Lionheart
Il Laudario di Cortona: Christmas in Medieval Italy

The popularity of the lauda, or song of praise, began in thirteenth-century Italy and was influenced by the teachings of the mendicant orders, especially the Franciscans. Hundreds of these joyful and often ecstatic songs were written in the vernacular for laudesi, or singing societies, in cities and towns throughout Italy. Of the laude that celebrate particular feasts, some of the most joyous were written for the Christmas season. In this concert, the six men of Lionheart explore the laude tradition, beginning with some of the earliest examples from the mid-thirteenth-century manuscript Il Laudario di Cortona, followed by more elaborate polyphonic laude from the late medieval and Renaissance periods.

* This concert is presented in The Fuentidueña Chapel at The Cloisters. All seats are unreserved.

Cloisters Concerts Information: 212-650-2290