«In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to a village in Galil so called Nazareth, to a virgin… the virgin’s name was Mary... the angel said to her: “...Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.”.» With these words, the apostle Luke in his Gospel (1:26–31) tells us the miraculous event of the conception of Our Lord. This event has always attracted the interest of composers. Exemplary in this regard is the medieval and Renaissance repertoire. In the Gospels and particularly in that of Luke other episodes from Jesus’ childhood are also recounted, such as his birth and the visit of the Kings to Bethlehem, guided by the star. The conception, the birth, and the visit of the shepherds and the Kings are the three moments in the life of the Lord that the ensemble Il Giardino delle Muse has chosen to “represent” in its musical journey through Christmas, doing so in a mirrored way between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Before continuing with the description of the individual pieces, I would like to note that the two repertoires - while both referencing the words of the Evangelist from a textual point of view - present a fundamental difference: the medieval pieces are in Latin, whereas the Renaissance ones use the vernacular. Our Christmas journey begins with the monodic Cantiga Cuncti simus concanentes: Ave Maria, taken from the Llibre Vermell, a splendid 14th century Spanish manuscript that preserves the songs of pilgrims who traveled to the monastery of Montserrat to venerate the Black Madonna. The text of this Cantiga seems to echo the Evangelist’s words, to the point that we can read: “To her alone among all creatures, an angel appeared. His name was Gabriel, and he was sent from Heaven… you shall bear a son, hear me, beloved ones, you shall name him Jesus.”. Similarly, the four-voice Villancico Riu Riu Chiu, a 16th-century composition attributed to M. Flecha and found in the Cancionero de Upsala, recalls the same miraculous event with these words: “…this Virgin had not even a single sin. The one who is born is the great King.”. Mary, again according to Luke’s Gospel (1:34–35), is troubled by the angel’s words and responds, saying: “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” The angel answers: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the one to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”. The sweet and soothing monodic Cantiga Polorum Regina omnium nostra, also from the Llibre Vermell, clearly reaffirms the concept of Mary’s purity “Star of the Morning” before, during, and after the birth of Our Lord: “Before the birth, virgin pregnant with God. You always remained inviolate…And during the birth, virgin fruitful of God. You always remained inviolate… And after the birth, virgin made mother. You always remained inviolate. Star of the morning, cleanse us from our sins.”. The birth of Jesus is also beautifully told in Ne l’apparir del sempiterno sole by F.Soto de Langa, a tender three-voice Lauda published at the end of the 16th century, in which one can already hear the emerging Baroque sensibility that followed the Council of Trent. The text seems to paraphrase the Gospel of Luke (2:4–20), where the apostle recounts the arrival of Joseph and Mary in Bethlehem, the birth of Jesus, the swaddling of the Child, his placement in the manger, the arrival of the shepherds at the Holy Cradle, and their awe. The figure of Mary compared to a star atop a mountain, capable of generating a light as powerful as a ray of the sun and her holiness as the mother of Jesus, able to work miracles, became, between the 12th and 13th centuries, the object of great veneration. Marian devotion reached one of its highest points in history during this time. The two-voice polyphonic Cantiga Stella splendens in monte tells of this devotion to Mary by “rich and poor, great and small, …Princes and nobles of royal lineage, … Prelates, barons, illustrious counts, all religious and priests, soldiers, merchants, citizens, sailors, town folks, fishermen, farmers, plowmen and also notaries, lawyers, stonemasons, carpenters, tailors and shoemakers, and also weavers, artisans… In short, all men and women cleansing our souls, let us devoutly pray to the glorious Virgin, merciful Mother. May we behold in heaven she who is truly full of grace.”. The English four-voice Carol Remember, O Thou Man is spiritually striking. The piece is divided into two parts. In the first we hear a true memento mori, a philosophical and theological concept typical of the Counter-Reformation and the Baroque period reminding Man that his time is short, that he must repent or face damnation, and that his salvation is made possible because God, in His infinite goodness, sent His Son to Earth to wash away our sins. At this point, the second part begins, narrating the angels singing in glory to announce the birth of Jesus, and the shepherds journeying to the manger in Bethlehem to see the Savior, so that “on this blessed day, may all men sing and say: ‘Holy, holy!’. The final piece sung is a Canzoncina, whose text was written by Sant Alfonso de Liguori in 1737. The lyrics, in Neapolitan dialect, are meant to be sung to an anonymous melody of likely popular origin, which later became widely known under the title Tu scendi dalle stelle, its words also written by Sant Alfonso de Liguori. The composition Quando nascette Ninno recounts the joy and wonder of mankind at the birth of Jesus: the heavens light up as if it were day thanks to the star, flowers begin to bloom again despite the winter, and animals, at peace with one another, begin to sing. Thanks to the birth of the Ninno, the “child,” “the earth has become a Paradise.”. Alongside the sung pieces, there are instrumental compositions whose purpose is to develop and contextualize, even theologically, the theme of the Holy Nativity. As for the medieval period, the three Cantigas from the Llibre Vermell including Cuncti simus concanentes: Ave Maria and Polorum Regina omnium nostra are written in the form of ball redon, meaning they were intended to be danced. These are ideally placed alongside four instrumental performances of pieces from the Cantigas de Santa Maria. The Cantigas de Santa Maria collection, composed of over four hundred pieces, was created at the magnificent Spanish court of Alfonso X el Sabio (1221–1284), and represents one of the greatest musical monuments of the Middle Ages dedicated to the figure of Mary. These pieces structured like those in the Llibre Vermell, with alternating refrains and verses narrate both miracles performed by the Virgin and prayers addressed to the Holy Mother. These extraordinary compositions often feature rhythms reminiscent of typical 13th- and 14th-century dances, such as the Estampida, Saltarello, Ductia, or Rotundellus, and have been performed in this same spirit. The decision to include the Cantigas de Santa Maria in addition to their intrinsic musical beauty and stylistic proximity to those of the Llibre Vermell serves to place the figure of the Mother at the heart of the Christmas narrative, imagining the Virgin in an ideal dialogue with her Son, who is the incarnate God. In the case of the Renaissance instrumental repertoire, we are presented with a different musical approach. The vocal compositions originate from various geographical areas, and the same applies to the instrumental dances. The program begins with the Spanish three- part piece Propiñan de Melyor , taken from the Cancionero de la Colombina , thus maintaining a connection a red thread with the preceding medieval repertoire. This composition strongly resembles a fanfare, with its opening ascending fifth intervals immediately capturing the listener’s attention, further enhanced by a rhythmic and engaging melody. Schiarazula marazula is a well-known Italian Renaissance dance, which has even been referenced in more recent times in Italian singer-songwriter music. Its melodic line is supported by two droning bichords, making its folk origin immediately recognizable. The melody enters into direct dialogue with both Ne l’apparir del sempiterno sole a deliberately “popular” Lauda written for lay devotion and Quando nascette Ninno. Bransle de Bourgogne is the only French composition in the set and, with its origin in Burgundy, also reveals its folk roots. This four-part Bransle, formally structured in three sections, stands out for its clearly defined melody and melancholic character. Particularly noble indeed, regal is Pastime with Good Company, a three-voice vocal piece written by King Henry VIII. Its rhythmic motion, reminiscent of the Branle, makes it highly suitable for instrumental performance. Pastime with Good Company, like all the other dances - keeping the period practice - has been enriched with a series of ornamental diminutions and virtuosic embellishments. The instrumental section concludes with the elegant and noble Noel’s Galliard by A. Holborne, a five-part composition which, as its title suggests, is distinctly Christmas-themed.
