Part One (300 words)
Bernart de Ventadorn, Troubadour song, Can vei la
additional performance (Emmanuel Bouquey)
Medieval dance Estampie (Arany Zoltan)
Setting and Context
Todays romantic love tradition stems from the great art and courtly love, or chivalry, culture created in the south of France by troubadours that arose around the time of first Crusades, from the 1100s into almost 1300s.
Watch this documentary to learn about Troubadours, their time, their role and music
Trail of the Troubadours complete (28:37) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J23ZYkIhVJw
Additional resource:
Chapter 1, Episode 5 The Troubadours & Courtly Love (23:30)
Troubadour Music and Bernart de Ventadorn
Music of troubadours is the only secular repertoire we have remaining from the Middle Ages. Troubadours were knights, aristocratic poets, composers and performers who used vernacular (local language) in their art, not Latin language of the
church.
Bernart de Ventadorn (c. 1130- c. 1200), Troubadour song, Can vei la
additional performance (Emmanuel Bouquey)
About Bernart de Ventadorn:
GW1 Bernart de Ventadorn (15:30)
Text translation (first two stanzas):
When I see the lark beat his wings for joy against the suns ray
,until he forgets to fly and plummets down,
for the sheer delight which goes to his heart,
alas, great envy comes to me of those whom I see filled with happiness,
and I marvel that my heart does not instantly melt from desire.
Alas, I thought I knew so much about love,
and really I know so little,
for I cannot keep myself from loving her from whom I shall have no favor.
She has stolen from me my heart, myself, herself,
and all the world.When she took herself from me,
she left me nothing but desire and a longing heart.
Text:
Cuando veo a la alondra mover
de alegría sus alas contra el rayo de sol,
y se desvanece y se deja caer
por la dulzura que le llega al corazón,
¡ay!, me entra una envidia tan grande
de cualquiera que vea gozoso,
que me maravillo de que al momento
el corazón no se funda de deseo.
¡Ay de mi!, creía saber mucho
de amor,
¡y sé tan poco!,
pues no me puedo abstener de amar
a aquella de quien nunca obtendré
ventaja.
Me ha robado el corazón, me ha
robado a mí,
y a sí misma y a todo el mundo;
y cuando me privó de ella no me dejó
nada más que deseo y corazón
anheloso.
Important elements of the troubadour songs:
unattainable lady
melody and lute accompaniment
topics love, weather, crusades
Find a troubadour and a recording of one song by that troubadour.
Write an essay about the troubadour, this song, the elements of the chivalry you can find in the text and your thoughts about the music.
Part Two (300 words)
SECULAR
Repertoire:
Farmer, Fair Phyllis
Thomas Weelkes, madrigal As Vesta Was Descending
Instrumental Anonymous, Rodrigo Martinez from songbook the Cancionero Real de Palacio (The Palaces Royal Songbook), from the palace of King Ferdinand II of Aragón and Queen Isabella of Castile and León
Additional Listening:
Josquin, Faulte dargent
Clément Janequin, Chant de oiseaux
Gesualdo, madrigal Luci serene e chiare
Dowland, Flow My Tears
Instrumental Luis de Milan, Tiento No. 1 tiento/ fantasia / ricercar
Dowland, The Galliard from The Most Sacred Queen Elizabeth
Byrd, Galliard a6
Qui passe (harpsichord)
Setting
Both amateur and professional musicians participated in creating music for secular occasions usually connected to social events and court entertainment. Secular Renaissance music included music for voice and instrumental accompaniment as well as purely instrumental music for listening and dances. A popular instrument in prosperous homes of the time was lute as can be seen in a Lute Player painting by Caravaggio below. Women began to play an important part in music performances at home and at court. At the end of the sixteenth century in Italy we know of many great professional women singers.
Caravaggio, The Lute Player (1596)
A new genre of madrigal becomes popular in Italy and quickly spreads to England. Using secular text, composers of madrigal would set it to music in such a way as to reflect the words by music or highlight certain parts of text or certain words musically. Madrigals were written in imitative style for four six parts, one voice per part, so performance of madrigals requires well trained singers.
John Farmer, Fair Phyllis
John Farmer (c. 1570-1603), an Irish composer from Dublin who worked at Christ Church as organist and teaching choirboys, wrote a book of four part madrigals that he published in London when he moved there in 1599.
In this madrigal we find a story of shepherdess Phyllis and shepherd Amyntas who lightheartedly are engaged in a love pursuit.
Listen to Fair Phyllis madrigal while noting words that are emphasized in some way by musical means:
All alone (one voice active)
Up and down (moving voices up and down)
Such devices when music literally portrays the words is called word painting, a distinctive feature of madrigals.
Note how imitative sections are contrasted with homophonic (or chordal) when all voices sing together (O, then they fell a kissing).
Listen to the instrumental piece from the Spanish royal court:
Instrumental Anonymous, Rodrigo Martinez from songbook the Cancionero Real de Palacio (The Palaces Royal Songbook), from the palace of King Ferdinand II of Aragón and Queen Isabella of Castile and León
Assignment:
Thomas Weelkes, madrigal As Vesta Was Descending
Listen to the madrigal As Vesta Was From Latmos Hill Descending
Find examples of word painting (what words are depicted by music and how) in this madrigal and write a short essay.
Chapter terms:
Madrigal
Word painting
Dance music
John Farmer
Thomas Weelkes
