Canticum Novum

In a Middle Ages that were supposedly obscurantist and closed, the 13th century was a time of openness to the world, but an openness associated with the aggressive expansion of the West through commercial development and the Crusades.

Against this backdrop, the figure of Francis of Assisi stood out in more ways than one. A veritable ‘other Christ’, following in the footsteps of the first with radical joy, Francis broke with the past. He accompanied the Crusaders with the ambition of gently converting the Sultan, and returned horrified by the lamentable spectacle of the so-called fighters for Christ. At a time when the West was beginning to exploit the living world, Francis spoke to birds, softened a wolf, sang the praises of Creation, and let animals into paradise by giving them a soul. In this way, Francis gave a new lease of life to Western spirituality, and his mysticism was exported to the East, particularly through the missions entrusted to the Franciscans in the East. Of all the Christian groups in the East, the Armenians were probably the most open to outside influences, due to the Armenian diaspora which, since the destruction of the Armenian kingdoms of Vaspourakan in 1021 and Ani in 1045 (Great Armenia), had been the most important to the Byzantine Empire, by the Byzantine Empire, followed by the construction and weakening of the Armenian kingdom of Cilicia (Little Armenia), spread throughout the Mediterranean world, to Italy and Rome in particular, to the Arab world, and then to the Mongol and Ottoman empires.

In this way, by reconnecting with the Eastern roots of Christianity, the spirituality of Francis was able to join with that of the Armenian communities in a fertile melting pot full of humanity.

Cast :

Barbara Kusa, vocals
Emmanuel Bardon, vocals
Valérie Dulac, fiddle & reading
Aliocha Regnard, nyckelharpa & fidula
Philippe Roche, oud & mandola
Spyros Halaris, kanun, lute & vocals
Marine Sablonnière, recorders, traverso & bagpipes
Artyom Minasyan, duduk, chevi, pakou & blul
Henri-Charles Caget, percussion
Ismaïl Mesbahi, percussion

Programme :

Laudario di Cortona, Italian music of the 13th century
Cant de la Sybilla, Spanish music from the 13th century
Traditional and liturgical music from the kingdom of Armenia and Cilicia (13th and 14th centuries)
Traditional music from Cappadocia
Sufi music

Duration: 1h15 with no interval