Chansonnier

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about a type of book. Chansonnier may also refer to a singer performing in the chanson genre

A chansonnier is a manuscript or printed book which contains a collection of chansons, or polyphonic and monophonic settings of chansons. The most important chansonniers contain lyrics, poems and songs of the trouvères or troubadours of the Middle Ages. Prior to 1420, almost all chansonniers contained both sacred and secular music, with the exception of those containing the work of Guillaume de Machaut. Around 1420, sacred and secular music was segregated into separate sources, with large choirbooks containing sacred music, and smaller chansonniers for more private use by the privileged. Chansonniers were compiled primarily in France, but also in Italy and Germany; however, even when they were compiled elsewhere, the contain mostly French polyphonic chansons.