Treasure Trove: the Cantigas de Santa Maria
Just as archaeologists attempt to reconstruct entire communities from a few sherds of pottery, the odd ancient coin and the faint residue of post holes in the earth, musicologists and early music performers must contend with the rarity of original manuscripts and the primitive nature of early musical notation in their efforts to understand how music was performed in the Middle Ages.
But then there are finds like King Tut’s tomb, or Sutton Hoo, where the detail and quantity of artifacts give a wonderfully complete picture of a culture.
In the case of music, one such golden hoard is the collection of songs known as the Cantigas de Santa Maria. They consist of over 400 songs in Galician Portuguese from the 13th Century that narrate entertaining, often earthy and humorous, stories of miracles both large and small rendered by the Virgin Mary. They tell us much about the beliefs, culture and art of that time and place. Particularly important for modern performers, they contain musical notation for the songs and detailed illustrations depicting musicians going about their craft. With these ancient manuscripts, a stunning treasure trove of beautiful music is unearthed for us to enjoy today.
The tunes, simple but beautiful, present opportunities for a variety of settings and interpretations. That is what Victoria’s local medieval ensemble, Bourdons, will bring to the EMSI stage, employing voice and the exotic sounds of medieval period instruments, from vielles, lute, oud, harp and gittern, to recorders, hurdy gurdy, shawm, medieval bagpipes and frame drums.
Members of Bourdon:
Linda Dodd – voice, vielle, recorders
Douglas Hensley – lute, oud, gittern, percussion
Gwendolyn Jamieson – voice, harp, hurdy gurdy
William Jamieson – recorders, historical bagpipes, shawm
Guest artist:
Arian Aminalroaya, percussion
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