In 2018, the Medieval Music Course of Besalú focuses on music connected to the crusades (11th-13th centuries). In its different music courses and workshops the participants will explore the context, composition, and performance of music composed to promote the sacred duty of the crusades, to capture the yearning for the Holy Land, to record the departure of lovers to Outremer, and to censure the whole enterprise. The courses and workshops can be taken individually or combined.
(July 10-14)
A multidisciplinary study of the crusade song repertoire: history, poetry, art, and religion applied to the reconstruction of performance.
(July 15-20)
Hands-on performance of clerical and troubadour-trouvère crusader song repertoires. Study of historical vocal techniques, musical instruments, tuning (Pythagorean), and ensemble playing.
(July 7-8)
Performance of Latin, French, Occitan, and High German crusader songs. Open to singers, and bowed and plucked string instrument players (max 12 students).
(July 21-22)
Ensemble class for advanced singers and instrumentalists. Work on the most demanding repertoires of the period. Experience and audition required (max 10 participants).
(July 15)
A short hike to the 11th-century churches of Santa Maria and the Monastery of Sant Sepulcre de Palera, and performance of crusader songs within the temples.
(February 17-24, 2018)
Reconstruction of pre-troubadour songs and their performance directly from the original sources. Focused on the poetic, rhetorical, and musical style of the period.
Medieval Music Besalú: An Immersion Course on Medieval Music Performance in a Medieval Town Setting.
The medieval town of Besalú from the air.
Voices & Instruments Course.
Manuscript to Performance course.
Faculty Besalú (Magister Petrus), Flavit Auster flatu Levi.
What students say about the course.
Highlights from the 2014 course.
Interviews and performances from the 2013 International Course on Medieval Music Performance in Besalú.
Medieval Music Course of Besalú: Interviews and performances on JLTV (Los Angeles).
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