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CD reviews
"Au douz tens nouvel - Chansons de trouvères"
Ensemble Céladon
Dir: Paulin Bündgen
rec: Feb 2024, Lyon, Lycée Saint-Louis-Saint-Bruno (chapel)
Ricercar - RIC 465 (© 2024) (61'45")
Liner-notes: E/F; lyrics - no translations
Cover, track-list & booklet
Spotify
anon:
En mai au douz tens nouvel;
En un vergier;
Enmi la rousee;
L'autrier quant je chevochoie;
Lai de la pastourelle;
Non veul mari;
Volez vos que je vous chant;
ÉTIENNE DE MEAUX (fl 13th C):
Trop est mes maris jalos;
GAUTIER DE COINCY (1177-1236):
Hui matin a l'ajournee;
GUIOT DE DIJON (fl 1215-1225):
Chanteir m'estuet por la plux belle;
MAROIE DE DIERGNAU (fl 13th C):
Mout m'abelis;
THIBAULT DE CHAMPAGNE (1201-1253):
Ausi comme unicorne sui
Clara Coutouly, soprano;
Paulin Bündgen, alto, hurdy-gurdy;
Gwénaël Bihan, recorder, medieval flute;
Nolwenn Le Guern, fiddle;
Florent Marie, lute;
Caroline Huynh Van Xuan, clavecytherium, organetto;
Ludwin Bernaténé, percussion
This disc is the third in a series of recordings of the Ensemble Céladon, exploring the world of courtly love in the Middle Ages. The first was entitled "Nuits Occitanes", devoted to songs of the troubadours of the 12th century (not reviewed here), the second included a survey of the repertoire of the Minnesänger ("Under der Linden"). With this third disc, which is about the chansons written by the trouvères, we are in the 13th century. They can be considered the 'successors' to the troubadours: from them they inherited the concept of fin d'amor, "in which the poet places himself at the service of a lady who by definition is inaccessible" (booklet).
Obviously these chansons reflect "a literate and wealthy milieu that had the means to set it down for posterity. This medieval aristocracy expressed itself in poetic terms, not simply it was to their taste but also because to do so had begun to give those who used them the reputation for having a bel esprit", as Anne Delafosse puts it in her liner-notes.
The chansons can be distinguished in various genres. In the chanson de l'amour the lover describes the qualities of a lady (Guiot de Dijon, Chanteir m'estuet por la plux belle) or laments his suffering (Thibaut de Champagne, Ausi comme unicorne sui). The latter is written in the langue d'oïl, and the poet compares himself with a prisoner. The more light-hearted counterpart is the pastourelle, which brings us to the world of knights and shepherdesses (anonymous, L'autrier quant je chevochoie). It is also a chanson de rencontre (in which a man and a woman meet), as is the anonymous Volez vos que je vous chant.
For many ages there was no strict separation between the sacred and the secular. The time of the trouvères was also the time that the veneration of the Virgin Mary came into being, and that finds its expression in texts that mix both elements. This genre is called chanson pieuse; an example is Hui matin a l'ajournee by Gautier de Coincy, who was a monk. "A knight — the narrator — finds the fairest of all flowers in the morning, which inspires him to sing the praises of the “flower of paradise” herself: the Virgin Mary". This chanson, which is included in the collection Les Miracles de Nostre Dame (compiled between 1218 and 1233), also belongs among the genre of the reverdie, celebrating the arrival of spring. The anonymous En mai au douz tens nouvel is another reverdie; the Minnesänger Walther von der Vogelweide borrowed its melody.
A special feature of this recording is that it includes songs written by women, which are rather rare, as there were only a few female trouvères. One of them is Maroie de Diergnau, whose Mout m'abelis describes the wounds inflicted by love. Another song which gives voice to a woman is the chanson de toile (cloth song), referring to women's sewing and embroidery (anonymous, Bele Yolanz).
The world of courtly love had its cruel side too, as the opening work shows. The anonymous En un vergier describes how a king's daughter laments her fate, being married to an old man but loving a younger man. Her husband overhears her and beats her with his belt.
All the songs are strophic, sometimes with a refrain, and mostly in a fairly strict rhythm, although the latter is not always easy to discern. As little is indicated with regard to interpretation, performers have to take many decisions themselves, which explains why performances of this kind of repertoire are often veru different.
The list of performers already indicates that the Ensemble Céladon is not of the 'minimalist' school, which performs this kind of chansons with a single voice, sometimes with an additional instrument, such as a lute or a harp. "I have once again chosen to use a wide range of instruments, as suggested by the iconography of the period: these include not only the lute, fiddle, chifonie or symphonia, percussion, flutes, organetto and clavicytherium, but also a second voice in order to portray the dialogues as well as the personalities described in the songs", Paulin Bündgen states in the booklet. This is rather debatable. First, iconography needs to be treated with great caution. The fact that many and various instruments were used does tell us little to nothing about in which repertoire and under which conditions they were used. Trouvères may have performed their own songs, which means that some instruments are unlikely participants, and they may have mostly used those which were able to be played while singing. Here the instruments not only accompany the singers, but also play introductions and in between stanzas. The use of soundscape in the opening item (the above-mentioned En un vergier) is rather odd, and out of place in a recording of medieval music.
Another debatable decision, in line with what was just mentioned, is to sing some pieces with two voices. In some the second voice enters in the refrain, whereas in some songs the two characters are allocated to different voices.
As almost inevitable in medieval music, some reconstruction work is needed. The question is always how far one can and should go. Only one stanza of Moult m’abelis by Maroie de Diergnau has been preserved, and it was decided to complete the song with two stanzas of a song by another woman, La froidor ne la jalee. As this is an anonymous piece, one wonders how one can know that the poet was a woman.
"The melody of Chanteir m’estuet was reconstructed by Paulin Bündgen from the text of a song by Guiot de Dijon that had also survived without music." It is a bit of a mystery to me how one can reconstruct a melody from a text without music.
The instrumental pieces are partly improvised on the basis of surviving material. In a way this may well seem the most 'authentic' part of this recording, as instrumentalists of the time undoubtedly improvised while playing.
As far as the technical aspects of this production are concerned, the recording is fine, the booklet includes informative liner-notes, but omits a translation of the lyrics, not even in modern French. That is a serious omission, which does prevent almost any listener to understand the content of these pieces.
As one may understand, I am rather critical and for several reasons not that happy about this recording. However, the performers defend their case with much conviction. The singing by Clara Coutouly and Paul Bündgen is excellent and exactly what one would like to hear in the kind of music performed here, and the instrumentalists are outstanding. There is much to enjoy here, also due to the music which is not that often heard. I don't know how many pieces appear on disc for the first time, but I assume that at least some of the anonymous works have not been recorded before. Anyway, lovers of medieval music should add this disc to their collection. The debate on how such pieces should or can be performed, will go on.
Johan van Veen (© 2025)
Relevant links:
Ensemble Céladon