The Troubadours - (Medieval Lives) by Linda M Paterson (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Composing songs of love and war in medieval Western and Southern Europe, troubadours spanned the social spectrum from powerful nobles to penniless minstrels."--

Book Synopsis

An engaging and accessible introduction to the music, poetry, and lives of the medieval singer-songwriters.

Composing songs of love and war in medieval Western and Southern Europe, troubadours spanned the social spectrum from powerful nobles to penniless minstrels. This book delves into the everyday worlds of these remarkable poet-musicians, famed for their innovative use of language and music as well as the lasting impact of their work on audiences then and now. The troubadours' songs explored ideas about courtly love as well as medieval perceptions of gender, class, war, and chivalry. Linda M. Paterson examines the troubadours' music, performance, and legacy, pairing fresh translations with the original texts to highlight the enduring beauty of their songs and poetry.

Review Quotes

"This senior scholar's authoritative summing-up takes us across an array of standard Troubadour poets and will be a basic starting point for future researchers. . . . Essential."-- "Choice"

"Poetry and music define a world at war in this meticulous study of the troubadours, the poet-musicians active in the Occitan region (now southern France) from the 11th through the 13th centuries . . . The poetry alone is worth the price of admission . . . It's a lively and rewarding account."-- "Publishers Weekly"

"Built on a selection of pivotal authors encompassing the 'golden' twelfth century, this up-to-date synthesis by one of the most distinguished scholars of troubadour poetry skillfully combines social and historical, literary and musical aspects of a lyric production that shaped the notion of courtliness and the idea of love embedded in Western culture for many centuries to come."--Francesco Carapezza, University of Palermo

"Linda M. Paterson's fascinating, erudite book is an ideal guide to the troubadours, whose poetry is as influential as it is inventive. Setting the troubadours in their historical, linguistic and literary context, Paterson gives deft, vivid introductions to these extraordinarily talented men and women, and offers her reader a captivating view of their work - by turns enigmatic, lyrical and obscene."--Miranda Griffin, University of Cambridge

"Not only is this the best general introduction to the work of the troubadours in English, it also takes into account information sometimes neglected: where these poets were from, how they related to current issues, their music, their travels, their influence and their idea of what they thought they were doing. Add to that a judicious selection of texts, an up-to-date review of recent scholarship by one of the primary specialists of Occitan poetry, and you have nothing less than a tour de force. A unique historical, philological and literary survey, Paterson's book is a marvel and a gift for the ages."--Bill Burgwinkle, University of Cambridge

About the Author

Linda M. Paterson is professor emerita at the University of Warwick. Her books include Singing the Crusades: French and Occitan Lyric Responses to the Crusading Movements, 1137-1336.