Notker of St Gall
Encyclopedia
Notker the Stammerer (c.
840 – 6 April 912), also called Notker the Poet or Notker of Saint Gall, was a musician
, author
, poet
, and Benedictine
monk
at the Abbey of Saint Gall in modern Switzerland
. He is commonly accepted to be the Monk of Saint Gall (Monachus Sangallensis), the author of De Carolo Magno, a book of anecdotes about the Emperor Charlemagne
.
, south of Wil
, in the modern canton of Saint Gall in Switzerland; some sources claim Elgg
to be his place of birth. He studied with Tuotilo
at Saint Gall's monastic school, taught by Iso, and Moengall. He became a monk there and is mentioned as librarian
in 890 and as master of guests in 892–4. He was chiefly active as a teacher
, and displayed refinement of taste as poet and author. Ekkehard IV
, the biographer of the monks of Saint Gall, lauds him as "delicate of body but not of mind, stuttering
of tongue but not of intellect, pushing boldly forward in things Divine, a vessel of the Holy Spirit without equal in his time". He died in 912. He was beatified
in 1512.
, composed a metrical biography of Saint Gall
, and authored other works. The number of works ascribed to him is constantly increasing.
His Liber hymnorum, created between 881 and 887, is an early collection of Sequences
, which he called "hymn
s", mnemonic poems for remembering the series of pitches sung during a melisma
in plainchant, especially in the Alleluia
. It is unknown how many or which of the works contained in the collection are his. The hymn Media Vita, was erroneously attributed to him late in the Middle Ages
.
Ekkehard IV
wrote of fifty sequences composed by Notker. He was formerly considered to have been the inventor of the sequence
, a new species of religious lyric, but this is now considered doubtful, though he did introduce the genre into Germany
. It had been the custom to prolong the Alleluia
in the Mass
before the Gospel
, modulating through a skillfully harmonized series of tones. Notker learned how to fit the separate syllables of a Latin
text to the tones of this jubilation; this poem was called the sequence (q.v.), formerly called the "jubilation". (The reason for this name is uncertain.) From 881–7 Notker dedicated a collection of such verses to Bishop
Liutward of Vercelli, but it is not known which or how many are his.
The "Monk of Saint Gall" (Latin: Monachus Sangallensis; the name is not contemporary, being given by modern scholars), the ninth-century writer of a volume of didactic eulogistic anecdotes regarding the Emperor Charlemagne, is now commonly believed to be Notker the Stammerer. This Monk is known from his work to have been a native German-speaker, deriving from the Thurgau
, only a few miles from the Abbey of Saint Gall; the region is also close to where Notker is believed to have derived from. The Monk himself relates that he was raised by Adalbert, a former soldier who had fought against the Saxons
, the Avars
("Huns" in his text) and the Slavs under the command of Kerold, brother of Hildegard, Charlemagne's second wife; he was also a friend of Adalbert's son, Werinbert, another monk at Saint Gall, who died as the book was in progress. His teacher was Grimald of Reichenau, the Abbot of Saint Gall from 841 to 872, who was, the Monk claims, himself a pupil of Alcuin
.
The Monk's untitled work, referred to by modern scholars as De Carolo Magno ("Concerning Charles the Great") or Gesta Caroli Magni ("The Deeds of Charles the Great"), is not a biography but consists instead of two books of anecdotes relating chiefly to the Emperor Charlemagne
and his family, whose virtues are insistently invoked. It was written for Charles the Fat
, great-grandson of Charlemagne, who visited Saint Gall in 883. It has been scorned by traditional historians, who refer to the Monk as one who "took pleasure in amusing anecdotes and witty tales, but who was ill-informed about the true march of historical events", and describe the work itself as a "mass of legend, saga, invention and reckless blundering": historical figures are claimed as living when in fact dead; claims are attributed to false sources (in one instance, the Monk claims that "to this King Pepin [the Short] the learned Bede
has devoted almost an entire book of his Ecclesiastical History"; no such account exists in Bede's history - unsurprisingly, given that Bede died in 735 during the reign of Charlemagne's grandfather Charles Martel
); and Saint Gall is frequently referenced as a location in anecdotes, regardless of historical verisimilitude (Pepin the Hunchback
, for example, is supposed to have been sent to Saint Gall as punishment for his rebellion, and – in a trope owed to Livy
's tale of Tarquin and the poppies
– earns a promotion to rich Prüm Abbey
after advising Charlemagne through a implicit parable of hoeing thistles to execute another group of rebels). The Monk also mocks and criticizes bishops and the prideful, high-born incompetent, showy in dress and fastidious and lazy in habits, whilst lauding the wise and skillful government of the Emperor with nods to the deserving poor. Several of the Monk's tales, such as that of the nine rings of the Avar stronghold, have been used in modern biographies of Charlemagne.
The Monk of Saint Gall is commonly believed to be Notker the Stammerer: Louis Halphen has delineated the points of similarity between the two: the Monk claims to be old, toothless and stammerering; and both share similar interests in church music, write with similar idioms, and are fond of quoting Virgil
. The text is dated to the 880s from mentions in it of Carloman
(died 880), half-brother of Charles the Fat, the "circumscribed lands" of Carloman's son Arnulf
, who succeeded as King of the Germans in 887, and the destruction of Prüm Abbey
, which occurred in 882.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
840 – 6 April 912), also called Notker the Poet or Notker of Saint Gall, was a musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, and Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
at the Abbey of Saint Gall in modern Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. He is commonly accepted to be the Monk of Saint Gall (Monachus Sangallensis), the author of De Carolo Magno, a book of anecdotes about the Emperor Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
.
Biography
Notker was born around 840, to a distinguished family. He would seem to have been born at Jonschwyl on the River ThurThur River (Switzerland)
Thur is a long river in north-eastern Switzerland. Its source is near the mountain Säntis in the south-east of the canton of St. Gallen. In this canton it flows through the Toggenburg region and the town Wil. After Wil it flows through the canton of Thurgau and its capital Frauenfeld. The final ...
, south of Wil
Wil
Wil is the capital of the Wahlkreis of Wil in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Wil is the third largest city in the Canton of St. Gallen, after the city of St...
, in the modern canton of Saint Gall in Switzerland; some sources claim Elgg
Elgg
Elgg is a municipality in the district of Winterthur in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-History:Elgg is first mentioned between 760 and 763 as Ailaghoga...
to be his place of birth. He studied with Tuotilo
Tuotilo
Saint Tuotilo was a medieval monk and composer. Born in Ireland, he is said to have been a large and powerfully built man. He was educated at the Abbey of St. Gall and remained to become a monk there. He was the friend of Notker of St. Gall, with whom he studied music under Moengal...
at Saint Gall's monastic school, taught by Iso, and Moengall. He became a monk there and is mentioned as librarian
Librarian
A librarian is an information professional trained in library and information science, which is the organization and management of information services or materials for those with information needs...
in 890 and as master of guests in 892–4. He was chiefly active as a teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
, and displayed refinement of taste as poet and author. Ekkehard IV
Ekkehard IV
Ekkehard IV was a monk of the Abbey of Saint Gall and the author of the Casus sancti Galli and Liber Benedictionum.-Life:...
, the biographer of the monks of Saint Gall, lauds him as "delicate of body but not of mind, stuttering
Stuttering
Stuttering , also known as stammering , is a speech disorder in which the flow of speech is disrupted by involuntary repetitions and prolongations of sounds, syllables, words or phrases, and involuntary silent pauses or blocks in which the stutterer is unable to produce sounds...
of tongue but not of intellect, pushing boldly forward in things Divine, a vessel of the Holy Spirit without equal in his time". He died in 912. He was beatified
Beatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
in 1512.
Works
He completed Erchanbert's chronicle, arranged a martyrologyMartyrology
A martyrology is a catalogue or list of martyrs , arranged in the calendar order of their anniversaries or feasts. Local martyrologies record exclusively the custom of a particular Church. Local lists were enriched by names borrowed from neighbouring churches...
, composed a metrical biography of Saint Gall
Saint Gall
Saint Gall, Gallen, or Gallus was an Irish disciple and one of the traditionally twelve companions of Saint Columbanus on his mission from Ireland to the continent. Saint Deicolus is called an older brother of Gall.-Biography:...
, and authored other works. The number of works ascribed to him is constantly increasing.
His Liber hymnorum, created between 881 and 887, is an early collection of Sequences
Sequence (poetry)
A sequence is a chant or hymn sung or recited during the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations, before the proclamation of the Gospel. By the time of the Council of Trent there were sequences for many feasts in the Church's year.The sequence has always been sung...
, which he called "hymn
Hymn
A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
s", mnemonic poems for remembering the series of pitches sung during a melisma
Melisma
Melisma, in music, is the singing of a single syllable of text while moving between several different notes in succession. Music sung in this style is referred to as melismatic, as opposed to syllabic, where each syllable of text is matched to a single note.-History:Music of ancient cultures used...
in plainchant, especially in the Alleluia
Alleluia
The word "Alleluia" or "Hallelujah" , which at its most literal means "Praise Yah", is used in different ways in Christian liturgies....
. It is unknown how many or which of the works contained in the collection are his. The hymn Media Vita, was erroneously attributed to him late in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
.
Ekkehard IV
Ekkehard IV
Ekkehard IV was a monk of the Abbey of Saint Gall and the author of the Casus sancti Galli and Liber Benedictionum.-Life:...
wrote of fifty sequences composed by Notker. He was formerly considered to have been the inventor of the sequence
Sequence (poetry)
A sequence is a chant or hymn sung or recited during the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations, before the proclamation of the Gospel. By the time of the Council of Trent there were sequences for many feasts in the Church's year.The sequence has always been sung...
, a new species of religious lyric, but this is now considered doubtful, though he did introduce the genre into Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It had been the custom to prolong the Alleluia
Alleluia
The word "Alleluia" or "Hallelujah" , which at its most literal means "Praise Yah", is used in different ways in Christian liturgies....
in the Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
before the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
, modulating through a skillfully harmonized series of tones. Notker learned how to fit the separate syllables of a Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
text to the tones of this jubilation; this poem was called the sequence (q.v.), formerly called the "jubilation". (The reason for this name is uncertain.) From 881–7 Notker dedicated a collection of such verses to Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
Liutward of Vercelli, but it is not known which or how many are his.
The Monk of Saint Gall
Thurgau
Thurgau is a northeast canton of Switzerland. The population, , is . In 2007, there were a total of 47,390 who were resident foreigners. The capital is Frauenfeld.-History:...
, only a few miles from the Abbey of Saint Gall; the region is also close to where Notker is believed to have derived from. The Monk himself relates that he was raised by Adalbert, a former soldier who had fought against the Saxons
Saxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
, the Avars
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
("Huns" in his text) and the Slavs under the command of Kerold, brother of Hildegard, Charlemagne's second wife; he was also a friend of Adalbert's son, Werinbert, another monk at Saint Gall, who died as the book was in progress. His teacher was Grimald of Reichenau, the Abbot of Saint Gall from 841 to 872, who was, the Monk claims, himself a pupil of Alcuin
Alcuin
Alcuin of York or Ealhwine, nicknamed Albinus or Flaccus was an English scholar, ecclesiastic, poet and teacher from York, Northumbria. He was born around 735 and became the student of Archbishop Ecgbert at York...
.
The Monk's untitled work, referred to by modern scholars as De Carolo Magno ("Concerning Charles the Great") or Gesta Caroli Magni ("The Deeds of Charles the Great"), is not a biography but consists instead of two books of anecdotes relating chiefly to the Emperor Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
and his family, whose virtues are insistently invoked. It was written for Charles the Fat
Charles the Fat
Charles the Fat was the King of Alemannia from 876, King of Italy from 879, western Emperor from 881, King of East Francia from 882, and King of West Francia from 884. In 887, he was deposed in East Francia, Lotharingia, and possibly Italy, where the records are not clear...
, great-grandson of Charlemagne, who visited Saint Gall in 883. It has been scorned by traditional historians, who refer to the Monk as one who "took pleasure in amusing anecdotes and witty tales, but who was ill-informed about the true march of historical events", and describe the work itself as a "mass of legend, saga, invention and reckless blundering": historical figures are claimed as living when in fact dead; claims are attributed to false sources (in one instance, the Monk claims that "to this King Pepin [the Short] the learned Bede
Bede
Bede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
has devoted almost an entire book of his Ecclesiastical History"; no such account exists in Bede's history - unsurprisingly, given that Bede died in 735 during the reign of Charlemagne's grandfather Charles Martel
Charles Martel
Charles Martel , also known as Charles the Hammer, was a Frankish military and political leader, who served as Mayor of the Palace under the Merovingian kings and ruled de facto during an interregnum at the end of his life, using the title Duke and Prince of the Franks. In 739 he was offered the...
); and Saint Gall is frequently referenced as a location in anecdotes, regardless of historical verisimilitude (Pepin the Hunchback
Pepin the Hunchback
Pepin , the Hunchback was the eldest son of Charlemagne by Himiltrude. He is known in French as Pépin le Bossu.Accounts describe Pepin as normally proportioned with attractive features...
, for example, is supposed to have been sent to Saint Gall as punishment for his rebellion, and – in a trope owed to Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
's tale of Tarquin and the poppies
Tall poppy syndrome
Tall poppy syndrome is a pejorative term primarily used in the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and other Anglosphere nations to describe a social phenomenon in which people of genuine merit are resented, attacked, cut down, or criticised because their talents or achievements elevate them above...
– earns a promotion to rich Prüm Abbey
Prüm Abbey
Prüm Abbey is a former Benedictine abbey in Prüm/Lorraine, now in the diocese of Trier , founded by a Frankish widow Bertrada, and her son Charibert, count of Laon, on 23 June 720. The first abbot was Angloardus....
after advising Charlemagne through a implicit parable of hoeing thistles to execute another group of rebels). The Monk also mocks and criticizes bishops and the prideful, high-born incompetent, showy in dress and fastidious and lazy in habits, whilst lauding the wise and skillful government of the Emperor with nods to the deserving poor. Several of the Monk's tales, such as that of the nine rings of the Avar stronghold, have been used in modern biographies of Charlemagne.
The Monk of Saint Gall is commonly believed to be Notker the Stammerer: Louis Halphen has delineated the points of similarity between the two: the Monk claims to be old, toothless and stammerering; and both share similar interests in church music, write with similar idioms, and are fond of quoting Virgil
Virgil
Publius Vergilius Maro, usually called Virgil or Vergil in English , was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He is known for three major works of Latin literature, the Eclogues , the Georgics, and the epic Aeneid...
. The text is dated to the 880s from mentions in it of Carloman
Carloman of Bavaria
Carloman was the eldest son of Louis the German, king of East Francia , and Hemma, daughter of the count Welf...
(died 880), half-brother of Charles the Fat, the "circumscribed lands" of Carloman's son Arnulf
Arnulf of Carinthia
Arnulf of Carinthia was the Carolingian King of East Francia from 887, the disputed King of Italy from 894 and the disputed Holy Roman Emperor from February 22, 896 until his death.-Birth and Illegitimacy:...
, who succeeded as King of the Germans in 887, and the destruction of Prüm Abbey
Prüm Abbey
Prüm Abbey is a former Benedictine abbey in Prüm/Lorraine, now in the diocese of Trier , founded by a Frankish widow Bertrada, and her son Charibert, count of Laon, on 23 June 720. The first abbot was Angloardus....
, which occurred in 882.
Further reading
- Hoppin, Richard. Medieval Music. New York: Norton, 1978. Pages 155-156.
- Thorpe, Lewis, Two Lives of Charlemagne
- Yudkin, Jeremy. Music in Medieval Europe. Page 221
External links
- Opera Omnia by Migne Patrologia Latina with analytical indexes
- Catholic Encyclopedia, accessed on April 25, 2006
- Saints of April 6: Notker Balbulus