Choral Themes
I've been thinking about possible themes for the Debatable Choir's next concert for Pennsic. I recently looked through some new-to-me music (thanks, giddysinger!) and while there were some serious pieces that very much appealed to me (Byrd's "Haec Dies," wow!), I did find an idea coalescing around songs about rogues and reprobates. Scum, scoundrels, scalawags, you name 'em, there are plenty of period choral pieces about 'em. Could be fun. :-)
Let's see, of what we currently do, there are:.
- "Quand Mon Mari" by di Lasso (wife beating)
- "Audite Nova" also by di Lasso (drinking and eating goose in a tavern)
- "Ich Weiss Mir Ein Meidlein also by di Lasso (a faithless maiden)
- "Matona Mia Cara" also by di Lasso (I know, too much di Lasso, but the man had a sense of humor...this one is about a drunk German soldier singing raucously in bad Italian under a lady's window and boasting of his sexual prowess)
- "Fils Maris" by Adam de la Halle (a wife taunting her husband that her lover is better in bed than he is)
- "Wir Zogen in das Feld" by Anonymous (soldiers treated badly and cheated out of their pay)
And then there are these from the Pennsic Choir's past concerts:
- "Otro Tal Misacantano" by Anonymous (a priest who drinks too much)
- "Scaramella" by Josquin dez Pres (a soldier of fortune)
And then there is this one:
- "Since Robin Hood" by Weelkes (Robin Hood! 'nuff said)
There are a few more I could think of, and of course that's too much di Lasso, especially considering we just did an all-di Lasso concert, but it's a good start. Hmm, we'll see what the choir thinks of the idea. :-)
But as I was looking at a website with music downloads of all sorts, I was stopped in my tracks by a hyperlink labeled: "Click here for sexy videos of the Early Music Consort of London."
Ok, I couldn't resist, but alas, it took me a another website for downloading music. No sexy early music performers in skimpy outfits anywhere to be seen. Not even Misha in his medieval underwear. Darn. :-)