After seeing the psalter that Bridget Robinson treasured so, and took with her to the New World, I would like to learn more about the work and invention of Johann Gutenberg; the man credited with the invention of moveable type for printing. Before his invention, most books were either copied by hand, by scribes in monasteries or running their own scriptoria. Or they were printed from woodblocks, very simple volumes containing mostly pictures pointing out a moral truth accompanied by a few sentences that the average person might be able to read.
With the development of moveable type which could be reused to make page after page of text, not only were books more readily available, but also news-sheets, advertising posters and even songsheets. What we are looking for here, is the first information revolution.
In considering how best to approach this visit, there are a couple of likely options:
Turn up at Meister Fust's workshop as a hopeful journeyman printer looking for possible employment.
Visit the workshop as a minor representative of the archbishop's diocese to enquire about progress with the latest order for 500 indulgences.
Of the two, I favour the second. Among other things, at least I will have the opportunity to avoid tonsuring this time. And minor clerics have a slightly irritating habit of appearing all over the city for the most trivial excuses.
It has taken several visits to Mainz and Strasbourg to ferret out the information trail that led us to 1454.
While we make our way to the printing workshop, I should explain about Meister Fust's involvement in the business: Meister Gutenberg's father was a cloth dealer with connections in the goldsmithing trade and it seems that Johann chose to learn the craft of goldsmithing after completing his education in Strasbourg. My own guess is that he saw the goldsmith's trade stock as a safer long-term investment than the fine fabrics his father dealt in.
A few years ago, the city of Strasbourg had planned an exhibition of holy relics of the Emperor Charlemagne for 1439, but complications arose (some things never change) and the exhibition was delayed by twelve months. Unfortunately, Johann had planned to cash in on the religious pilgrim trade by making a range of metal mirrors imbued (supposedly) with the ability to capture "holy light", yes, I know, this is almost as superstitious an age as it is religious!
Anyway, in order to buy the metal stock needed for the mirrors, Johann had taken some fairly substantial loans but the delay of the exhibition left him high and dry when his repayment was due early in 1440. In a desperate effort to avoid legal entanglements he suggested to one of his creditors that he had been working on a new method of crafting books, for which he had great hopes. Describing his method as "Kunst und Aventur", literally a marriage of art and technology, he was cautious about describing the technique in detail "for fear that his method might be stolen by avaricious men" as he put it. Of course, for a long time it was customary for patent applications to be worded carefully for the same reason.
At the time when he made his suggestion, a book of hours, one of the most commonly owned books, took months to copy and cost the equivalent of several months income for a moderately wealthy man. For the common people, owning a book of any kind was out of the question. And for most, pointless. But the increase in the number of copying scribes over time indicated that there was a viable potential market if more books could be produced more quickly.
It was eight years before we were able to track him down again, and by then he had moved from Strasbourg to Mainz. I'm not sure what he was doing during that time, but two things seem very clear: he wasn't idle, and he had managed to shake off his debtors. The main reason we were able to track him down was because he was looking for funding, yet again. This time from his brother-in-law, Herr Arnold Gelthus. Presumably, his experiments have been at least partially successful, as by 1550 he will have overseen the printing of a poem in German.
With the tangible evidence of a printed sheet, he managed to snag the interest of Meister Johann Fust, a wealthy merchant and banker with ample funds to invest. In total, Meister Fust would lend Gutenberg 1600 guilders, a small fortune, and perhaps Gutenberg was unrealistic in hoping to recoup his expenses.
Our first stop, to get directions, is Mainz cathedral, where businessmen often meet to finalize the details of contracts. Some of the traders operate from small stalls - a desk and a placard announcing the nature of their business, and a trusted member of staff to negotiate details of contract and payment. It's a good place to get directions to the Fust/Gutenberg workshop.
This isn't the sign that Gutenberg hung outside his printing workshop, but it is similar enough to give some idea. In fact, as soon as we step through the door, the atmosphere literally changes. Instead of the rich mixture of cooking, rotting vegetables and unwashed body smells of the street the air smells of ink and paper and in the back part of the workshop a team of printers are busy at work inking formes and feeding paper into a pair of presses. Nearer the front of the shop, making use of the daylight, two printers are picking types from shallow trays and assembling them in tools that will one day become composing sticks.
I'm a little surprised that a youngish man with close-cropped hair and very pink ears steps forward to welcome us, wiping inky hands on his apron.
I ask to speak to Master Gutenberg; "Meister Gutenberg bitte?"
One of the printers, an older man in his late forties, or early fifties with a slight beer-belly, comes forward from the back of the shop, giving instructions to the short-haired young man to take his place as he does so."Väter, wie kann ich Ihnen helfen?"
I explain that we have been sent to determine when the next printing of indulgences will be ready for collection and after advising us that they should be delivered before the end of the week, Herr Gutenberg's face takes on a new animation. It seems that there is something he would particularly like us to see, and he leads us upstairs to a small room where two more printers are seated at desks, comparing pages. Both men wear glasses, and one of them is silently mouthing words as he works.
"Väter, bilden wir eine heilige Bibel durch den Druck"
This is better than I had dared to hope during this trip! We are seeing the printing of Gutenberg's Bible, the first Bible to be printed using movable type. Seeing the obvious delight on my face, Johann proceeds to show us various aspects of the process which, he tells us, he developed himself and wishes to use only for the greater glory of God.
We should Thank Meister Gutenberg for the tour and confirm that the forms will be delivered within a few days, and then we must leave for our own time.
Now that we have left the workshop, and before we return, did you notice, on the unoccupied desk where the proofreaders were working, some sheets of music in manuscript? I didn't manage to get much of a look, but I did manage to find the first page, with a title: Quam Pulchra es, fecit par Ioannes Dunstapulum.
John Dunstaple is an educated English gentleman who writes music in the new polyphonic style. I can only assume that he may have met Gutenberg as a fellow student at Strasbourg University. Both men are more or less contemporaries and perhaps we should consider visiting Master Dunstaple to see whether we can confirm my guess.
Here, then, in abc notation, is John Dunstable's Quam Pulchra es, a setting of words from Solomon's Song of Songs.
X:15 % number
T:Quam Pulchra Es % title
C:John Dunstable % composer
O:http://www.upv.es/coro/victoria/varios.html % origin.
M:3/4 % meter
L:1/4 % length of shortest note
Q: % tempo
K:C % key
V:1 name="Altus" sname="A." % voice 1
V:2 name="Tenor" sname="T."
V:3 name="Bassus" sname="B." clef=bass
%====1=======2======3=======4========5===============7=============8===================9
V:1
C2 E | D F>E | G2 G | A2 F | G G E | E/ E/ E D/C/ | F/E/ C d/F/-|F/E/ C B,/A,//B,// |
w:Quam_ pul-chra_ es et quam de-co-ra, ca-ris-si-ma in_ de--li------ci-
V:2
c3 | G D F | C2 c | d A B | c G C | C/ C/ C z/ A/ | B/ c A/ F | F/G/ E/C/ F |
w:Quam pul-chra_ es et quam_ de-co-ra, ca-ris-si-ma in de-li-------ci-
V:3
c'3 | b a2 | g2 e | d2 d | c c c' | c'/ c'/ g f | d/c/ f2 | d/c/ e d |
w:Quam pul-chra es et quam de-co-ra, ca-ris-si-ma in de--li----ci-
%====10======11======12==========13======14============15======16======17=========18========
V:1
C z E | E E z | F D z | F F/ F/ G | F G A-| A/F/ F/G/ E | F z D | E>E C | B, C B, | C2 z |
w:is. Sta-tu-ra tu-a as-si-mi-la-ta est pal------me, et u-be-ra tu-a bo-tris.
V:2
G z C | E G A-|A F D | F c/ c/ d | c d e-|e/c/ d B | c A B | c>c G | F G/E/ F | G C C |
w:is. Sta-tu-ra tu--a as--si-mi-la-ta est pal-----me,_ et u-be-ra tu-a_ bo-tris. Ca-put
V:3
c z g | g c f | d z f | a a/ a/ _b | a g c'-|c'/a/ _b g | f2 f | c>c e | d c d | c z g |
w:is. Sta-tu-ra tu-a as--si-mi-la-ta est pal-----me, et u-be-ra tu-a bo-tris. Ca-
%========19=========20===========21======22==========23======24===================25=========26============27
V:1
G C D | C z E/F/ | G/ A G ^F/ | G2 z | A A F/ F/ | G C z | E C/D/ B,/A,//B,// | C z E/F/ | G/A/ F G-|
w:Ca-put tu-um ut_ Car---me-lus, col-lum tu-um sic-ut tur------ris e----bur-
V:2
z G/A/ _B | G C2 | C2 c | d B c | c c B/ B/ | c G C | G C/D/ F | G C c/A/ | G/F/ D E/C/-|
w:tu---um ut Car-me-lus,__ col-lum tu-um sic--ut tur----ris_ e----bur---
V:3
c2 _B | c g g/a/ | g/ c' g/ a | g z c | f f d/ d/ | c2 g | c e/f/ d | c e c/d/ | e/d/ a g |
w:put tu-um ut Car-----me-lus, col--lum tu-um sic--ut tur---ris_ e----bur-
%===================28====29=======30===========31=======32===========33======34==========35===========36===============37
V:1
G/F/ E/D/ ^C/B,//C// | D3 | z3 | F3 | F2 A | G>F F/G/ | E F z | F F/ F/ F | G G F/D/ | F G/ A G/-|
w:----ne---a. Ve-ni, di-le----cte mi, e-gre-di-a-mur in__ a-
V:2
C/D/ G/F/ G | A3 | z3 | D3 | D2 F | G>A c/d/ | B c2 | d c/ c/ c | d z z | d/c/ B/ A d/ |
w:----ne-a Ve-ni, di-le----cte mi, e-gre-di-a-mur in__ a-
V:3
g c/d/ e | d3 | z3 | a3 | d'2 c' | _b> a a/b/ | g f2 | d a/ a/ a | g b/c'/ d' | _b/a/ g/ c' a/ |
w:---ne-a. Ve-ni, di-le----cte mi, e-gre-di-a-mur in__ a-----
%============38=======39==========40======41======42==========43======44===========45===========46======47
V:1
G//E//^F/ G z | A2 A | _B A G/F/ | F2 E | F z F | G/ G/ E C | E>D D | ^C/ C/ D z | C F/ F/ A-|A G>E |
w:---grum, et vi-de----a--mus si flo-res fruc-tus par--tu-ri-e-runt, si-flo-ru-e--runt_
V:2
c d B | A F2 | D A c | d B2 | c A A | c/ c/ G G | C2 D | G/ G/ A2 | c c/ c/ F | F z c |
w:-grum,_ et vi-de-a----mus_ si flo-res fruc-tus par-tu-ri-e-runt, si-flo-ru-e-runt ma-
V:3
a g z | c'2 c' | d' c' a | _b g2 | f2 f | c/ c/ c e | g>f f | e/ e/ d2 | a a/ a/ c'-|c' b z |
w:-grum, et vi-de-a----mus si flo-res fruc-tus par--tu-ri-e-runt, si-flo-ru-e--runt
%========48=======49================50=================51=============52=========53===============54================55==============56======
V:1
F C D/ D/ | C2 z | C/ C/ C/ A,/ B, |[M:3/2] C z F2 E2 |[M:3/4] D2 ^C | D z F/E/ | C/E/ F/ G E/ | C/D/ F E/D/-|D/C/ D/ B, A,/ | C3 |]
w:ma-la Pu-ni-ca. I-bi da-bo ti-bi u-be-ra me-a. Al--le-------------lu--ia.
V:2
F A G/ G/ | A E F | G/ G/ E/ E/ F |[M:3/2]G c A2 B2 |[M:3/4] A2 G | A2 z |[L:1/8] A3 B2 c |[L:1/4] A>B c/A/-|A/F/ G/A/ F | G3 |]
w:-la Pu-ni-ca.__ I-bi da-bo ti-bi_ u-be-ra me-a. Al-le----------lu-ia.
V:3
a a b/ b/ | c' z a | e/ e/ c/ c/ d |[M:3/2] c2 d2 g2 |[M:3/4] f e2 | d3 | a f/e/ g/a/-|a/ f d/ c/d/ | f e/f/ d | c3 |]
w:ma-la Pu-ni-ca. I--bi da-bo ti-bi u-be-ra me-a. Al-le------------lu-ia!
To convert the code above to sheet music, or listen to the tunes, copy the code for a single song, then paste it here and [submit].
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