Cantigas de Santa Maria -- Das Mittelalter-Ensemble der Scola Cantorum Basiliensis - Thomas Binkley

Alfonso X "el Sabio" (1221-1284) was crowned King of Castille & León in 1252, and became one of the most significant leaders in Spanish history. Known for his learning, he fostered interaction between Christian, Jewish, and Islamic intellectuals, as well as accepted Provençal refugees. His was one of the significant reigns moving toward the reunification of Spain, and was so with an emphasis on tolerance and cultural achievement. Alfonso's work touched nearly every area of human activity, from science to political reform. His only weakness may have been the impracticality of some of his nobler ideas. The extent of Alfonso's role in the production of the Cantigas de Santa María is not entirely known. He conceived and supervised the compilation, and it appears that at least some texts are his. Whether he wrote any of the music is unknown, but many of the songs in the collection are certainly contrafacta. Some melodies have been identified as those of troubadour or trouvère songs, and even those of conducti or other scholastic compositions. It is also believed that many are folk tunes adopted for the occasion. The entire project seems to have had a moralistic intent, modifying the words of existing songs to describe instead the deeds & glory of the Virgin Mary.

The term "cantiga" simply means a Spanish medieval lyric, something which survives in quantity, in numerous genres distinguished by the type of narrative. However, most cantigas survive as text only, making the present collection nearly unique for its music. Moreover, it is one of the largest collections of monophonic vernacular music from the middle ages, and of particular value not only for its inherent quality but also for its notational indications. The cantiga was first a secular form, but in this massive collection, Alfonso put the form to sacred use. Such a union of sacred & secular was to have a long history in Spain, represented ultimately in the villancico of the Renaissance. The Cantigas de Santa María are typical of cantigas in using the Galician-Portuguese language, the "lingua franca" so to speak of Iberian medieval poetry, and the ancestor of the present Portuguese & Galician languages. The Cantigas de Santa María encompass a huge number of themes, make reference to a variety of countries & places, and basically serve to tie everything in medieval life to miracles of the Virgin Mary. Thus they represent Alfonso's ideals of vernacular language expression and human devotion.

Todd M. McComb, medieval.org, 9/00