Jacopo Bisagni is giving an online talk titled “The King’s Manuscript. An introduction to medieval (instrumental) music: A musical multi-media talk” on Thursday 17 December at 5pm.
What is medieval music? Manuscripts, paintings and sculptures from the Middle Ages are full of men and women playing all kinds of instruments: but what did they play? And how? Who played music, and for whom? And what did instrumental music mean? Was it simply for entertainment, or did it have a more complex and deeper function?
In this talk and performance we shall explore this distant musical world by focussing on a single source: Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Fr. 844, also known as Manuscrit du Roi or Chansonnier du Roi (‘the King’s Manuscript’, or ‘the King’s Songbook’). In addition to being played by Jacopo on flutes and bagpipes, each of these eleven pieces shall be used to address a specific question, with the help of art, literature and music treatises from the same age as the manuscript itself.
The talk is a youtube premiere and the chat line will be open during the talk for Q&A.
The talk is free but registration is required: https://stauntonmedia.ie/galway-early-music/the-king-s-manuscript-an-introduction-to-medieval-instrumental-music