Case for Charpentier

<p>Who originally authored the anonymous undated French manuscript <i>Traité d'accompagnement et de composition</i>? <br /><br />Carla E. Williams tackles this mystery while providing the first English translation of this rare manuscript which resides in the collections of the Lilly Library at Indiana University Bloomington. <i>A Case for Charpentier </i>presents a side-by-side transcription and translation of the treatise along with an introduction that offers historical context. In the manuscript itself late 17th-century and early 18th-century writers discuss principal musical elements of composition including major and minor modes the fundamental chords of both modes dissonances and consonances meter tempo and <i>continuo realization</i> as well as <i>basse continue</i>. While these writers have not been formally identified Williams argues that the handwriting of one is that of composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier. By providing a full physical description of the manuscript along with comparisons of Charpentier's other writings and his handwriting Williams sheds new light on both the treatise and Charpentier's theoretical writings. <br /><br />With this translation Williams not only shares invaluable insights into the pedagogical approaches for composition and <i>continuo realization</i> in late 17th-century France but also finally makes <i>Traité d'accompagnement et de composition</i> available to a broader audience.</p>