Renaissance Music

I've been in a Renaissance mood lately. As a result, I've been playing a lot of Medieval and Renaissance inspired music. I thought I might share a few of my favorite albums, just in case you're feeling in a Renaissance mood, too.

Wolgemut - I got the chance to see them perform at the Oklahoma Renaissance Faire in Muskogee, Oklahoma, and they were absolutely fantastic. They perform historical music on medieval bagpipes, shawms, drums, flute, medieval fiddle, and harp. I bought two of their cds at the Faire: Danza and Ipse, Ipsa, Ipsum Optimus. The music is so different from modern tunes, but it definitely gets your toes tapping. I love it! (By the way, Wolgemut, pronounced vol-guh-moot, is an ancient Germanic word meaning "to be in a good mood.")

Blackmore's Night - An interesting mix of Folk Rock and traditional Renaissance music, Blackmore's Night was a group I discovered through Renaissance Magazine. They write many of their own songs, which are often my favorites. I have several of their albums, including Ghost of a Rose, Fires at Midnight, and Under a Violet Moon. I love many of their songs, especially "Queen for a Day", "Renaissance Faire" and "Catherine Howard's Fate".

Brobdingnagian Bards - I'm not quite sure how I stumbled across the Bards, but I'm certainly glad that I did. The duo write and sing a wide variety of witty songs, including absolutely hilarious Celtic songs, songs inspired by Buffy, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings. Sadly, many are not entirely appropriate for children, but I love them anyway. My sister discovered that they were at DragonCon last year, and brought home three of their cds: Fairy Tales, Real Men Wear Kilts, and my favorite A Faire to Remember. It has my favorite songs: "Do Virgins Taste Better", "The Scotsman", and "Donald, Where's Your Trousers". (And in case you wondered, Brobdingnagian is a word from Gulliver's Travels. It's pronounced brob-din-nahg-EE-en and it means marked by great size.)

Mediaeval Baebes - With lyrics from Medieval and Romantic texts set to original music played on Medieval instruments, this small group of women create an unique and ethereal sound. I have four of their albums: Salva Nos, Worldes Blysse, Undrentide, and Mirabilis. I'm fond of many of the songs, including "Lhiannon Shee",  "Gaudete", and "Tam Lin". Their songs also appeared in the soundtrack for the BBC movie The Virgin Queen.

In addition to these fantastic groups, I would also recommend the soundtracks from BBC's The Virgin Queen, Elizabeth, and The Tudors. The music may be new, but it feels appropriate to the time period. For more information on any of these groups, be sure to check out their official websites. (The band names are linked.)