Love and Prayer in the Middle Ages

In the Man'yoshu (Anthology of Myriad Leaves) and the Shinkokin Wakashu (Anthology of Modern Japanese Poetry), both ancient collections of Japanese poetry, we can learn about the thoughts and feelings that people of ancient times kept in their hearts. In France, nearly 900 years ago, people sang songs with verses, expressing their thoughts and feelings in letters. They were members of the noble knightly class and were called minstrels (troubadours or trouvères). The spirit of the bards was "refined love," or fin amour, the ultimate chivalric code of conduct for the woman they loved, a code they lived by for centuries. The love songs and spirit of these knights spread to France and the surrounding countries, and had a great influence on literature and music.
　This year's program will feature not only the songs of the medieval French bards, but also various works sung in the same period, as if we were taking a tour of medieval Europe in a single concert.

There will be two performances, one at 2:00 pm and the other at 7:00 pm.