La gloire des cours
Polyphonies religieuses dans l’Europe du 15e siècle by an Ensemble of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis

Teachers and students of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis present sacred music from the 15^th century by Gilles Binchois, as well as Zacara da Teramo and Johannes Ciconia from the Krasinksi Codex from Krakow around 1440. In collaboration with the Swiss Embassy to Marocco and the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, Switzerland.

The Schola Cantorum Basiliensis is a centre of expertise in the study of historical music performance, from the early Middle Ages right up to the 19th century. It is part of the Academy of Music of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts FHNW in Basel, Switzerland. With some 70 lecturers and around 200 students from all over the world, it brings music spanning a millennium back to life.

The Ensemble consisting of the renowned performers and teachers Marc Lewon and Baptiste Romain of the Medieval-Renaissance-Department together with four selected students of voice will bring the rich sacred polyphonic music of the 15^th century to the stage.

Gilles Binchois (c1400-1460) was one of the three great musical figures of the first half of the 15th century. The extent to which his works were borrowed, quoted, parodied and intabulated in the 15th century demonstrates his influence on the music of the Burgundian era.

Having narrowly escaped the devastation of the Polish libraries in the turmoils of the Second World War, the so-called “Krasinski Codex” is today one of the most valuable treasures of the Polish National Library and arguably the most important music manuscript of late medieval Poland. It was written in Krakow in the early 15th century and contains a sacred, international (mainly Italian) repertoire as well as compositions by local composers. Because it was intended only as a rough copy from which another manuscript was later made (now lost), the notation is often unclear and contains numerous mistakes and scribal errors. A new transcription and performing edition has been produced for this programme to make the pieces playable once again.

Ensemble

Baptiste Romain – fiddle, bagpipes
Marc Lewon – lute, gittern

Karin Weston – voice
Ivana Ivanovic – voice
Arthur Baldensperger – voice
Martin Kautzsch – voice