Note di filosofia della musica tra alto e basso Medioevo = Notes on the Philosophy of Music in the early and late Middle Ages

Abstract

The essay presents, without claiming to be exhaustive, some significant transformations of the meaning of music between the Early and the Late Middle Ages. Starting from the traditional Boethian vision of music as a liberal art, based only on the theoretical study of mathematical proportions, I deal with the progressive attention towards musica practica from the 11th century until the beginning of the 14th century: it slowly takes shape a decisive change in the way of understanding the musical discipline that from "science without sounds" becomes the meeting place of theory and practice on the threshold of Humanism.