The Work of a Medieval Composer: Hildegard f Bingen - Term Paper Example

A Medieval Composer of the of the A Medieval Composer Throughout history, many women have struggled to gain well deserved recognition, respect and independence in a patriarchal society. Though western society has come very far in terms οf gender equality, the inner workings οf its main religious institutions remain oppressive. Males have had power over females within the Church since the beginning οf Christian worship, and thus men have traditionally held the majority οf positions within the Church. Religious composition, for mass or performance, is perhaps one οf the most important aspects οf organized religion, one which was dominated almost entirely by males before the early twelfth century. In 1098, a tenth child was born to two wealthy members οf the nobility, Hildebert and Mechtilde, in Bockelheim, Germany. This child, a daughter, was given to the Church as a tax, and became Saint Hildegard οf Bingen, a composer, visionary, healer and author οf major theological works. In the 12th century, Hildegard οf Bingen was one οf very few female composers, and also part οf a small minority οf medieval women who could even read or write. Her visions and instruction from God were initially questioned, and she met difficulty in making many οf her visions’ instructions into reality. Hildegard οf Bingen spent her life constantly defending the validity οf her visions, while gaining a form οf fame within the western world, which was rare for a woman in that time. Although many οf her strictly literary works reinforce many traditional beliefs οf the church, her music itself, in its lyrics and actual melodic construction embodies many different, even liberal ideas and images. By studying her life, accomplishments, compositions and other works, it is clear that Hildegard οf Bingen broke many patriarchal norms within her society, and saw recognition for her work beyond that οf any other women οf her time. When Hildegard was given to the church at the age οf eight, partially because she was the tenth child which was also known as the “tithe” child for wealthy families, and was usually given to the church. Also, she was sickly in health from a very young age, and also recalls having visions at an early age, mainly a vision οf an inexplicably bright light at the age οf three. Giving a child to the church as a tax was also a respectable way for noble families to deal with physically or mentally ill children, which is quite possibly how her explanations οf her early visions may have sounded to her parents. Likely because οf those experiences at such a young age, Hildegard οf Bingen became more nervous and embarrassed οf did not speak out to everyone about her visions. She did, however, confide in Jutta οf Sputheim, the anchoress to whom Hildegard was given as a companion. As an anchoress, Jutta had refused all offers οf marriage and chosen to spend out the rest οf her life in a cell attached to the Benedictine cloister οf Saint Disibod. She had chosen to be “buried with God”, and spent her time with Hildegard οf Bingen copying scriptures, meditating and praying. Jutta taught Hildegard to read and write, along with a fair knowledge οf Latin. As time passed, more οf the daughters from local noble families were sent as companions to Jutta and Hildegard. This eventually became a small convent οf the Benedictine Rule within Disibodenberg. This is likely when Hildegard began to gain her interest and knowledge οf music and composition because there were enough women that they did not have to depend on the monks “to perform the Opus Dei, the daily round οf prayer which formed the liturgical basis οf monastic life”. In 1136 when Jutta οf Sputheim died, Hildegard οf Bingen was chosen to take her place as the abbess for the convent that had grown. Several years later, in 1141, Hildegard οf Bingen received her most important vision which changed her life. She had a vision οf a blinding light which told her to begin recording and telling people about her visions. Although she had only confided her visions in Jutta who was now dead, Hildegard was aware that Jutta had confided the visions in Volmar οf Disibod, a monk close to Hildegard’s age. After finally beginning to reveal and record her prophecies and visions, Hildegard has created her primary visionary work, scivias, and by that time she had gained such fame that multitudes flocked to her convent, from curiosity or devotion, to seek her prophecies and prayers”. Scivias included many biblical stories as well as references to temptation, marriage and procreation, faith’s liberating effects on human knowledge. Interestingly, also included is Hildegard’s criticism οf the use οf monastic life as a way out for noble families with handicapped children. At this point, Hildegard was becoming increasingly comfortable with sharing her visions, but still lacked formal approval from the church hierarchy. In 1147, Hildegard οf Bingen began to seek advice from higher members οf the church. She had been recording her visions for six years, but she turned to Bernard οf Clairvaux, and illustrious preacher and monk οf the middle ages who was seen in great authority by all members οf the church. Hildegard still felt uncertain about revealing her visions, but she received a letter from the Pope (whom Bernard οf Clairvaux had contacted) who had read the incomplete Scivias. The Pope’s letter encouraged her to continue writing, but it also gave her the courage and confidence in herself and her visions that she needed. As her fame grew, the convent at Saint Disibod became crowded, and although Disibodenberg was now a double monastery, “…the women’s community was subordinate to the men’s. Hildegard and her nuns remained dependant on the monks οf Saint Disibod not only for services but also in all financial and administrative matters”. Hildegard’s next vision included direction from God to move the convent away from Disibodenburg and become independent from the monks οf the monastery. The place Hildegard was directed to was called Rupertsburg, the site οf the tomb οf Saint Rupert. The monastery which had been built there had been destroyed, but Hildegard was “determined to rebuild it”. However, the idea οf the convent splitting from Disibodenberg was not well received by the monks, mainly because Hildegard brought so much attention to the monastery the monks didn’t want to lose the opportunities and substantial wealth that she had brought to the area. Upon hearing all οf the opposition to this plan, Hildegard went to her bed and refused to speak or move. This illness in her was seen as God’s anger and frustration at his wish not being fulfilled, and the Abbot οf Saint Disibod’s finally decided to allow the move. However, the initial years οf Rupertsburg were difficult, and many nuns left the convent because οf the poverty and conditions they experienced. The convent was not entirely independent, in fact, the monks still maintained control οf all main financial and religious aspects οf Rupertsburg’s existence. Hildegard’s illness changed with the health οf the convent, and in 1158 the Archbishop finally gave his protection to the convent and agreed to watch over the direction οf funds between the Saint Disibod monastery. This new independence and the sudden flow οf funding gave the convent a new found strength, and was the result οf Hildegard οf Bingen’s respect, recognition and courage to reveal and carry out the messages οf God. In her formal writing, Hildegard οf Bingen supported traditional Christian structures, however, in her music she found escape to test boundaries and deviate from the mainstream liturgical styles οf her time. Perhaps one οf the most widely known facts about her music is that it often extended beyond a vocalist’s common range and put a great strain on the voice. Also, her hymns seemed to differ from other music οf the time because they neglected some οf the main qualities that were expected. Jane Bobko describes these differences: “Many songs have an ambitus οf two octaves and some even οf two and a half, placing a considerable strain on the voice οf the average singer. Also notable are the wide melodic leaps, especially the frequently ascending and descending fifths. Hildegard had a way οf scurrying rapidly up and down the octave…”These tendencies created many seemingly primitive and unorganized compositions which were often difficult to remember. In turn, her lyrics were often uneven and thus any recurring melodies were never completely the same. Her lyrics resemble what we now call “free form” or “free verse”, with no concrete structure or path. The regular strophe pattern at the time was known as the “regular sequence”, and Hildegard’s complete disregard for the normal pattern, along with the textual content οf many hymns, is why her music remains so unique. Hildegard used music to express the passion she could not adequately reveal simply in text. It was the intertwining οf body and mind, and the most powerful means οf praise. In Hildegarde’s hymn Ave, gernerosa Hildegard’s diction is explicatory οf both the Christian feelings about the body οf the virgin and more importantly οf Hildegard’s own personal spiritual and “sensual, corporeal understanding οf religious devotion”. This begins a new aspect οf Hildegard’s uniqueness in her compositions and musical approaches. At the time, the majority οf religious compositions focuses on the holy trinity, rather than the Virgin Mary. This focus then leads to the sensual descriptions which Hildegard uses to explain the Virgin Mary as the embodiment οf physical beauty and devotion bordering on desire. Hildegard uses Latin words like intacta and castitas which are meant to describe the Virgin’s abstinence, and creates a sensual image when giving the Virgin’s womb attributes οf nature, referring to Mary’s womb “as grass on which dew falls when greenness falls into it”. Similarly, in Song 71, the Virgin is viewed as a tree, and Hildegard makes “mystical identification between the earth (terra) and the Virgin’s womb”. Hildegard often uses images οf nature to describe the Virgin Mary, and this effect leaves the feeling οf spring and new life and this allusion to spring and Hildegard’s “sensual identification…eroticizes the image οf dew, expressing her own somatic understanding οf spiritual experience”. Throughout her life, Hildegard οf Bingen had difficulty from an early age dealing with her gifts as a visionary. She made many accomplishments for her convent and for women, achieving independence from the monks οf Saint Disibod, despite their initial complete disapproval οf her message. Her life in the monastery proved that she was genuinely gifted by God, and her constant exposure to chant and other liturgical music within the convent sparked her interest and talent in composition. Although many elements οf her musical style were seen as unconventional at the time and even now, they remain unique and unrivaled in their time. Hildegard οf Bingen focused on the Virgin Mary in the majority οf her religious compositions as the main figure, rather than Christ or God, and although many οf her writings condemn sexuality outside οf a traditional context, her complete love and devotion to the Virgin Mary breaks the social norm and can be interpreted as desire because οf the way the Virgin is described. Hildegard οf Bingen, although born to nobility, lived in a patriarchal community within a patriarchal society, and was able to release her talents and composition through her connection with God. Bibliography Bobko, Jane. Vision : the life and music οf Hildegard von Bingen. New York, N.Y. : Penguin Studio, 1995 Flanagan, Sabina. Hildegard οf Bingen, 1098-1179 : a visionary life. New York : Routledge, 1989 Grant, Barbara L. “Five Liturgical Songs by Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)” Signs. 5 (Spring 1980) 557-567 Holsinger, Bruce Wood. “The Flesh οf the Voice: Embodiment and the Homoerotics οf Devotion in the Music οf Hildegard οf Bingen (1098-1179)” Signs. 19(Autumn 1993) 92-125 McInerney, Maud Burnett. Hildegard οf Bingen : a book οf essays. New York : Garland Publishing, 1998 Newman, Barbara. “Hildegard οf Bingen: Visions and Validation” Church History. 54(June 1985) 163-175 Schipperges, Heinrich. The world οf Hildegard οf Bingen : her life, times, and visions. Tunbridge Wells, Kent : Burns & Oates ; Toronto : Novalis, 1998 Read More