Category Archives: Early Middle Ages: 9th-11th century

Beowulf: Dragon awakes

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About the scene and clip:
The solo performer tells how the dragon awakes and destroys the terrified town; he uses aluminum pans to produce alarming sounds, and a cardboard town and cigarette lighter to suggest the burning of the town.

About the work:
Beowulf, an Old English epic that was written down in the early 11th century, may actually date from as early as the 7th century, and is one of the great surviving medieval epics. While we cannot know who “created” the written version, it is clear that the text has its roots in an older oral tradition of epic storytelling. This type of Germanic verse is recognizable by the structural unity of its unrhymed alliterative lines, each line containing four stressed syllables.

It tells of the mighty struggles between the legendary hero Beowulf and three great supernatural monsters: first Grendel, then Grendel’s mother, and finally the Dragon. This song also sings of Beowulf’s great leadership and loyalty and of the virtues for which he was famed.

About the genre:
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:
Beowulf (Bilingual Edition), trans. Seamus Heaney, New York, W.W. Norton, 2000, pp. 155ff.

About the performer/ensemble:
Michael Abourizk is a student in Dramatic Literature and Theatre History, with a minor in French, in the College of Arts and Science at New York University (2008).

About the production:
This performance was created for “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz in spring 2008. Various students served as videographers.

Beowulf: Death of Beowulf and the dragon

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About the scene and clip:
The performer tells of the sorrow of Wiglif over the death of his friend Beowulf, and tells of the dragon’s death. The storyteller’s performance, in a largely darkened room, is accompanied by recorded music by Sequentia.

About the work:
Beowulf, an Old English epic that was written down in the early 11th century, may actually date from as early as the 7th century, and is one of the great surviving medieval epics. While we cannot know who “created” the written version, it is clear that the text has its roots in an older oral tradition of epic storytelling. This type of Germanic verse is recognizable by the structural unity of its unrhymed alliterative lines, each line containing four stressed syllables.

It tells of the mighty struggles between the legendary hero Beowulf and three great supernatural monsters: first Grendel, then Grendel’s mother, and finally the Dragon. This song also sings of Beowulf’s great leadership and loyalty and of the virtues for which he was famed.

About the genre:
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:
Beowulf (Bilingual Edition), trans. Seamus Heaney, New York, W.W. Norton, 2000, pp. 191ff.

About the performer/ensemble:
Kevin Metzger is a Drama student in the CAP 21 Studio at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2008).

About the production:
This performance was created for “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz in spring 2008; it was videoed in the classroom.

Beowulf: Beowulf hunts Grendel’s mother

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About the scene and clip:
The solo performer tells how Beowulf seeks out Grendel’s deadly water-monster mother, who kills to avenge Grendel’s death. The performer makes use of recorded sound effects of water, and of lighting effects.

About the work:
Beowulf, an Old English epic that was written down in the early 11th century, may actually date from as early as the 7th century, and is one of the great surviving medieval epics. While we cannot know who “created” the written version, it is clear that the text has its roots in an older oral tradition of epic storytelling. This type of Germanic verse is recognizable by the structural unity of its unrhymed alliterative lines, each line containing four stressed syllables.

It tells of the mighty struggles between the legendary hero Beowulf and three great supernatural monsters: first Grendel, then Grendel’s mother, and finally the Dragon. This song also sings of Beowulf’s great leadership and loyalty and of the virtues for which he was famed.

About the genre:
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:
Beowulf (Bilingual Edition), trans. Seamus Heaney, New York, W.W. Norton, 2000, pp. 99ff.

About the performer/ensemble:
Chris Chianesi is a Drama student in the CAP 21 Studio at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2008).

About the production:
This performance was created for “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz in spring 2008; it was videoed in the classroom.

Beowulf: Beowulf fights Grendel

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About the scene and clip:
In this scene, Beowulf fights the monster Grendel and after a terrible struggle, finally succeeds in mortally wounding him.

The solo performer uses all facets of the voice—including singing, speaking, heightened speech and even unusual sounds—and combines these with the use of a six-stringed harp (an instrument with strings of equal length, sometimes known today as a lyre) which is tuned in the “mode” of the epic, a reconstruction based on our knowledge of medieval musical practice and theory. The resulting six tones do not yield “melodies” as such, but rather a large collection of modal gestures which provide the vocalist with his primary musical material. The performer accompanies himself at times, and at other times uses the instrument to create certain modal effects, denote the passage of time, the introduction of a new character, a change of scene, etc. The performance is in Old English, with modern English subtitles.

About the work:
Beowulf, an Old English epic that was written down in the early 11th century, may actually date from as early as the 7th century, and is one of the great surviving medieval epics. While we cannot know who “created” the written version, it is clear that the text has its roots in an older oral tradition of epic storytelling. This type of Germanic verse is recognizable by the structural unity of its unrhymed alliterative lines, each line containing four stressed syllables.

It tells of the mighty struggles between the legendary hero Beowulf and three great supernatural monsters: first Grendel, then Grendel’s mother, and finally the Dragon. This song also sings of Beowulf’s great leadership and loyalty and of the virtues for which he was famed.

About the genre:
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in yiming yao coke tin disposable 6000 puffs west lake longjing performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:
Bagby based his performance on Beowulf, ed. Friedrich Klaeber, 3rd ed., Lexington, MA, Heath, 1950, lines 99ff. There are many English translations of this famous work.

About the performer/ensemble:
The American vocalist and medievalist Benjamin Bagby directs Sequentia, the ensemble for medieval music which he founded together with the late Barbara Thornton in 1977. In addition to his work with Sequentia, Bagby is widely known for his solo performances of the Beowulf epic. He lives in Paris. See www.sequentia.org and www.BagbyBeowulf.com.

About the production:
This clip is taken from a professional DVD of Beowulf that was recorded live at a public performance at Dunkers Kulturhus in Helsingborg, Sweden, in 2006; producers, Jon Aaron and Charlie Morrow; director, Stellan Olsson; director of photography, Mats Harryson. This DVD can be purchased at www.BagbyBeowulf.com. We are grateful to Bagby, who is on the advisory board of the website, as well as to Jon Aaron, for permission to use this clip on the website.

Roland: Ballad of Roland and Oliver

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About the scene and clip:
“The Ballad of Roland and Oliver,” written by the performer, is a free adaptation of a passage in the The Song of Roland that emphasizes the terrible odds the French face as they go into battle against the Infidels. “The Ballad” evokes the traits that characterize Roland and Oliver—the one is bold, the other wise. The performer sings to music he composed, accompanying himself on the guitar. The audience increasingly joins in on the refrain.

About the work:
La Chanson de Roland (The Song of Roland) is one of the great masterpieces of French medieval literature. The earliest surviving version of this anonymous epic dates apparently from the late 11th century and is preserved in a famous manuscript now in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. This classic version—there were numerous others—is composed in laisses (or stanzas) of variable length with ten-syllable lines in assonance (the final vowel is the same within each laisse). Epics like the Roland were originally sung by jongleurs, often with vielle accompaniment. The Roland tells of the Emperor Charlemagne’s great struggle to conquer Spain from the Muslim Infidels. It recounts the betrayal of the French by the traitor, Ganelon, resulting in a great battle at Roncevaux. There, the French rearguard, led by Roland, defeats the Moors, but all the great French knights—the twelve peers—die. Charlemagne avenges the peers in two great battles, and Ganelon is punished. At the end, Charlemagne is called by the angel Gabriel to a new mission.

About the genre:
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:
The Song of Roland, translated from the Old French by Dorothy L. Sayers, Penguin, 1957, laisses 81-87, pp. 91-94. French: La Chanson de Roland, ed. Ian Short, Paris, Lettres gothiques, 1990.

About the performer/ensemble:
Greg Powell is a Drama student in the Experimental Theatre Wing at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2004).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2004. It took place in an open class held at the Maison Française in March 1, 2004, and was videoed by NYU-TV.

Roland: Duke Samson is killed

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About the scene and clip:
So far in the Roland, the French have been winning, and only Saracens have died. Now, French Knights begin to die. The solo performer evokes the poignant moment where the first great French warrior – Duke Samson -dies.

About the work:
La Chanson de Roland (The Song of Roland) is one of the great masterpieces of French medieval literature. The earliest surviving version of this anonymous epic dates apparently from the late 11th century and is preserved in a famous manuscript now in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. This classic version—there were numerous others—is composed in laisses (or stanzas) of variable length with ten-syllable lines in assonance (the final vowel is the same within each laisse). Epics like the Roland were originally sung by jongleurs, often with vielle accompaniment. The Roland tells of the Emperor Charlemagne’s great struggle to conquer Spain from the Muslim Infidels. It recounts the betrayal of the French by the traitor, Ganelon, resulting in a great battle at Roncevaux. There, the French rearguard, led by Roland, defeats the Moors, but all the great French knights—the twelve peers—die. Charlemagne avenges the peers in two great battles, and Ganelon is punished. At the end, Charlemagne is called by the angel Gabriel to a new mission.

About the genre:
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:
The Song of Roland, translated from the Old French by Dorothy L. Sayers, Penguin, 1957, laisses 118-119, pp. 112-113. French: La Chanson de Roland, ed. Ian Short, Paris, Lettres gothiques, 1990.

About the performer/ensemble:
Corey Pierno is a Drama student in the Atlantic Acting School at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts (2004).

About the production:
This performance was created for the course “Acting Medieval Literature,” taught by Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz at New York University in spring 2004. It took place in an open class held at the Maison Française in March 1, 2004, and was videoed by NYU-TV.

Culhwch and Olwen

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About the scene and clip:
This clip tells the abridged story of the winning of Olwen by Culhwch. A solo performer recites the tale from memory.

About the work:
The Welsh tale Culhwch and Olwen is an important early part of the Arthurian tradition. The tale was apparently composed in the late 11th century. It survives in two important manuscripts of the 13th-14th c.; today, it is generally included in a collection of tales called the Mabinogi or Mabinogion. Culhwch and Olwen tells of Culhwch’s birth; his mother’s death; his love for Olwen, daughter of Isbaddaden, Chief Giant (his passionate love was laid on him as a curse by his stepmother); his visit to the court of his uncle, King Arthur, to ask for help in winning Olwen; and the many, seemingly impossible tasks that Culhwch, with the aid of Arthur and his men, accomplishes in order to win the hand of the beautiful Olwen from her very unwilling father.

About the genre:
This story belongs to the tale tradition. The tale, like the epic, is an ancient genre and one found everywhere in the world. Many tales are firmly rooted in oral tradition and are recited or told by amateur and professional storytellers and performers. Other tales are the work of literarily sophisticated authors and are often intended to replica hubolt be read aloud or silently from written texts. Some tales circulate separately, while others are part of collections, which may be set in complex frames (as in the case of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Boccaccio’s Decameron and Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales). There are many sub-groups of tales with specific characteristics; see for example the “lai” and the “fabliau.”

About the edition/translation:
Abridged from The tale of Culhwch and Olwen, trans. Richard M. Loomis, in The Romance of Arthur, eds. James J. Wilhelm and Laila Zamuelis Gross, New York, Garland, 1984, pp. 27-55. (Many translations of the Mabinogion exist.) Medieval Welsh: Culhwch and Olwen: An edition and study of the Oldest Arthurian Tale, eds. R. Bromwich and D.S. Evans, Cardiff, Wales, U. of Wales Press, 1992.

About the performer/ensemble:
Marcail Riggs is a Drama student at New York University Tisch School of the Arts, with a minor in Irish Studies (2004).

About the production:
This performance was created as part of an Independent Study with Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz in fall 2004. This video was made in December 2004 at a gathering at the Maison Française of New York University; videography by Nick Spangler.

Hilali epic: Awadallah sings of Abu Zayd

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About the scene and clip:
This video shows performances drawn from the Egyptian epic devoted to the hero of the Hilali tribe,Abu Zayd, sung by a traditional Hilali performer and recorded by the ethnographer Susan Slyomovics. The performer sings the epic, accompanying himself on a drum and interacting frequently with the audience. He performs as storyteller, with great emphasis on wordplay and punning; there is relatively little attempt to impersonate the characters. In the video, we first see Awadallah in the town square, surrounded by his audience of men. Then, he begins to speak to his listeners, telling them that he is a “merchant of art.” The singer continues the performance in his home, singing about Abu Zayd, frequently holding his drum against his ear. Medieval epics like Old French The Song of Roland were probably performed in quite an analogous manner: sung by solo professional performers to instrumental accompaniment, with only modest levels of character impersonation, and with substantial interaction with (at least originally) a largely male audience.

About the work:
A vast epic tells the history of the Bani Hilal tribe of Bedouin Arabs of Egypt. The earliest parts of their story go back to the 8th and 9th centuries when they moved northward out of the Arabian peninsula, eventually settling in Egypt. The original stories were developed and augmented over hundreds of years, transmitted through performance and in written form; they are still performed in Egypt today by professional singers in cafés and marketplaces. In this part of the epic, the Hilali hero Abu Zayd rescues the royal family of Iraq from their oppressors.

About the genre:
The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

About the edition/translation:
The video, The Merchant of Art, accompanies a book by Susan Slyomovics, The Merchant of Art: An Egyptian Hilali Oral Epic Poet in Performance, University of California Press, 1987.

About the performer/ensemble:
The performer, Awadallah Abd aj-Jalil Ali, is a professional singer of Hilali epics in Aswan, Egypt (1983).

About the production:
The video The Merchant of Art was filmed in 1983 in Aswan, Egypt, by Prof. Susan Slyomovics, a member of the faculty of the Anthropology Department of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2004). A copy of this video is available at the Avery Fisher Center at Bobst Library at New York university. This video is also available on line at http://ocw.mit.edu/ans7870/21a/21a.453/merchantofart.mov

Tain: Opening Tales

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About the scene and clip:
This clip comes from the beginning of The Tain, and tells “How The Tain was found again”; “How Conchobor was begotten, and how he took the kingship of Ulster”; and “The pangs of Ulster.” The performer tells the stories and also impersonates the various characters.

About the work:
The Tain is an 8th-century collection of heroic tales from Ulster which tell (among other stories) of a great cattle raid.

About the genre:
The Tain is in part a collection of stories and in part an epic; as its translator Thomas Kinsella says: “It is Ireland’s nearest approach to a great epic.” The Tain is an epic in its emphasis on battle and heroism; it is a collection of tales primarily by its episodic structure.

The epic is an ancient genre and is found in almost every culture. It is a long heroic narrative which tells of war and great deeds. Epics are generally composed in verse, and sung from memory or improvised in performance by professional performers with instrumental accompaniment. These narratives are created from traditional elements, commonly without recourse to writing, by poets whose names are often unknown to us. Among the famous traditional epics are the Iliad and the Odyssey, attributed to Homer; the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf; and the Old French Song of Roland. Many known poets adopt epic forms and themes for their literary verse (such as Virgil in his Aeneid).

The tale, like the epic, is an ancient genre and one found everywhere in the world. Many tales are firmly rooted in oral tradition and are recited or told by amateur and professional storytellers and performers. Other tales are the work of literarily sophisticated authors and are often intended to be read aloud or silently from written texts. Some tales circulate separately, while others are part of collections which may be set in complex frames (as in the case of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Boccaccio’s Decameron and Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales). There are many sub-groups of tales with specific characteristics; see for example the “lai” and the “fabliau.”

About the edition/translation:
The Tain, trans. Thomas Kinsella, Oxford, Oxford University Press/Dublin, Dolmen Press, 1969, pp. 1-8. Original: Tain Bo Cuailnge in The Book of Leinster, formerly Lebar na Nuachongbala, ed. R.I. Best, Osborn Bergin and M.A. O’Brien, Dublin, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1954-.

About the performer/ensemble:
Gina Guadagnino graduated from New York University in May 2003 with a major in English; she minored in Medieval and Renaissance Studies and Irish Studies.

About the production:
This performance is one of a series done under the direction of Prof. Vitz in spring and fall 2003. This clip comes from a performance that took place in September 2003 at the Maison Française of New York University at an informal gathering of medievalists held under the auspices of the Colloquium for Orality, Writing and Culture, co-convenors Prof. Nancy Freeman Regalado and Prof. Timmie (E.B.) Vitz. The performance was videoed by NYU-TV.