Carmina Cantabrigiensia - The Cambridge Songs - Music
The Carmina Cantabrigiensia are believed to have been set to music but there is no trace of the original music.In this musical work only the poems are medieval, certainly not the music, which is present-day music and does not attempt in any way to come close to the historical period in which the carmina were written but only to their spirit, to the subject they describe and their content.
The aim of the musical work is to bring the subject matter to the present day rather than to create falsely medieval music.
The musical group is simple: a choir, made up of male and female voices, and a small chamber orchestra.
Some songs are for soloist singers, one is a cappella and one is with a solo instrument which forms a duet with a soloist singer. These choices were made with a view to interpret in a modern way song words which, though one thousand years old, still keep all their original charm.
The harmonization envisages a choir made up of about thirty voices and a string orchestra composed of four violins, two violas, two cellos and a double bass. As the choir voices grow, so too in proportion should the instruments grow.
The ideal environment for the performance is a large hall, with sufficient sound reverberation but without echo or rumble.
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