In the Middle Ages, relic cults provoked rich expressions of devotion
not only in hagiographic literature and visual art but also in
liturgical music and ritual. Despite the long-recognized inter-play
between these diverse media, historians of the period rarely integrate
analysis of sacred music into their research on other modes of worship
espoused by relic cults. Holy Treasure and Sacred Song situates this
oft-neglected yet critical domain of religious life at the center of
an examination of relic cults in medieval Tuscany. Long recognized as
a center of artistic innovation during the Renaissance, this region
also boasted the rich and well documented veneration of holy bishops
and martyrs buried in the cathedrals and suburban shrines of its
principal cities. Author Benjamin Brand reveals that the music
composed to honor these local saints - no fewer than ninety chants for
the Mass and Divine Office - were essential components of larger
devotional campaigns that included the recording of their life stories
and the building and decoration of their shrines. Furthermore, the
local Tuscan clerics who assumed control of these campaigns with the
intent of gaining both temporal and spiritual power drew on
influential global models - literary, architectural, musical, and
ritual - from preeminent European powers, Rome and the Carolingian
Empire. By integrating detailed analyses of plainsong and sacred
ritual into this rich panorama, Brand traces the dialectic between
local, regional, and pan-European trends, revealing the centrality of
the liturgy in the development of medieval relic cults and, in a
broader sense, medieval European culture and politics. Offering a rich
topography of music, liturgy, and devotion through an
interdisciplinary approach ideal for the multifaceted nature of
medieval relic cults, Holy Treasure and Sacred Song will find a broad
audience amongst musicologists and medievalists alike.
Les mer
Relic Cults and their Liturgies in Medieval Tuscany
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9780199351367
Publisert
2020
Utgiver
Vendor
Oxford University Press
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter