Title of Work: Summer Canon [Reading Rota] Date: mid 13th cent Credit: British Library Harley 978,

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Caption: 'Sumer is icumen in', a vocal composition for several voices; it is probably the most celebrated piece of English medieval music. The melody is one of the earliest known examples of what is now the major mode, and the earliest example of ground-bass. Besides the English secular text 'Sumer is icumen in', the melody is provided with a Latin sacred one 'Perspice Christicola', and it is the earliest known manuscript in which both secular and sacred words are written to the same piece

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Keywords: &, ., 13th, 978, abbey, art, berks., british, canon, century, collection, composition, england, english, ground-bass, harley, history, icumen, latin, library, major, manuscript, medieval, mode, music, musical, reading, rota, sacred, secular, sumer, summer, text, vocal