Musica Ficta: Theories of Accidental Inflections in Vocal Polyphony from Marchetto da Padova to Gioseffo Zarlino

The main purpose of this book is to clarify the meaning and use of the conventions governing the practice of implied accidentals in vocal polyphony from the early fourteenth to the mid-sixteenth century - a problem which has fascinated musicologists for over a hundred years now. Musicians of the late Middle Ages and Renaissance did not think it was necessary to write down all accidentals; since some accidental inflections were implied by the musical context, performers made them whether or ...