DISCANTO. - This term, which is regarded as a translation of the Greek term Sixquola, denotes an ancient form of polyphony (v. ARS ANTIQUA) which succeeded the primitive organum or diafonia.
Besides the contrary motion of the parts, this compositional genre also established a true mensuralism (the diafonia was a simple note-against-note counterpoint, without measure, or unmeasured in all its parts), thus producing measured counterpoint, originally in two parts, then in three or four (Franco di Colonia), moving in contrary motion with identical words (cantilenas, rondeaux, copulae, hoquets, etc.) or different ones (motets), at intervals of fifths and octaves. Discant proper differs from the conductus, one of its subtypes, in that, whereas in the latter all the parts are freely invented by the same musician, it is composed upon a given chant. Rules for this form are given by many anonymous theorists, the so-called Catton, the two Franconi of Colonia and Parigi, Petrus de Cruce, I. de Garlandia, etc.; their treatises on discant are found at the Ambrosiana in Milano (ed. M. 17 dup. sec. XII), at the Nationale in Parigi (Fonds Sorbonne 1817, St-Victor 813 sec. XII), etc., while musical examples (thirteenth century) occur in the aforementioned Ambrosiana codex, in one at Chartres (bibl. de la Ville 130 [148]), and in one at Cambridge (Corpus Christi College 473, Tropario di Winchester).