Guillaume le Vinier
Guillaume le Vinier (c. 1190–1245) was a cleric and trouvère, one of the most prolific composers in the genre.[1] He has left compositions in all the major subgenres of trouvère poetry: chansons d'amour, jeux-partis, a lai, a descort, a chanson de mal mariée and a ballade.[1] He wrote Marian songs and even an imaginary dialogue with a nightingale.[1] His work can be dated with some precision: the poem "En tous tens" is quoted in the Roman de la violette, which was written around 1225.[1]
Guillaume was born into a wealthy bourgeois family of Arras, the son of Philippe le Vinier and Alent.[1] His younger brother, Gilles le Vinier, was also a trouvère. The two exchanged at least two jeux-partis: "Frere, ki fait mieus" and "Sire frere, fetes m'un jugemen".[1] (The first served as a model for the anonymous song "A ce que je vuel comencier".) Although a clergyman, Guillaume was also married.[1]
Guillaume was well-connected to the other trouvères active in and around Arras. He composed jeux-partis with Colart le Boutellier, Andrieu Contredit and Adam de Givenchi for certain, and may also have collaborated with Moniot d'Arras, Thomas Herier and the King of Navarre.[1] Colart, Adam and Jehan Erart all dedicated works to him.[1] He expressed a debt of gratitude to Gace Brulé's style in "Voloirs de faire" and quoted Gace's "N'est pas a soi" in one of his jeux-partis with Gilles.[1] The unaccredited Marian song "Vierge pucele roiaus", which is modelled on the Old Occitan piece "Lo clar tems vei brunezir" by Raimon Jordan, may belong to Guillaume.[1]
Most of Guillaume's music is in bar form, although "Chancon envoisie" is given partially in mensural notation in the Chansonnier Cangé.[1] His melodies typically have a range greater than an octave. According to Karp, "modal interpretation of the melodies does not seem appropriate".[1]
List of songs
- Solo works
- Amour grassi, si me lo de l'outrage (dedicated to Thomas de Castel)
- Amours, vostre sers et vostre hon
- Bien doit chanter la cui chancon set plaire (dedicated to Gilles le Vinier)
- Chancon envoisie
- Dame des cieus
- De bien amer croist sens et courtoisie
- Encor n'est raisons
- En mi mai, quant s'est la saisons partie
- En tous tens se doit fins cuers esjoir
- Espris d'ire et d'amour
- Flour ne glaise ne vois autaine
- Glorieuse virge pucele
- Ire d'amours et doutance
- Je me chevauchai pensis
- La flor d'iver sous la branche
- Le premier jour de mai
- Li rossignolés avrillous
- Mout a mon cuer esjoi
- Quant ces moissons sont faillies
- Quant glace et nois et froidure s'esloigne
- Qui que voie en amour faindre (dedicated to a "chastelain", perhaps Huon, chastellain d'Arras)
- Remembrance d'amour me fait chanter
- Se chans ne descors ne lais
- S'onques chanters m'eust aidie
- Tels fois chante li jouglere (dedicated to Jehan Bretel)
- Voloirs de faire chanson
- Jeux-partis
- Amis Guillaume, ainc si sage ne vi
- with Adam de Givenchi
- Frere, ki fait mieus a proisier
- with Gilles le Vinier
- Guillaume le Viniers, amis
- with Andrieu Contredit
- Guillaume, trop est perdus
- with Colart le Boutellier
- Moines, ne vous anuit pas
- possibly with Moniot d'Arras
- Sire frere, fetes m'un jugement
- with Gilles le Vinier
- Sire, ne me celés mie
- possibly with the King of Navarre
- Thomas, je vous vueil demander
- possibly with Thomas Herier