A significant musical discovery has emerged from Scotland’s first full-length printed book, The Aberdeen Breviary (1510). Researchers from Edinburgh College of Art and KU Leuven uncovered a fragment of 55 musical notes hidden within its pages, providing a rare glimpse into pre-Reformation Scottish music from five centuries ago. This piece, originating from the northeast of Scotland, is the only surviving music from this era and appears in the “Glamis copy,” now at the National Library of Scotland.
The fragment was found on a blank page used for Matins, a morning service, though it lacked any associated text or title. Initially a mystery, experts identified it as a polyphonic arrangement of “Cultor Dei,” a hymn sung during Lent. This discovery highlights the vibrant musical traditions that existed in Scotland’s religious institutions, contrary to previous beliefs of a barren musical landscape prior to the Reformation.
The findings not only reveal lost music but also trace the historical use of the Breviary, which once belonged to figures tied to Aberdeen Cathedral and a Catholic family. The research underscores the potential for further discoveries in similar 16th-century texts, reinforcing Scotland’s rich musical heritage.
