Pycard
Encyclopedia
Pycard, also spelt Picard and Picart (late 14th century – early 15th century) was an English
or French
Medieval
and Renaissance
transitionary composer
.
He may have served in John of Gaunt's household in the 1390s as 'Jehan Pycard alias Vaux'. The name "Picard
" suggests a French origin, but his music is regarded as being in an English tradition. He is one of the most prolific composers represented in the Old Hall Manuscript
(British Library
: Additional 57950), with nine works from it attributed to him. His music is in the ars nova
style, and is unusual in its virtuosity.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
or French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Medieval
Medieval music
Medieval music is Western music written during the Middle Ages. This era begins with the fall of the Roman Empire and ends sometime in the early fifteenth century...
and Renaissance
Renaissance music
Renaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance. Defining the beginning of the musical era is difficult, given that its defining characteristics were adopted only gradually; musicologists have placed its beginnings from as early as 1300 to as late as the 1470s.Literally meaning...
transitionary composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
.
He may have served in John of Gaunt's household in the 1390s as 'Jehan Pycard alias Vaux'. The name "Picard
Picard
Picard may refer to:* a native of, or anything originating in, Picardy* the Picard language, a Langue d'oïl and one of the languages of France* A member of the Picards, a religious sect in the fifteenth century...
" suggests a French origin, but his music is regarded as being in an English tradition. He is one of the most prolific composers represented in the Old Hall Manuscript
Old Hall Manuscript
The Old Hall Manuscript is the largest, most complete, and most significant source of English sacred music of the late 14th and early 15th centuries, and as such represents the best source for late Medieval English music. The manuscript somehow survived the Reformation, and until 1873 belonged to St...
(British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
: Additional 57950), with nine works from it attributed to him. His music is in the ars nova
Ars nova
Ars nova refers to a musical style which flourished in France and the Burgundian Low Countries in the Late Middle Ages: more particularly, in the period between the preparation of the Roman de Fauvel and the death of the composer Guillaume de Machaut in 1377...
style, and is unusual in its virtuosity.