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Johannes Ockeghem (ca. 1410–1497)

Johannes Ockeghem, a native of Hainaut, earned considerable prominence due to his employment at the French royal court. Beginning in about 1452, before he became a priest, he held several desirable positions (including premier chapelain of the royal chapel and treasurer in the church of St. Martin, Tours) before being ordained and eventually named maître de chapelle by 1465. In 1470, he was included in a diplomatic trip to Spain, which may have involved some extra-musical duties. On his visit to Bruges in 1484, he was honored at the church of St. Donatian. While he was clearly in favor with Charles VII and Louis XI, he may or may not have had a similar role during the reign of Charles VIII.

Praised also for his pleasant singing voice, Ockeghem composed music with a sharp mind for counterpoint and an artistic sense of subtlety. In addition to his motets and secular works, he wrote at least thirteen cyclic masses, some freely composed and some using cantus firmi. However, only the Missa Ecce ancilla Domini (quoted by Obrecht in the St. Donatian Mass) used a pre-existing plainsong melody for the tenor. As in some of his other later works, he chose to modify the cantus firmus to match the texture of the other voices.

Though we cannot be certain that Obrecht encountered Ockeghem on his Bruges visit in 1484, frequent quotation and imitation of Ockeghem’s work in some of Obrecht’s Masses reveal a desire to honor the elder composer, perhaps in expectation of a meeting. In the St. Donatian Mass, Obrecht follows Ockeghem’s example by approaching motivic devices with moderation, employing a far more conservative style than in most of his other works. In addition to references to Ockeghem’s Missa Ecce ancilla Domini in the Kyrie I and Osanna of this Mass, evidence of the Missa Mi-mi can be found in the Agnus Dei of Obrecht’s Missa Sicut spina rosam and in the opening of his Missa de Sancto Martino.

Our primary visual legacy of Ockeghem consists of an illumination of the French Royal Chapel choir, though there is some debate as to which figure is meant to depict the revered composer. It may not be correct to assume that he is the prominently-placed, hooded and spectacled singer who fits the popular notion of the composer’s peculiarities. On the other hand, suggestions that the red-robed, handsomer figure more appropriately matches reports of his appearance and disposition can be challenged by that figure’s generic facial features. The solution to the mystery will require further analysis of his reputation during his lifetime and a fuller understanding of the background of the illumination, made over thirty years after his death.

Select Bibliography:

Fallows, David. "Johannes Ockeghem: The Changing Image, the Songs and a New Source."


Leeman L. Perkins: ‘Ockeghem, Jean de’, Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy


Wegman, Rob C. Born for the Muses: The Life and Masses of Jacob Obrecht. New York: Oxford

Created by M. Jennifer Bloxam, Professor of Music | Williams College | Credits | Glossary