Flemish Polyphony in Central Europe: Works by Tourout, Isaac & Weerbeke

Featuring

Hana Blažíková
Vojtěch Semerád
Ondřej Holub
Tomáš Král
Jaromír Nosek
Tomáš Lajtkep

Barbora Kabátková
Daniela Čermáková
Cappella Mariana
Heinrich Isaac
Johannes Touront
Gaspar van Weerbeke
Anonymous (Gregorian Chant)
Anonymous
Johannes Ghiselin
Jean Japart

Did you know?

1/7

Historical Context

For over 40 years, the Iron Curtain divided Europe, limiting cooperation between scholars and performers and marginalizing Central European musical sources in historical narratives.

Composition History

All compositions on this album appear in Central European manuscripts, including the Trent 93, Trent 88, Schedel Songbook, Strahov Codex, Speciálník Codex, and Wrocław Codex.

Historical Context

From approximately 1400 to 1600, musicians from the Low Countries played a crucial role in European art music, with their style becoming an international musical language.

Album & Artwork

This recording is dedicated to the memory of Jaap van Benthem (1937-2023) and Lenka Hlávková (1974-2023).

Compositional Technique

French chansons, popular in Western Europe, were often given new Latin texts in Central Europe, sometimes becoming the only surviving versions of otherwise lost works.

Compositional Technique

Central European scribes often adapted existing compositions, such as shortening cyclic masses or re-texting pieces to fit local liturgical traditions like the Utraquist masses.

Historical Context

This recording focuses on the long-neglected chapter of music history where Central European musicians actively received and adapted Flemish polyphony.