Today, Guillaume de Machaut (c. 1300 - 1377) is considered the most prominent composer and poet of the 14th century, bridging the musical styles of the ars antiqua and ars nova and influencing proceeding poets like Geoffrey Chaucer. He benefits greatly in modern scholarship by being one of the few composers of medieval music for whom biographical information is available. Furthermore, his own ego has served his continued fame well, for throughout his life he oversaw numerous compilations of his entire oeuvre, a practice very uncommon before the 15th century. These compilations have lasted the ages and given modern scholars a nearly comprehensive understanding of his style and works, both mus
The Ivrea Codex and the Papal Court at Avignon The Ivrea Codex (c. 1360) stands with the Roman de Fauvel as one of the most important anthological repositories of 14th century polyphony, containing more than 80 pieces. The codex was probably written for the papal court in Avignon, France during what has been called the “Babylonian Captivity” of the Papacy from 1309 to 1377, during which time seven successive popes resided in France rather than in Rome. This move arose due to a conflict between King Philip IV of France and the Papacy under Pope Boniface VIII and his successor Benedict XI. Following the death of Pope Benedict XI after only eight months in office, Pope Clement V, a Frenchman, w
