This
month, Clef Notes has been looking at music from the Medieval era. So far,
we’ve emphasized the importance of the church in relation to the development of
music. But did music exist outside of the church? Let’s find out.
Most
people outside of the church did not read music during ancient times. In fact,
most people were not literate, so much of the music from that time period was
never written down. That makes it quite difficult for historians to learn much
about the secular music from this time period! We do know that music was seen
outside of the church, most commonly as settings of poetry as a means of
entertainment.
During
the 12th century, we know that many secular, newly-composed works
were about unattainable love. There were various types of musicians, depending
on the country, who performed music for entertainment purposes. One type was
known as a Jongleur. A Jongleur was a lower-class musician who traveled around
performing tricks, telling stories, and playing music. A Minstrel is another
type of musician seen during the 13th century. A Minstrel was
employed by the court as an entertainer. We also know about Troubadours and
Trouvereres – poet-composers sponsored by aristocrats in the court. These
secular musicians were known by different names depending on the country, but
essentially performed the same role.
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| Troubadour Courtesy of https://commons.wikimedia.org |
