Danckerts, Ghiselin

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Danckerts, Ghiselin

Danckerts, Ghiselin , Flemish composer and music theorist; b. Tholen, Zeeland, c. 1510; d. after Aug. 1565. He entered the Papal Chapel in Rome as a chorister in 1538, and was pensioned in 1565. Although collections of his works were publ., they are lost; however, single works are extant. His ingenuity in counterpoint is demonstrated in the so-called Chess-board Canon for 4 voices with alternating black and white notes. His treatise (c. 1551) pronouncing judgment on the theoretical dispute between Vincentino and Lusitano on the nature of ancient modes subsequently appeared in 2 versions (c. 1555–56 and 1559–60).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire