa, may no dew nor rain
fall upon you, may there be no first-fruits
from the fields; because there was thrown down
the shield of mighty men, and the shield of Saul
as if it had not been anointed with oil.
From the blood of the dead, from the fat of the strong,
Jonathan’s arrow never turned back,
and the sword of Saul did not return empty.
Saul and Jonathan were loving and noble in life,
in death too they were not separated;
they were swifter than eagles, mightier than lions.
Daughters of Israel, weep over Saul
who used to clothe you in scarlet for his delight,
and give you golden ornaments for your clothes.
How the mighty have fallen in battle!
Jonathan has been killed on your heights.
I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan,
all too noble and clearly loveable
beyond the love of women. Just as a mother
loves her only son, so I loved you.
How the strong have fallen,
and warlike arms have perished.
(Trans. David Wayatt)
Scaramella v’alla guerra
Josquin wrote at least three light Italian songs a4 generally classified as frottola. Scaramella is a stock Italian character who poses as a brave lancer going of to war, but frequently the lance offers an opportunity for innuendo.
Josquin Desprez "Scaramella v'alla guerra"
Scaramella va alla guerra,
Colla lancia et la rotella,
Lo zombero boro borombetta,
Lo zombero borombo!
Scaramella fa la gala,
Cholla scharpa et la stivala,
Lo zombero boro borombetta,
Lo zombero borombo!
Scaramella goes to war with his lance
and round shield,
Bom-borom-borom-bom…
Scaramella is out for fun,
with his shoes and pack,
Bom-borom-borom-bom…
(Trans. David Wyatt)
Una musque de Buscaya
Josquin Desprez "Una musque de Buscaya"
Vive le Roy
Josquin demonstrates his contrapuntal wizardry again with a fanfare . . . probably for Louis XII of France. Three of the voices are in canon . . . one voice enters on the second beat and one on the third beat. The fourth voice enters on the 13th beat with a cantus firmus derived from the hexachord syllables of “Vive le Roy” . . . it presents with 3 iterations.
Josquin Desprez "Vive le Roy"
Vultum tuum deprecabuntur I-VII (’68)
William Pohl is conducting and singing alto in this performance of ‘Vultum tuum’ from very early in the life of CM Minnesota. It was like drawing the curtain back on the riches to be experienced in the repertoire of 15th and 16th century polyphony. We were converted on the spot . . . greatly helped by the importation of Kari Windigstadt from California who came in and performed on a level as yet unknown to some of us.
It is a mono recording with the occasional Northern Pacific diesel in the background . . . hence ‘Vultum tuum’ (’78) ten years on.
Josquin Desprez "Vultum tuum deprecabuntur I-VII"
Vultum tuum deprecabuntur I-VII (’78)
In the 1460s Josquin was in his 20s and was employed as singer in the choir of Milan Cathedral, apparently as a composer too. His cycle of seven motets – ‘Vultum tuum’ – is dated by musicologists from this period because it conforms nicely to the practice at Milan of substituting appropriate motets for the parts of the liturgy of the Mass. Thus the first motet of the cycle, “Vultum tuum”, might be sung while the introit was spoken by the officiant . . . the second, “Sancta Dei genetrix”, while the “Gloria” was spoken, etc.
Which all runs counter to my impression when first encountering the motet cycle . . . that it was a deeply felt prayer to the Virgin by the mature craftsman toward the end of his life . . . ending after the “Amen” of “Ora pro nobis” with the three supplications to Mary and her Son, “Christe fili Dei”, unequaled anywhere in music.
Josquin Desprez "Vultum tuum deprecabuntur I-VII"
1. Vultum tuum deprecabuntur
omnes divites plebis, quia in te sola,
Virgine Maria, omnis spes posita est.
2. Sancta Dei genitrix, Virgo semper Maria.
De cuius utero processit Salvator noster
et redemptio mundi. Deprecare Filium,
ut exaudire dignetur deprecationem nostram.
3. intemerata Virgo, quae Redemptorem
Israel peperisti, et post partum
virgo permansisti. Dei genitrix,
intercede pro nobis
et ne despicias preces nostras
quia ore indigno nomen sanctum
tuum invocavimus 0 gloriosa domina,
pro nobis Christum exora.
4. O Maria, nullam tam gravem
possumus habere culpam pro qua
apud tuum Filium non possis impetrare veniam.
Nihilque est impossibile apud tuum Filium,
quem genuisti de tuo sacro corpore,
Mater misericordiae.
5. Mente tota tibi supplicamus,
ut sicut Filio tuo Domino nostro Jesu Christo
aliquando displicuimus, modo vice versa
immutatis moribus per te usque in finem
ei complaceamus. Preces nostras,
Virgo mirabilis, ideo ne despicias
quia ore indigno nomen sanctum tuum
invocare praesumimus: Sancta Maria,
ora pro nobis; sancta Dei genitrix,
ora pro nobis; sancta Virgo virginum,
intercede pro nobis.
6. Ora pro nobis, Virgo sine termino,
de qua lumen ortum est in tenebris rectis corde
Exaudi nos in tribulatione nostra
et veniam impetra pro peccatis nostris
a Patre et Filio et Spiritu sancto. Amen.
7. Christe, Fili Dei, mundi qui crimina tollis,
miserere nobis.
Christe, Fili Dei, mundi verissima salus,
miserere nobis.
Christe, Fili Dei, precibus sanctissimae matris
adjuva nos et tolle tribulationem nostram.