In 2014, the Maxwell Music Library made a large purchase – in every sense of that word! The Squarcialupi Codex is a facsimile of a 15th century manuscript named for its owner, the Italian organist and composer Antonio Squarcialupi. Squarcialupi did not create the Codex himself; rather, it was produced by the monastery of Santa Maria degli Angeli in Florence, Italy between the years 1410 and 1415. The Codex contains 353 musical works, 150 of which are not found in any other Renaissance source. These include 227 ballatas (dance-songs), 115 madrigals (songs), and 12 cacce (songs similar to a modern round). The music is arranged chronologically by composer and – one of many features that makes the Codex exceptional – includes a small portrait of each composer near the ascription. The Codex is a book measuring about 1 by 1.5 feet and weighing about 40 pounds!
Facsimiles allow researchers to examine original manuscripts in great detail, without injuring the original or traveling to the location where the materials are kept. Because music is a visual as well as an aural art, many music materials are produced in facsimile. In addition to the Squarcialupi Codex, the Maxwell Music Library also owns facsimiles of works by composers like Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, and Schubert as well as modern composers like Hindemith and Crumb. Anyone in the Furman community is welcome to visit the Maxwell Music Library and consult these works.