It is the earliest morality play by more than a century, and the only medieval musical drama to survive with an attribution for both the text and the music. The work highlighted today is known as ordo virtutum or the play of virtues. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The enduring appeal of hildegard of bingens 10981179 music was apparent in early may when a full house in canberra was treated to an ethereal, poignant and at times playful performance of her liturgical drama the ordo virtutum play of the virtues. Musicnotes features the worlds largest online digital sheet music catalogue with over 300,000 arrangements available to print and play instantly. Here there are more attempts at characterisation the devil who never sings is wonderfully hectoring and sneering, and the prophets and patriarchs intone in deep, improvised polyphony. It is a rich blend of beautiful voices, but one caveat to the seeker of background meditative music. This english text and translation of the play ordo virtutum by hildegard of bingen is based on a translation by peter dronke characters.
Hildegard was born into a family of nobles in the service of the counts of. Hildegard of bingens ordo virtutum the play ordo virtutum order of the virtues is an allegorical morality play, or liturgical drama, composed about 1151. Virtues o ancient holy ones, what about us makes you marvel. Among other feats, hildegard went on four public preaching tours, traveling widely throughout germania.
Deutsche harmonia mundi bmg 05472 77394 2 2 cds 1998. The ordo virtutum or play of the virtues is an allegorical play written ca. Its a drama in verse with 82 separate songs that form a morality play with allegorical characters. Ordo virtutum, peter dronke, critical text, oxford univ. While most writers of the middle ages now languish in obscurity, she stands out as an author, painter, mystic, and composer. Humility queen of all virtues, knowledgeofgod, charity, fearofgod, obedience, faith, hope, chastity, innocence, contemptfortheworld, heavenly love, discipline, modesty, mercy, victory, discretion discretio, patience. Directed by early music specialists evelyn tubb and michael fields. Ordo virtutum latin for order of the virtues is an allegorical morality play, or sacred music drama, by st.
In portrait ordo virtutum is the ritual of the virtuesis, the oldest known european musicdrama. She really must have been as impressive as impressive gets. Saint hildegard of bingen was an exceptional woman of the middle ages. Hildegards music is perhaps the most moving of all music of the period, and this dvd helps you discover its intensity and. Linda marie zaerr patriarchs and prophets who are these, who seem like clouds. We have performed our ordo virtutum in europe and even taiwan. Find composition details, parts movement information and albums that contain performances of ordo virtutum, liturgical drama on allmusic. From the album ordo virtutum by sequentia on napster. Finally the time has come to record our own longawaited rendition. Also included is an essay by marianne richert pfau which delineates the connection between music and text in the symphonia. Hildegard of bingen was, by any standard an extraordinary woman.
Order from your preferred classical music cd store arkivmusic. For this revised edition of hildegards liturgical song cycle, barbara newman has redone her prose translations of the songs, updated the bibliography and discography, and made other minor changes. This play has been recorded again later by sequentia. Famous throughout europe during her lifetime, hildegard of bingen 1098. She was a writer, philosopher, prophetess, and composer who produced many works in her lifetime. Hyacinth the score is custody of the international music score library project at. It is the earliest morality play by more than a century, and the only surviving medieval musical drama with an. This is sequentias second attempt at hildegards morality play, the ordo virtutum.
Hildegardes ordo virtutum, or the way of virtue, certainly had something to do with it. Hildegard of bingen wrote ordo virtutum the play of virtues while asserting her independence, during the construction and relocation of her abbey at rupertsberg. Bingensis september 16, 1098 september 17, 1179 was a german magistra, monastic leader, mystic, author, and composer of music. Ordo, hildegards first opus, is an allegory, with different voices representing the virtures. Elected a magistra by her fellow nuns in 16, she founded the monasteries of rupertsberg. The recording was made in july 1997, only months after barbara had undergone surgery for removal of a highly malignant brain tumor.
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