The ''jeu-parti'' (plural ''jeux-partis'', also known as ''parture'') is a

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

lyric poetry Modern lyric poetry is a formal type of poetry which expresses personal emotions or feelings, typically spoken in the first person. It is not equivalent to song lyrics, though song lyrics are often in the lyric mode, and it is also ''not'' equi ...

composed between two '' trouvères''. It is a cognate of the

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language Occitan (; o ...

partimen (also known as ''partia'' or ''joc partit''). In the classic type, one poet poses a dilemma question in the opening stanza, his or her partner picks a side (the 'part') in the second stanza, which replicates the versification of the first and is sung to the same melody. Typically, the jeu-parti has six stanzas, with the two interlocutors alternating stanza by stanza. Many jeux-partis also have final partial stanzas in which one or both of the interlocutors appoint judges and call for judgement. The outcome, however, is virtually never given within the jeu-parti itself and would have been the subject of audience discussion after the jeu-parti's performance. The form was particularly associated with the

Puy d'Arras The Puy d'Arras, called in its own day the Puy Notre-Dame, was a medieval poetical society formed in Arras for holding contests between trouvères and ''pour maintenir amour et joie'' (for maintaining love and joy, i.e. the courtly love lyric). ...

. Over 200 examples survive, of which around 180 are in the classic form.

Chief exponents

''Jeu-parti'' composers fall into different regional and historical groups. Early examples of the genre were composed by aristocratic trouvères such as Thibaut de Champagne, Raoul de Soissons,

Gace Brulé Gace Brulé (''c.'' 1160 – ''after'' 1213) was a French nobleman and trouvère from Champagne. His name is simply a description of his blazonry. He owned land in Groslière and had dealings with the Knights Templar, and received a gift from t ...

and John I of Brittany. Many ''jeux-partis'' were composed by poets from Arras, who were from a range of social backgrounds, notably

Jehan Bretel Jehan Bretel (''c''.1210 – 1272) was a trouvère. Of his known oeuvre of probably 97 songs, 96 have survived. Judging by his contacts with other trouvères he was famous and popular. Seven works by other trouvères ( Jehan de Grieviler, Jehan Era ...

Jehan de Grieviler Jehan de Grieviler (''Floruit, fl.'' mid- to late 13th century) was an Arras, Artesian cleric and trouvère. Jehan was probably born at Grévillers near Arras. A certain "Grieviler" is mentioned in the necrology (''registre'') of the Confrérie de ...

Lambert Ferri Lambert Ferri (fl. c. 1250–1300) was a trouvère and cleric at the Benedictine monastery at Saint-Léonard, Pas-de-Calais. By 1268 he was a canon and a deacon of the monastery; he is last associated with the monastery in 1282. He was a popula ...

, Gillebert de Berneville, the brothers

Guillaume Guillaume may refer to: People * Guillaume (given name), the French equivalent of William * Guillaume (surname) Other uses * Guillaume (crater) See also * '' Chanson de Guillaume'', an 11th or 12th century poem * Guillaume affair, a Cold War espi ...

and

Gilles le Vinier Gilles le Vinier (died 1252) was a trouvère from a middle-class family of Arras. He was the younger brother of fellow trouvère Guillaume le Vinier. He entered the church and served as a canon at Arras, where he was the church's legal representa ...

, and Adam de la Halle. The genre also flourished in Lorraine, with surviving examples by Thibaut II of Bar and Roland of Reims. Judges of ''jeux-partis'' range in social class from high-born aristocrats, such as

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...

and

Charles I of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou, was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the Capetian House of Anjou, second House of Anjou. He was Count of Provence (1246–85) and County of Fo ...

, to merchants, clerics, and mysterious figures named only by a nickname. Although most ''jeux-partis'' were composed by men, some feature a female interlocutor (one, attributed spuriously, to Blanche of Castile) or a female judge. Aristocratic female judges include the sisters Jeanne and Mahaut d'Aspremont (respectively the Countess of Leiningen and the Dame de Commercy), Jeanne de Fouencamp, who may have been associated with the

, and Demisele Oede, also associated with the

Puy Puy () is a geological term used locally in the Auvergne, France for a volcanic hill. The word derives from the Provençal ''puech'', meaning an isolated hill, coming from Latin ''podium'', which has given also ''puig'' in Catalan, ''poggio'' i ...

, who was the wife of a wealthy Artesian financier and appears as the judge of five ''jeux-partis''. Their involvement speaks to the importance of women as active, critical audiences of this genre.

Topics of the jeux-partis

Most ''jeux-partis'' are about love, but are not restricted to the high-register discussion of love found in grand chant. Some songs debate the different ways to win a lady with whom the poet has not yet had sexual union; other poems discuss which scenarios are preferable for sexual congress. ''Jeu-parti'' composers made great use of proverbs and metaphors in their poetry. These often relate to medieval life in the court or the city, referring to hunting, money or the market place. Many ''jeux-partis'' share their dilemma question with '' demandes d'amour'', short dilemma questions (normally followed by a yes or no answer) that are found in manuscripts from the early fourteenth century. Although manuscripts containing ''demandes'' postdate ''jeux-partis'', it is possible that many ''demandes'' existed before ''jeux-partis'' and were formalised and elaborated musically by ''jeu-parti'' composers.

Bibliography

* Alfred Jeanroy, ''Les origines de la poésie lyrique en France au Moyen-Age'' (Paris, 1899, 3/1925) *Alfred Jeanroy: ''La poésie lyrique des troubadours'' (Toulouse and Paris, 1934/''R''), ii, 247–81 *A. Långfors, A. Jeanroy and L. Brandin, eds.: Recueil général des jeux-partis français (Paris, 1926) *J. H. Maillard and J. Chailley: Anthologie de chants de trouvères (Paris, 1967) *M. F. Stewart: 'The Melodic Structure of Thirteenth-Century "Jeux-partis,"' AcM, li (1979), 86–107 *S. N. Rosenberg: 'Jeu-parti,’ Medieval France: an Encyclopedia (New York, 1995), 495. *Michèle Gally, ''Parler d'amour au puy d'Arras: Lyrique en jeu'' (Orléans, 2004).

References

{{Western medieval lyric forms French poetry Medieval French literature Western medieval lyric forms