Feminae Vox

The so-called Codice de las Huelgas, whose name is due to the famous Cistercian monastery of Burgos in which it is kept, is probably the best known liturgical-musical book of the Hispanic Middle Ages. Compiled at the beginning of the 14th century for the daily use of the offices of that community of religious, it is a truly exceptional piece and not only because of its physical characteristics, as it is copied on humble sheets of parchment of poor quality, something that, without a doubt, draws attention in a monastery whose economic, political and religious preponderance remained unquestionable for centuries; it is also because of its contents, since nearly half of the works collected there (a total of 45 monodic pieces and 141 polyphonic pieces between conductus, conductus-motets and organa, all written in Latin) are not conserved in any other codex. There are few surprises that this enigmatic and superb book contains in its pages. Among the most outstanding we can mention the shocking Planctus written on the occasion of the death of the Castilian kings Sancho I in 1158 (Plange Castella misera), his son Alfonso VIII in 1214 (Rex Obit) and Abbess María González de Agüero in 1335 ( Or Monialis concio burgensis), or the motets Ex illustri and Mulierum hodie / Mulierum dedicated to Santa Catalina and Santa Ana, respectively. Along with the beauty of a sublime and deeply mystical scores, as befits a time when religiousness was flooding all facets of daily life, the interpretations offered by the Capella de Ministrers constitute another point of reference for this recording. outstanding, then to the extensive and recognized experience in the medieval repertoires of its director, Carles Magraner, we must add the beauty of the four female voices, with an impeccable Marta Infante, and the good work of an instrumental cast in which the harp by Manuel Vilas plays a decisive role in transmitting the sweetness and delicacy that many of these compositions require to be understood in their true and deepest dimension.

Francisco de Paula Cañas Gálvez