Musical Instruments in Medieval Psalm Commentaries and Psalters
James W. McKinnon
fT IS COMMONLY HELD among musicologists that a great variety of musical instruments was freely employed in medieval liturgical music. That the organ fact used we know from unequivocal documentary evidence,' but such is not case with other instruments. A different kind evidence offered to prove their presence liturgy. Instead few positive statements contemporary sources were actually there are innumerable pictures them and literary allusions without direct reference status. Music historians, confronted this virtual omnipresence literature iconography, have simply assumed music must instruments.2 There certain plausibility about assumption since liturgy very center life one naturally associates prominence art it. also, my opinion, sort agnosticism involved, feeling vast number instrumental references cannot be systematically interpreted classified. And because they cannot, safely assumes at least some related practice. I believe, on contrary, virtually all can classified within well-defined
Journal of the American Musicological Society