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| Medievalism; How to engage with the middle ages in a creative way | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 12 2015, 10:40 AM (319 Views) | |
| Kati Ihnat | Mar 12 2015, 10:40 AM Post #1 |
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We had the pleasure of welcoming Dr Lisa Colton from Huddersfield University to Bristol the other day, where she gave a talk on medievalism in modern music, and specifically took the example of Margaret Lucy Wilkins, a living British composer. The talk seemed incredibly relevant to the task of the composers in this competition, specifically on the ways in which twentieth-century music has engaged with things medieval, so I thought I might share some of the things she brought up. Here's the definition of medievalism from the Grove Dictionary of Music (online):
There have been many ways in which people have imagined and reimagined the Middle Ages in their creative work. In fact, we can identify four of these ways more explicitly as: 1) creative medievalism: topics, themes, forms and works of art of the Middle Ages are formed into a new work of art (e.g. the pre-Raphaelites' reimagining of courtly culture) 2) reproductive medievalism: the reconstruction of medieval works through musical performance or renovation (of a painting or a building) and perceived to be authentic (e.g. the reenactment of the medieval cycle plays in cities like York - see this example) 3) scientific medievalism: the study of medieval authors, works, events, or facts (e.g. what we at Bristol are doing) 4) political and ideological medievalism: works, themes, ideas, or persons from the Middle Ages are exploited for political reasons (think about all the recent references to the Crusades in the 'war on terror' or to the 'medieval mindset' of ISIS) For the composers involved in this competition, the first two categories are most obviously relevant. I should note, however, that we are *NOT* looking for reproductions of the kind found in the link I attached; it would be impossible anyway, because we cannot hope to attempt an 'authentic' reproduction of the music we are studying, given that we don't know the pitches or intervals. However, this leaves tremendous room in terms of engaging in 'creative medievalism'. As Dr Colton explained, there are many ways in which to do this. Medieval music can influence the work of modern composers through: 1) use of text found in actual medieval compositions (liturgical or not) 2) use of spaces associated with medieval musical performance (i.e. in a church) 3) manipulation of space in ways related to medieval musical performance (e.g. having choirs set up in particular spaces, also the use of processions of performers) 4) use of particular musical textures or features that we traditionally associate with the medieval period (e.g. using intervals of a second or third, or a drone) 5) most generally, allusions to themes that we might connect to the middle ages (whether religious or spiritual, or other features of medieval culture) It's interesting that some of these features have become kind of code for 'medieval' - in the sense that they immediately bring up medieval associations to modern eyes and ears, whether or not they were really as important or present at all in the medieval context. Some examples of this in popular culture are the Lord of the Rings, or heavy metal bands, or Game of Thrones - all of this can be thought of as 'creative medievalism' in the manipulation of medieval stereotypes; we know it's supposed to be 'medieval' due to the presence of particular elements (like flowing hair and gowns, sword-play, strong religious references, brutality, etc.). Sometimes the inspiration is far more hidden and we can barely identify the original source of influence, for example the Arthurian components in Star Wars. The main musical example that Dr Colton gave was Margaret Lucy Wilkins' Revelations of the Seven Angels, a piece that incorporates 'medieval' elements such as: numerology (the importance of the number 7), textual material (the plainchant Benedicamus Domino and the motet Candida virginitas, as two examples), performance in Winchester cathedral (specifically for the stained glass windows that in part inspired the piece), and musical language (I'll let the real musicologists explain a bit more about that if they wish). Here's what Wilkins herself said about her inspiration for the piece:
(courtesy of Lisa Colton) The Grove dictionary provides additional examples of twentieth-century composers who show medieval influences, such as Carl Orff (Carmina Burana, 1935-1836), Edmund Rubbra (Fantasia on a Theme of Machaut op. 86, 1956), Frank Martin (Ode à la musique, 1961), Luciano Berio (A-Ronne, 1974), and Harrison Birtwistle (Hoquetus David, 1985). I hope this provides some additional inspiration to the composers out there who are struggling with the task of engaging with the medieval material, and assures them there are so many ways to do this! References: Annette Kreuziger-Herr, "Medievalism" in Grove Music Online (http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/2261008?q=medievalism&search=quick&source=omo_gmo&pos=1&_start=1#firsthit) - you can also find a lengthy bibliography here, should you wish for further readings on the subject; the talk to which I refer throughout this post was "Past tense: the Middle Ages as creative stimulus in the works of Margaret Lucy Wilkins", Lisa Colton, in the Music Department Research Seminar, University of Bristol, 10 March, 2015 Edited by Kati Ihnat, Mar 12 2015, 11:05 AM.
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| LithaEfthymiou | Apr 2 2015, 12:24 PM Post #2 |
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Thanks for this Kati. As I progress further along my PhD it seems that 'creative medievalism' is, indeed, what I am doing. I am finding it helpful to think about how to make parts of the liturgy relevant to a modern audience. To do this I have had to try to understand the underlying significance of some of the rituals and see if I can find resonances in the modern world. |
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8:26 PM Jul 11