Ons Is Een Kijnt Geboren

All+songs+on+this+recording+come+from+the+Koning+Manuscript%2C+which+is+presently+kept+in+the+Royal+Library+of+Brussels+%28ms+II+270%29.+It+is+a+two-part+manuscript%2C+the+songbook+portion+of+which+was+compiled+around+1500%3B+in+addition+to+the+29+polyphonic+songs%2C+it+contains+the+verse+text+for+an+antiphon%2C+songs+without+musical+notation+and+spiritual+poetry+in+Latin+and+Middle+Dutch%2C+and+has+been+enriched+with+a+number+of+illustrations.+%3Cbr+%2F%3EWith+the+exception+of+the+Buxheim+composition+%28track+13%29%2C+the+instrumental+pieces+on+this+CD+are+all+arrangements+of+the+songs+written+in+a+15th+century+style%2C+as+we+assume+instrumentalists+were+used+to.%3Cbr+%2F%3E%3Cbr+%2F%3EAt+first+sight%2C+the+Christmas+repertoire+in+the+Koning+Manuscript+seems+typical+of+the+Christmas+songs+found+in+many+15th+century+European+Cantionales.+It+is+music+that+has+separated+from+the+liturgy%2C+and+has+won+a+place+in+urban+society.+And+that+has+happened+quite+effectively%3B+we+still+seem+to+recognize+many+of+these+songs%2C+they+seem+to+be+deeply+rooted+in+our+memory.%3Cbr+%2F%3EUpon+further+examination%2C+this+collection+begins+to+seem+less+ordinary.+Many+of+the+songs+can+be+found+elsewhere+in+other+Dutch+cloister+manuscripts%2C+but+never+in+the+polyphonic+versions+which+are+in+this+manuscript.+All+of+these+pieces+have+been+added+to+in+one+way+or+another.+%26lsquo%3BCantent+epithalamium%26rsquo%3B+has+been+given+a+contratenoraltus+and+bassus+part%2C+perhaps+as+a+solemn+opening+for+the+Latin+pieces+in+the+manuscript.+%26lsquo%3BPuer+nobis%26rsquo%3B+and+%26lsquo%3BPuer+natus%26rsquo%3B+have+become+little+three-voice+gems%2C+and+trendsetting+polyphony+is+used+in+%26lsquo%3BMit+desen+niewen+jare%26rsquo%3B+and+%26lsquo%3BVerbum+caro%26rsquo%3B.+The+embellishment+of+these+songs+seems+to+have+been+very+important%3A++%3Cbr+%2F%3Eanything+that+could+become+polyphonic+was+made+polyphonic.+Two+voices+became+three%2C+songs+with+one+voice+or+without+melody+became+duets%3B+and+cadential+formulas+were+adjusted+to+fit+the+rules+of+higher+polyphony.%3Cbr+%2F%3E%3Cbr+%2F%3E