We see a new life springing all around, and the thoughts of young men and women turn towards love. There are many hundreds of songs concerning the joys of spring, and the banishment of winter. The famous round Sumer is icumen in displays wonderfully the excitement at the abundance of nature's revival. Summer is a happy time of leisure, of resting in the woods and fields, of chance encounters and for dancing. Estampies, Caroles and Pastourelles represent this easy time of love and merrymaking.
Autumn is a time for harvesting and feasting, in preparation for the harsh winter months ahead.
Chanson de toile reflect the thoughts of the woman as she weaves warm clothes, and, as the leaves fall from the trees, thoughts turn to the everlasting cycle of the seasons, and how it is mirrored in the human cycle of life and death, and the ever-turning wheel of fortune. This concert is of music from an intriguing period in the musical history of England. At a time when the university, particularly that of Paris, was becoming firmly established as the secular centre of learning, and the development of polyphony was centred around the school of Notre Dame, English music seemed to have been in something of a backwater. This is not the case, and in this programme we will demonstrate the variety and individuality of English music in the 13th century, as well as the common links it shared with the trends set on the continent. Solo song in troubadour style will concern the traditional themes of unrequited love, but also include moving laments on Christ on the cross.