Date: Thursday, May 1, 2025
Time: 7:30 PM
Location: Florence Harkness Memorial Chapel
Format: In-Person; Virtual
Admission: Free – Open to the Public
Watch: Livestream in Harkness Chapel
Program
"Should She Be Silent?"
Fashioning Gender and Society in Trouvère Song
In the relative absence of sources that describe the technical aspects of music-making in the medieval period, one of the best tools for a modern performer of this repertoire is to get into a medieval mindset. This lecture-recital explores how the Trouvères used song as a forum to discuss and test gender roles within the context of the literary and musical tradition of courtly love poetry. As they collaborated through the overlapping authorship, composition, and performance of their songs, Medieval people were thinking about and shaping the gendered implications of their tradition. Therefore, the historically-informed performer should continue this dialogue, interacting with the medieval framework of gender norms by making interpretive choices that aurally and visually highlight narratives of gender embedded within the text.
View or Download:
I. Fashioning the Gendered Self in Chansons d'Amour
Quant partiz sui de Prouvence – Perrin d'Angicourt
L’on dit q’amor est dolce chose – Anonymous
Onqes n’amai tant que jou fui amée – Anonymous
Mout m’abelist – Maroie de Dergnau
II. Fashioning Social Norms in Jeux-partis
Grieviler, vostre ensient – Jehan Bretel and Jehan de Grieviler
Je vous pri, dame Maroie – Ladies Margot and Maroie
with Suzanna Feldkamp
Dites, dame, li kielz s’aquitait muelz – Anonymous Lord and Lady
with Tyler Duncan
III. The Fashioned Self within the Fashioned Society and Narrative Songs
Bele Yolanz en ses chambres seoit – Anonymous (chanson de toile)
Enmi la rousee que nest la flor – Anonymous (pastourelle)
Je chevauchoie l’autrier – Le Moniot de Paris (chanson de malmariée)
Performed with:
- Andrew Hatfield, Medieval Bowed Strings
- Danur Kvilhaug, Medieval Lute
- Suzanna Feldkamp, Voice
- Tyler Duncan, Voice
About the Performer
Soprano Naomi Grace McMahon (they/them) finds their home in San Antonio, Texas. From 2019-2023, they regularly performed with Opera San Antonio as a member of the chorus (Romeo et Juliette, Pagliacci, Tosca) and with the company's educational outreach program. Most recently, in 2024 they were one of 9 singers invited to participate in the Amherst Early Music Festival’s Medieval Program, coached by Benjamin Bagby. In the summer of 2017, Naomi was selected to perform Sister Rose in the south Florida premiere of Jake Heggie's Dead Man Walking at the Miami Music Festival. While pursuing their first Master of Music degree, they performed with the Texas Christian University Opera Studio as Nella in Gianni Schicchi and Zina in the Texas premiere of Nico Muhly's Dark Sisters. Naomi's operatic credits include Der Königin die Nacht (Die Zauberflöte), Susannah (Susannah), Laetitia (The Old Maid and the Thief), and The Mother (Amahl and the Night Visitors) with the Abilene Christian University Opera.
Ms. McMahon holds a Master of Music in Voice Performance from Texas Christian University and a Bachelor of Music from Abilene Christian University. During the Covid-19 pandemic, they began to foster a long-time love for early music from the medieval to baroque periods, leading them to pursue a MA in Historical Performance Practice at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø. This lecture recital is the culminating project for that degree. They are pleased to announce their recent admission to the DMA in Historical Performance Practice at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø.
Venue
Florence Harkness Memorial Chapel (est. 1902) is known for its Tiffany stained-glass windows, soaring arches, and exquisite woodwork. The neo-Gothic structure, located on Mather Quad at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø (Cleveland, OH), commemorates the brief life of Florence Harkness Severance. The chapel offers a warm, intimate, and acoustically resonant space for Department of Music performances, lectures, and special events.
The ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Music Concert Series offers free concerts and student recitals in the stunning Harkness Chapel. These performances highlight the exceptional talents of ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø students and faculty, providing the broader community with opportunities to enjoy high-quality live music in an intimate and historic setting.
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