Jacobus Clemens non Papa

fl. 1544-1550

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Displaying 4 events

Biography

Jacobus Clemens non Papa (c1510-1555/6) was a Netherlandish composer active in Bruges, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, and Ypres. He may also have been associated with Emperor Charles V and his allied elites. Many of his works were printed by Susato in Antwerp. A prolific composer of Latin music, Dutch pious songs (souterliedekens), and many chansons. Clemens, like his fellow Netherlander Gombert, composed chansons that were (in contrast to those of Parisian masters) densely contrapuntal, with imitative textures and long melodic lines.

Premiers docs : 1544 (Bruges)
Premières sources : (NG2) Clemens first appears in the historical record with the publication of several chansons by Attaingnant in Paris beginning in the late 1530s. The sobriquet ‘non Papa’ is first recorded in 1542, the date of the attribution of Je prens en gre (previously printed anonymously) in a set of manuscript partbooks belonging to the Flemish merchant Zeghere de Male (F-CA 124 [125–8]).
MAIS CATALOGUE: Au ioly bois, 3vv, 1529/4 (confirmé par base chansons + Heartz n°10-35, où l’on voit que le recueil ne contient aucune attribution, celle de cette chanson apparaissant chez Phalèse, 1560/7). Les premières sources ultérieures sont Attaingnant Attaingnant 1536/5 (2 chansons non attribuées, avec notamment “Le departir est sans departement” sur un poème de François Ier, réimpr. 1538/11), puis 1537/4 (1e attrib. “Clemens”) et 1538/10 (attrib., les 3 dernières du recueil !) et 1538/14, 1539/15, etc.

Freedman Richard
See also:

BNF

VIAF

Information

  • Roles

    Cleric
    Composer
    Instrumentalist
    Master of choirboys
    Member of a court chapel (musician)
    Singer
    Succentor (ecclesiastical office)

  • Gender

    Male

Events

(YYYY-MM-DD)

4 in database

Professional career - others

Member of a court chapel (musician)
1544/1549
Aachen (Germany)


Patron: Charles V of Habsburg

Religious position

Succentor (ecclesiastical office)
1544-03/1545-06
Brugge (Belgium)


Institution: Sint-Donaaskathedraal in Brugge, Brugge (Belgium)

Musical position

Composer
1550-10-01/1550-12-24
‘s-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands)


Institution: Illustre Lieve Vrouwe Broederschap in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, ‘s-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands)

Musical position

Singer
1550-10-01/1550-12-24
‘s-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands)


Institution: Illustre Lieve Vrouwe Broederschap in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, ‘s-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands)

Associated works

16 in database

Variant names

Clement non papa

Associated people

No associated person.

Bibliography

No bibliography.

Contributors

David Fiala - Project manager

Philippe Vendrix - Project manager

Richard Freedman - Biography author


Data collectors

Richard Freedman

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Freedman Richard, Jacobus Clemens non Papa, in RicercarDataLab [https://ricercardatalab.cesr.univ-tours.fr/people/146/] (accessed 18 June 2026).

Last modification: June 18, 2026