Ottaviano Petrucci, Motetti de Passione, de Cruce, de Sacramento, de Beata Virgine et huiusmodi B

Venetian publisher Ottaviano Petrucci was the first to print music for many voices with movable type. This Petrucci collection of motets from 1503, known as Motetti B, includes music from an impressive array of composers, many among the best known of their day. Motetti B is also the only source for many of its compositions, including several by Josquin des Prez.

As its lengthy title suggests, Motetti B consists of a wide range of devotional motets on the Passion, the Veneration of the Cross, the Eucharist, and the Virgin Mary. Many display a new style with a more harmonic orientation and also have close connections to lauda, devotional songs in Latin and Italian. Indeed, as Warren Drake points out, the subject matter of these motets displays close ties with the widespread devotional trends of the late fifteenth century, and Motetti B might even be considered a musical book of hours. In addition to a general introduction and the motets themselves, this edition includes detailed concordances and critical commentary on the sources and problematic aspects of the works.