next to B may
have been employed. The names are cognate with the Greek word ‘kanōn’
(‘rule’); this had denoted a monochord used for demonstrating acoustical
principles. (Fr. canon; Ger. Kanon; It. canone; Sp. canon, canno, caÃo).
Names
used in western Europe between the 12th and 14th centuries for various derivatives
of the Arab-Persian plucked zither, the Qānūn. The Latin medius canon,
Spanish medio canon, Italian mezzocanone, German Metzkanon
and French micanon denoted half trapeziform psalteries as opposed to the
rectangular psaltery (Sp. canon entero) and the symmetrical trapeziform
psaltery. No depictions with these names attached are known. They may have been
singly strung (as shown by a miniature in the Cantigas de Santa Maria in
E-E b.I.2, fol.71v), or strung with multiple courses like the
Middle Eastern originals (see illustration). Little is
known of their total area of diffusion, their specific use or their tuning.
Since depictions and references occur chiefly in southern European sources,
they may have had complete or modified Arab-Persian tunings and may have been
used for western Asiatic and Arab musical items and for western European genres
with some oriental elements; in the case of European melodies a diatonic tuning
with B next to B may
have been employed. The names are cognate with the Greek word ‘kanōn’
(‘rule’); this had denoted a monochord used for demonstrating acoustical
principles.
J.M. Lamaña: ‘Los instrumentos musicales en los últimos tiempos de la dinastía de la Casa de Barcelona’, AnM, xxiv (1969), 9–118
N. van Ree Bernard: ‘Reconstructie van het rechthoekig psalterium “canno entero”’, Mens en melodie, xxxvi (1981), 98–106
N. van Ree Bernard: ‘Reconstrucción de tres salterios ibéricos … con un compendio sobre “salterios” en general y advertencias para adaptar al salterio melodías medievales’, AnM, xli (1986), 17–46
R. Alvarez : ‘Los instsrumentos musicales en los códices alfonsinos: su tipología, su uso y su origen’, Revista de musicología, x (1987), 67–104
N. van Ree Bernard: The Psaltery: an Annotated Audio-Visual Review of Different Types of Psaltery (Buren, 1989) [incl. cassette]
JOAN RIMMER/NELLY VAN REE BERNARD