The San Francisco Early Music Society in collaboration with the Port Townsend Early Music Summer Workshops present
Eric Mentzel: Singing Medieval Song Mini-Workshop (1 of 3)
Performing medieval song can be challenging for the modern singer. Often lacking the familiar organizing elements of harmony and unambiguous rhythm, how do we imbue such music with life and succeed in engaging the listener? How can instrumentalists gain an understanding of how singers think about shaping song phrases, or accompany monophonic song? Challenges can become opportunities. If we accept medieval song on its own terms and succeed in decoding its inner logic, we can unlock a world of subtle musical expression free from many of the strictures that govern later music. We will start with some of the earliest notated song and examine what the sources can and cannot tell us. What decisions are left in the hands of the singer, or instrumentalist, and how do we make them? As we develop a performance-oriented approach we will see to what extent it can be applied across a range of genres, as well as how those genres may differ. Finally, we will study the techniques of improvisation that led to the polyphonic masterworks preserved in such important musical centers as Notre Dame and Santiago de Compostela.
A=440; Singers and instrumentalists of all levels welcome.
Visit the SFEMS website for all the July classes.