Discontinuing Journey Highlights

I have decided to discontinue the monthly journey highlights. I found that these posts contained mostly redundant material and my blog doesn't see enough readership for such summaries to be useful. Furthermore, posts on the Hopeless Journey Volumes serve nearly the same purpose and provide a better summary of the recent legs of my journey. I will of course continue to comment on those composers and tracks I find the most appealing, so please keep reading if you find such reviews useful.

Journey Highlights: July 2009

Composer of the Month: Guillaume de Machaut

There is really no equal for Guillaume de Machaut in the late medieval period. His work has already been the subject of four Hopeless Journey blog entries, each covering a different musical form. He is the composer of arguably the most recognizable song from the medieval period, "Douce Dame Jolie,", and he is the first person known to have composed a cyclic mass. I would recommend different recordings to different folks, but at minimum, you should listen to "Douce Dame Jolie" and the Kyrie from La Messe de Nostre Dame.

Composition of the Month: "En Seumeillant" (Trebor)

The somber grace of "En Seumeillant" is truly timeless. Despite my failure to uncover a vocal performance of the piece, I would still mark it as my favorite of the ars subtilior period and would recommend it to anyone. A close runner-up is "Belle, Bonne, Sage," of which there are many excellent recordings. Its upbeat and offbeat melody are in stark contrast to "En Seumeillant," despite sharing the syncopative rhythmic style so characteristic of ars subtilior compositions.

Journey Highlights: June 2009

Composer of the Month: Philippe de Vitry

I compared him to both the Beatles and Lou Reed, acknowledging his ability to appeal to larger audiences and his penchant for experimentation. Although none of the individual pieces jumped out at me, his contributions to the development of musical notation, as well as the ars nova and Roman de Fauvel, have led me to select him as the composer of the month. The revolution he started in the early 14th century has been compared by some to the introduction of perspective into painting -- its importance for the later development of music cannot be understated. To really get a feel for the ars nova movement, I suggest listening to the Roman de Fauvel. His other work, although interesting, fails to capture the spirit of the changes that were occurring during that time period.

Composition of the Month: "Clap, clap, par un matin" (Anonymous)

Although more of a novelty piece than anything else, "Clap, clap, par un matin" was my favorite of the month, holding up quite well to repeat listenings. The early ars nova pieces were fairly erratic and experimental -- it was clear that they were not yet making the best use of their newfound musical freedom. "Clap, clap, par un matin" was not as complex or experimental as many of the de Vitry pieces, but it created an ambience that was both energetic and unique. A close runner-up was a motet called, "Lasse! comment oublieray" by Guillaume de Machaut. It certainly demonstrates more sophistication than "Clap, clap, par un matin", but is more representative of the latter half of the 14th century, which will be the focus of the coming month.

Journey Highlights: April and May 2009

For all you lazy brutes out there who don't want to follow my regular blog entries, I present my journey highlights. In these posts (framed in red), I pick my favorite composers and tracks from the last month of the Journey, along with an explanation for why their awesomeness wowed my senses. Since I have two months of posts already, I will pick two from each category. First, my composers of the month:

April: Pérotin
May: Anonymous

The Notre Dame School of Polyphony pretty much got things started for music worth listening to on the European continent. Without a doubt, the best of the Notre Dame composers was Pérotin, who flourished around 1200. I reviewed two of his songs (Beata Viscera and Sederunt Principes) and read much about his influence on later composers. His simple approach to composition remains accessible to this day and was a major influence on the modern minimalist movement.

The fallout from the musical blast that was the Notre Dame School spread throughout Europe. Many of the techniques pioneered by this school (most notably the rhythmic modes) were used by composers of both sacred and secular music. Unfortunately, the vast majority of compositions from this period were written anonymously and may have been copied many times before finally appearing in collections like the Montpelier Codex. The identities of these lost masters may have been erased from historical records, but they will live on through their music.

The compositions of the month are:

April: Sederunt Principes (Pérotin)
May: Hoquetus I - II (Anonymous)

My favorite of Pérotin's compositions, Sederunt Principes impresses me more each time I listen to it. This four-voice motet demonstrates all of the major musical advances of the early medieval period, including the rhythmic modes and parallel and contrary vocal motion. Similarly, Hoquetus I - II is an excellent demonstration of early medieval techniques, including the hocket and the rare second rhythmic mode. This piece has garnered a lot of attention from the people I've spoken to about my journey, so I suggest giving it a listen.