Fascination Middle Ages

Description

Whether in Gothic novels, reenacted knight fights, in film and computer games, or in the revival of old musical practices: the Middle Ages continue to fascinate today. In a historically rich city like Basel, traces of the Middle Ages are still visible, recognizable by churches, gates, and some houses in the city center. But how did this fascinating era sound? Basel is the perfect place to find out. At the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, musicians have been exploring this question for decades. They research sources, learn historical instruments, study appropriate playing practices, and in this way, manage to rediscover the seemingly long-lost world of sound. In the Middle Ages, cultural and music centers developed at cathedrals and monasteries, as well as at secular centers of power: at princely and royal courts and in wealthy cities. Secular music is presented in the program by a very typical instrumental ensemble of the time, consisting of loud wind instruments: shawm, pommer, dulzian, and trumpet. They played a central role in society: every monarch, prince, or free city employed such a group. It was the best way for them to provide music and entertainment for social occasions outdoors or for dancing in large halls. The members of the Basel ensemble "Alta Bellezza" Hanna Geisel, Ann Allen, and Adam Bregman will perform original compositions from the 14th and 15th centuries on historical wind instruments. One of the most important symbols of the Middle Ages is the Gothic cathedral. Initially, the term Gothic, introduced by the Italian Giorgio Vasari, was meant pejoratively, as a "barbaric" art in contrast to the true classical art of the Renaissance. It was only the Romantics who rediscovered the peculiar beauty of this architecture; later, Victor Hugo, Claude Monet, and Marcel Proust created timeless monuments to the Gothic cathedral in their works. From the flowering period of French Romantic organ music at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, organ compositions inspired by the monumental Gothic cathedrals will be played by Ekaterina Kofanova, organist of the Peterskirche. These works, inspired by the majestic Gothic cathedrals, evoke poetic sound images of a long-past era. Ensemble "Alta Bellezza": Hanna Geisel, Ann Allen, and Adam Bregman. Ekaterina Kofanova, organ

Highlights

• Music from the Middle Ages and early Renaissance
• Historical wind instruments and organ music
• Performance at the Evangelical Reformed Peterskirche

General Information

The event "Fascination Middle Ages" presents music from the Middle Ages and early Renaissance, played on historical wind instruments. In the Evangelical Reformed Peterskirche in Basel, the sound world of this fascinating era comes alive, supported by the ensemble "Alta Bellezza".

Location

Peterskirchplatz 4, 4051 Basel, Switzerland

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