Singing the King’s Music: Attaingnant’s Motet Series, Royal Hegemony and the Function of the Motet in Sixteenth-Century France

Abstract

This article examines Pierre Attaingnant's motet series , with special attention to the rubrics assigned to the titles of books and to individual motets. The role of the rubric as an organisational tool and its relation to contemporary liturgical and devotional practices is explored, revealing a strikingly cohesive series and connections to liturgical books and books of hours. A consideration of the use of the motet texts in other types of books and the uses suggested by Attaingnant's rubrics reveals that the printer was promoting the use of Paris in his series. This study also revisits the issue of the function of the motet in sixteenth-century France. Finally, in the light of several connections between this series and the French royal court, the role of motets in the devotional life of Francis I and the possibility that this series served as an extension of the king's political influence are examined.