Search - Gauthier de Coincy, Alla Francesca, Brigitte Lesne :: Gautier De Coincy: Les Miracles de Nostre-Dame

If not for the music manuscripts that have survived from the Middle Ages, we would know infinitely less about ancient life, morals, attitudes, priorities, and behavior. The 12th and 13th-century world would also seem far less colorful if not for our ability to experience songs such as those on this disc. These songs are the product of the prolific and apparently quite gifted writer Gautier de Coincy, who also served as Grand Prior of the monastery of Saint-Medard in France from 1233-36. Gautier set many of his poems to music--including the collection featured here--often using pre-existing melodies or arranging tunes to suit his own often intricate rhymes. The musicians of Alla Francesca make a very good case for Gautier's view that "if it is for the Mother of God that you sing your chants, by this very act you will become enchanted . . ." --David Vernier