![]() Because these aural traditions died out in the 12th century, it has often been thought impossible to reconstruct 'lost' music from this era – precisely because the pitches are unknown. 1,000 years ago, music was written in a way that recorded melodic outlines, but not 'notes' as today's musicians would recognise them relying on aural traditions and the memory of musicians to keep them alive. ![]() However, the task of performing such ancient works today is not as simple as reading and playing the music in front of you. These included passages from the classics by Horace and Virgil, late antique authors such as Boethius, and medieval texts from laments to love songs. Hundreds of Latin songs were recorded in neumes from the 9th through to the 13th century. Such was its importance, it was translated by many major figures, including King Alfred the Great, Chaucer and Elizabeth I. ![]() One of the most widely-read and important works of the Middle Ages, it was written during Boethius' sixth century imprisonment, before his execution for treason. Saturday's performance features music set to the poetic portions of Roman philosopher Boethius' magnum opus The Consolation of Philosophy. ![]() 'Songs of Consolation', performed at Pembroke College Chapel, Cambridge on April 23, is reconstructed from neumes (symbols representing musical notation in the Middle Ages) and draws heavily on an 11th century manuscript leaf that was stolen from Cambridge and presumed lost for 142 years. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |