Gui d'Ussel, d'Ussèl, or d'Uisel (fl. 1195–1209[1]) was a turn-of-the-thirteenth-century troubadour of the Limousin. A troubadour ( IPA:, originally) was a composer and performer of Occitan Lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100&ndash1350 Limousin ( Occitan: Lemosin) is a former Province of France around the city of Limoges in central France. Twenty of his poems survive: eight cansos, two pastorelas, two coblas, and eight tensos, several with his relatives and including a partimen with Maria de Ventadorn. The canso or canço is a Song style used by the Troubadours It consists of three parts The pastorela ("little/young shepherdess" diminutive of pastora, feminine of pastor, meaning "shepherd" was an Occitan A cobla is a Stanza in Occitan Lyric poetry, the artform of the Troubadours. The partimen, partiment, partia, or joc partit is a Genre of Occitan Lyric poetry Maria de Ventadorn or Ventedorn (Marie de Ventadour was a patron of Troubadour poetry at the end of the 12th century [2] Four of his cansos melodies remain. [1][3]
According to his vida, Gui was the youngest of three sons of a wealthy noble family of the castle Ussel-sur-Sarzonne, northeast of Ventadorn. Vida is the usual term for a brief prose biography written in Occitan, of a Troubadour or Trobairitz. Ussel is a commune of the Corrèze department in central France. Moustier-Ventadour is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France. He and his brothers Ebles and Peire, as well as his cousin Elias, are all reputed troubadours and castellans of Ussel according to the author of the vida, who makes Gui himself a canon of Montferrand and Brioude in the diocese of Clermont. Eble or Ebles d'Ussel (also d'Ussèl or d'Uisel; fl c 1200 was a Limousin Troubadour, the eldest of three brothers Castellans Peire d'Ussel or d'Uisel ( Pèire d'Ussèl in modern Occitan; fl Elias or Elyas d'Ussel or d'Uisel (fl c 1200 was a Limousin Troubadour, the cousin of the three brothers Eble, Peire A castellan was the Governor or caretaker of a Castle or Keep. A canon (from the Latin canonicus, itself derived from the Greek κανωνικος 'relating to a rule' is a priest who is a member of certain bodies of the Montferrand may refer to the following places in France Montferrand a former town presently part of Clermont-Ferrand Montferrand Aude Brioude ( Occitan: Briude) is a commune of the Auvergne région of France, more precisely of its Haute-Loire [4] Among his relatives Gui was known for his cansos. [4] The only confirmation of Gui's family from outside his vida is a reference to the brothers Guido and Eblo Usseli donating land to the abbey of Bonaigue. [1] Gui's biographer believed him to have been in love with Malgarita, wife of Rainaut VI, viscount of Aubusson. Aubusson (in Occitan Lo Buçon or Le Buçon Le Beçon) is a commune in the Creuse department of the [4] He supposedly later fell in love with Guillemette de Comborn, wife of Dalfi d'Alvernha, and composed many songs about her. Dauphin d'Auvergne, or in Occitan Dalfi d'Alvernha was Count of Clermont and Montferrand (see Rulers of Auvergne) Troubadour [4] Gui spent almost his entire life in the Limousin and Auvergne, rarely travelling abroad. Auvergne ( Occitan: Auvèrnhe/Auvèrnha) was the name of an historically independent county in the center of France, as well as later a Province of [5]
Gui addresses several of his songs to Maria de Ventadorn (including the partimen) and makes reference to Peter II of Aragon in one which survives with a melody. Peter II of Aragon ( 1174 &ndash September 12 1213) surnamed the Catholic, was the king of Aragon (as Pedro II and count of [1] The reference to Peter's queen in the song's razo puts the date of its composition in 1204 or later, after Peter's marriage to Marie of Montpellier. A razó or razo was a short piece of Occitan Prose detailing the circumstances of a Troubadour composition Marie of Montpellier (adapted from Occitan: Maria de Montpelhièr) (1182 &ndash 18 April 1213) was the daughter of William VIII of Montpellier [1] His vida records how Gui obeyed a papal injunction from Pierre de Castelnau to cease composing in 1209 and the fact that none of his poems can be reliably assigned later than that date and none mention the Albigensian Crusade, it is probable that Gui did indeed obey papal orders and cease writing. The Albigensian Crusade or Cathar Crusade (1209&ndash1229 was a 20-year military campaign initiated by the Roman Catholic Church to eliminate the Cathar [1][6]
Gui's poetry to some measure imitates that of his contemporary Cadenet, whom he mentions in one piece. Cadenet (c 1160 &ndash c 1235 was a Provençal Troubadour ( trobador) who lived and wrote at the court of Raymond VI of Toulouse and eventually [7] His melodies have something in common with those of Gaucelm Faidit, whom he may have met in Ventadorn. Gaucelm Faidit (c 1170 &ndash c 1202 was a Troubadour, born in Uzerche, in the Limousin, from a family of knights in service of the count of [5] His melodies all stay within a minor tenth interval and use numerous thirds and traids, but never repeating phrases in the AAB form. [5] His music is characterised by motivic variety and he has been praised for his "subtle and creative compositional faculty". [8] The later troubadour Daude de Pradas referred to Gui in a tenso and his melody has gives some indication that it may have been influenced by those of Gui. Daude, Deude, Daurde, or Daudé de Pradas (fl 1214&ndash1282 was a Troubadour from Prades-Salars in the Rouergue not [9]
Gui's works were reproduced in the anthology of Ferrarino Trogni da Ferrara. Ferrari da Ferrara, fully Ferrarino ( dei) Trogni da Ferrara, was a Troubadour of Ferrara in the late 13th and early
Notes
Sources
- Aubrey, Elizabeth. The Music of the Troubadours. Indiana University Press, 1996. ISBN 0 253 21389 4.
- Egan, Margarita, ed. and trans. The Vidas of the Troubadours. New York: Garland, 1984. ISBN 0 8240 9437 9.
- Gaunt, Simon, and Kay, Sarah, edd. The Troubadours: An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. ISBN 0 521 574730.
- Perrin, Robert H. "Descant and Troubadour Melodies: A Problem in Terms. " Journal of the American Musicological Society, 16:3, (Autumn, 1963), pp. 313–324.
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