Medieval transverse flute

The present article “Medieval transverse flute: between Byzantium and the West” presents a general survey in the history of the flute during the Middle Ages.

Byzantine references and iconography

In a treatise on alchemy, dating from the middle Byzantine period (probably by the 7th century), by anonymous writer known as Anonymous Alchemist¹ we find two paragraphs concerning music matters; the first one is referring to the echos [ήχος] the modes of music theory.
The second refers to musical instruments. The writer categorizes the instruments to strings, kitharika [κιθαρικά], wind instruments aulitika [αυλιτικά] with a distinction between brass and the wood or reed instruments and nausta [ναυστά] percussions.
According to the list of the wind instruments we read the Aulitika [αυλητικά], wind -non brass- instruments as follows:

Monokalamon [μονοκάλαμον], single flute
Dikalamon [δικάλαμον], double flute
Polykalamon [πολυκάλαμον], syrinx or the pan-flute
Rax tetroreon [ραξ τετρώρεον], non identifiable
Plagion [πλάγιον], transverse flute

This reference to the transverse flute, plagion, is probably the first one in the Byzantine culture².

The library of the Greek patriarchate of Jerusalem contains 33 illuminated manuscripts from the 9th up to the 16th century with no less than 430 illuminations³.

In the Codex Taphou 14, 2a foglio 33v, from the 11th century, there is depiction of a flute player in a bucolic scene together with a pan flute player (see picture 1.). Both are seating on a hill. The flutist holds the instrument on the right⁴.

In the same manuscript of Jerusalem (Codex Taphou 14, fol. 310v), there is a depiction of the birth of Zeus, king of all gods. In this mythological scene the armed custody of the Phrygian goddess Cybele, called the Corybantes, sitting next to Zeus when birth takes place. The Corybantes play music so that Cronus, the leader of Titans, won’t notice baby’s cry (see picture 2.).

The Corybantes are depicted playing different instruments; cymbals, a bowed string instrument, a cylindric type of tabor and a small transverse flute held on the right of the player (see picture 1.). As Braun suggests it could be a depiction of an existing ensemble of music⁵.

A depiction of a female flute player is found in mural painting at the southern tower of the temple of Saint Sophia in Kiev dating from the year 1037. (see picture 5.)

Away of any mythological, pastoral or biblical co-notation, this is a secular scene at the hippodrome of Constantinople with an instrumental ensemble. Cymbal, salpinx, a polychord an organ and a flute played on the left. Among the painting there is also the bleach of the hippodrome and the imperial box where the family of the byzantine emperor was watching the chariot races and other ceremonies where music was present. The organ played by the seated musician in the center down has been characteristic for secular use outdoors.

In Psalterion Ms Vatican Gr 752, a Byzantine psalter, there are around 200 miniatures in golden ply. This manuscript, dating from 1059 CE, shows, in fol. 5, King David with musicians (see picture 4). King David, often associated with music, is shown in the middle top together with a flute player holding a long flute sideways on his right. King David holds a pear-shaped bowed instrument and, on his right, a musician is holding a round cymbal. There are more figures holding instruments or objects which are difficult to make out (see Maliaras, p. 49).

In fol. 449v of the same manuscript there is one more miniature of musical interest, depicting musicians surrounding David (see picture 5a). These eight figures represent the oktoechos, the eight modes on which psalmody is based in Byzantine music theory. At the top centre, between a cylindrical tabor on the left and a bowed string instrument on the right, there is a flute player, with his head erased, under the name Asaf (see picture 5b).

¹ Published for the first time by Berthelot M._ruelle as Collection des ancients alchemists grecs 3 volumes, Paris, 1888.

² See Maliaras, the Byzantine musical instruments, pp. 36, 37.

³ See Braun p. 314.

⁴ Is mentioned by Maliaras, The byzantine instruments, p. 315 and also by Braun.

⁵ See Braun, p. 318, Musical Instruments in Byzantine Illuminated Manuscripts, Joachim Braun, Source: Early Music, Jul., 1980, Vol. 8, No. 3 (Jul., 1980), pp. 312-327, Oxford University Press.

Western Europe: iconography and references

During the period between 1000 and 1400 CE, we find different instruments of the flute family in Europe, such as the recorder, the flute, the pipe and tabor, the pan flute, the double flute, with different names for them in each language—like the French frestel, flaüte, flajol, and fleuste traversaine, to mention but a few (See Lasocki).

The transverse flute was a rare instrument in the West during that period; the most common were the fiddle and the harp.
Two of the most well-known depictions of the medieval flute are of a much later date than the Byzantine ones, coming from the 13th and the 14th centuries respectively.

The Spanish monophonic repertoire of the Cantigas de Santa Maria comes to us from the court of Alfonso X the Wise (1221-84) and dates from the end of the 13th century. Together with the musical notation, it contains rich illustrations depicting more than forty musical instruments, among them the transverse flute. In fact, two flute players are holding large flutes sideways on their left. Scholars believe that they are looking at each other tuning their instruments (Picture 6).

Another function of the flute in a secular music context comes from Germany. Here the ensemble consists of a fiddle player, a singer, and a flute player, in two pictures included in the Codex Manesse, dating from around 1340 (Pictures 7 and 8). The codex in question includes music by the minnesinger Johannes Hadlaub, active around 1300 (died before 1340).

Until the 13th century the transverse flute was apparently in use mostly in the lands of the Holy German Empire, which is probably why it became known as the German flute. From the 13th century on, there are references in other countries, showing that the flute also appeared outside Germany.

There are three clear citations referring to the transverse flute from the period before the 15th century.

The minstrel Adenet le Roi10 (c.1240-c.1300), active at the court of Flanders at the time of Count Gui de Damperre (1226–1305), includes the transverse flute in a list together with other instruments used to perform a French piece called Cleomadés, written around 1285.

La sont trestout si estrument, qui valent un granment d ’argent: harpes, rotes, gigues, vi’oles, leuus, quitaires et citoles,
et tinpanes et micanons, rubebes et salterions Tabours et muses et flajos
y a assez, grelles et gros, Bahutes d argent traversaines, estives, cornes et dou^aines, et d’autres instrumens asses
que ne vous ai pas tous nonmes. Se j’ere la, jes venderoie et de l’argent me cheviroie,
car de nul instrument ne sai …

Translation
Every sort of instrument was there that was worth any money:
harps, rotes, fiddles, viols, lutes, gitterns and citoles,
and dulcimers and half-canons, rebecs and psalteries.
Tabors and pipes and whistles there were many, small and large, silver transverse flutes, hornpipes, cornetts and dulcians, and so many other instruments
that I have not told you all their names.
If I had been there, 1 would have sold them and come into some money, for 1 do not know any instrument …

Bibliographic references

Berthelot, Marcellin/Ruelle, Charles Emile, Collection des anciens alchemists grecs, 3 vol., Paris, 1888.

Bowers, Jane, “Flaüste Traverseinne” and “Flute d’Allemagne”: the flute in France from the late middle ages up through 1702’, RMFC, 19, 7-49, 1979.

Brown, Joachim, “Musical instruments in Byzantine illuminated manuscripts”, in Early Music, vol. 8 (July), Oxford University Press, 1980.

Ehlich, Liane, “Zur Ikonographie der Querflöte im Mittelalter”, BJb HM8 (1984), 197- 211, 1984.

Lasocki, David, The Recorder and Other Members of the Flute Family in Writings from 1100 to 1500, Instant Harmony, 2012.

Maliaras, Nikos: Byzantina Mousika Organa [Byzantine musical instruments], Panas Music, 2007.

Powell, Ardal, The Flute, Yale University Press, 2002.