The cult of St. Mary Magdalene was in full bloom towards the end of the fifteenth century. Her dramatic story grew from the conflation of three different Gospel women, initiated in the sixth century by Pope Gregory the Great and enriched over time by enthusiastic hagiographers. The compelling narrative that coalesced in the late Middle Ages that of a repentant prostitute who followed Jesus as a disciple, witnessed his crucifixion, was the first to encounter the resurrected Christ and proclaim the news to the apostles (hence her title "Apostle to the Apostles"), and who later sailed to Provence to preach and convert, ending her life as a hermit inspired Roman Catholics for centuries. It resonated with scholars and preachers, but also with artists, composers, and simple worshippers, offering them a model to follow and helping them to strengthen their faith.
The rich complexity of Mary Magdalene’s character is also reflected in the great variety of her visual representations throughout the Middle Ages and Renaissance. She often appears in beautiful and even exotic dress, holding the alabastrum, the richly decorated jar of ointment with which she anointed the feet of Jesus. Given her biblical role in Christ’s Passion, she is also depicted distraught in heart-wrenching Deposition scenes and in the risen Christ’s presence, but also - following Jacopo da Voragine’s Legenda aurea and other medieval accounts - as a strikingly hirsute penitent hermit.
The Den Bosch Choirbooks
At the dawn of the Renaissance the southern Dutch city of ’s-Hertogenbosch, with its abundance of churches and monasteries, was also referred to as "Little Rome". Central to this religious scene was the Brotherhood of Our Illustrious Lady (Illustre Lieve Vrouwe Broederschap), founded in 1318. This devotional organization, which counted among its members the famous painter Hieronymus Bosch, invested considerably in recruiting and employing the best singers and organists for its chapel, which performed a wide variety of polyphonic music. No fewer than nine choirbooks with this repertoire are still preserved by the confraternity, including three manuscripts from the Alamire workshop, which was renowned for creating luxurious music manuscripts for courts all over Europe. These books of polyphony are complemented by a variety plainchant sources, often reflecting local practices. After centuries of silence, this magnificent collection is finally sounding once again.
With the five-year project "The Den Bosch Choirbooks" (2020-24), Cappella Pratensis, itself based in ’s-Hertogenbosch, is giving these manuscripts the attention they deserve. The project includes numerous concerts, workshops, publications, lectures and a series of five recordings. It also aims to bring these precious sources to a wider audience through digitization and the production of handcrafted facsimiles, in close collaboration with the Alamire Foundation, International Centre for the Study of Music in the Low Countries (University of Leuven). © Cappella Pratensis