Gabriel's Greeting – Medieval English Christmas Music
11/24/2023, 16 Tracks, 1:03:13
Featuring
Vivien Ellis
Jocelyn West
Stevie Wishart
Jim Denley
Paula Chateauneuf
Sinfonye
Anonymous
Anonymous (13th century)
Anonymous (14th century)
Anonymous (early 14th century)
Anonymous (Christmas)
Anonymous (early 15th century)
Did you know?
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Historical Context
The cult of Mary was a dominant theme in English song-writing during this period, often placing her above the Christ-child.
Historical Context
The feasts of Christmas in medieval England inspired captivating music, often with joyous salutations to Mary and the Angel Gabriel.
Album & Artwork
The album's cover illustration comes from the De Braille MS, owned by New College, Oxford.
Compositional Technique
Latin rondelli, a type of clerical dance-song, often used the popular Anglo-Norman carole form with a communal refrain to integrate Christian dogma into popular caroling.
Compositional Technique
Many Christmas lyrics from this era are linked to the Christian church, but their tunes may originate from secular traditions, leading to 'clerical dance-songs'.
Cultural Impact
The hymn 'Angelus ad virginem' and its English variant 'Gabriel fram evene king' were so popular they were mentioned in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.
Compositional Technique
The corpus of English secular music from this period, though small, has a distinctive melodic and harmonic identity, often featuring drone-based melodies and triadic phrases.
