Music. Obs. exc. Hist. Forms: 5 faburdon. -thon, -thyn, 6 fabourdoun, 6–7 faburthen, 6– faburden. [a. Fr. faux-bourdon (Ch. D’Orléans, a. 1466), i.e., faux false + bourdon BOURDON2.]
1. ‘One of the early systems of harmonizing a given portion of plain song or a canto fermo, afterwards used as a term for a sort of harmony consisting of thirds and sixths, added to a canto fermo’ (Stainer and Barrett).
14[?]. Chilston, in Hawkins, Hist. Mus. (1776), II. 228. Faburdun hath but two sightis, a thyrd aboue the plainsong in sight, the which is a syxt fro the treble in uoice; and euen wyth the plain-song in sight, the wheche is an eyghth from the treble in uoise.
[1462. W. Wey, Itin., II. (Roxb.), 96. Cantabamus in honore Dei et beate Marie Magnificat, in faburthon.
1484. Visitations of Southwell Minster (Camden), 46. In cantando faburdon non servat ritum chori.]
1501. Douglas, Pal. Hon., I. xlii.
| In modulation hard I play and sing | |
| Fabourdoun, pricksang, discant, countering. |
1539. Will J. Robynson (Somerset Ho.). Preestes … whiche shall singe playn songe and faburden.
1590. John Burel, The Queen’s Entry into Edinburgh, xx. in Watson’s Choice Collection of Comin and Serious Scots Poems, II. (1709), 5.
| Fabourdon fell with decadence, | |
| With priksang, and the singing plane. |
1597. T. Morley, Introd. Mus., Annot. Here is an example, first the plainsong, and then the Faburden.
a. 1789. Burney, Hist. Mus. (ed. 2), II. ii. 139. What has since been called Counterpoint or in old English, Faburden.
2. a. The undersong; = BURDEN 9.
1587. Gascoigne, Flowers, Wks. 94.
| And when the descant sings in treble tunes above, | |
| Then let fa burthen say below I liv’d and dide for love. |
1609. Pammelia, 70. The fourth must sing the Faburthen [Bome, bome on the first line of the stave].
1622. Roger Tisdale, The Lawyer’s Philosophy.
| Sighing a sad faburthen from my quill | |
| To thy more nimble warblings. |
b. The refrain; = BURDEN 10.
1580. Lyly, Euphues (Arb.), 308. Least thou come in againe with thy fa-burthen.
1596. Nashe, Saffron Walden, K iv b. Hee was accustomed to make it the Fa burden to annie thing hee spake.
1634. C. Fitz-Geefray, The Blessed Birth-day (1881), 137.
| Be sure no better straine then this can be | |
| The sweet Faburthen, to their melodie. |
3. A legend, motto.
1594. Nashe, Unfort. Trav., 52. On his target he had a number of crawling wormes kept vnder by a blocke, the faburthen speramus lucem.
4. attrib. quasi-adj. ? High-sounding.
1596. Lodge, Wits Miserie 9. Mirabile, miraculoso, stupendo, and such faburthen words.
