Papers by Pedro L Memelsdorff
In the wake of Jean Fouchard's writings of the 1950s, and Bernard Camier's more recent ones, the ... more In the wake of Jean Fouchard's writings of the 1950s, and Bernard Camier's more recent ones, the present writer has devoted several years to archival and bibliographical research on the first singer of color in the history of French opera, Minette Ferrand (Port-au-Prince, 1767-New Orleans, 1807), and her family. From the wealth of newly emerged data, it is possible to reconstruct not only the micro-history of a "clan" of first-rate prose and opera singer-actors active initially in Saint-Domingue, the French colony in Caribbean Hispaniola, and then on the North American mainland between 1780 and 1811, but also the intertwining of this clan with the macro-history of Haiti's Revolution---an event that changed the political and cultural landscape of the region and prompted momentous transformations worldwide. As a result, a monograph on the subject is in progress, “Minette and her siblings: Micro and macro history in a family of singers of color (1767-1858)” (Turnhout, Brepols).
Some of the new documents discussed therein are included in this short communication.
This brief communication regards the rondeau cinquain 'Par malle bouche', a piece transmitted as ... more This brief communication regards the rondeau cinquain 'Par malle bouche', a piece transmitted as unicum by the MS Leuven, Alamire Foundation, MS 1. Comparison with some archival and literary historical sources, and analysis of the scribe’s script, suggests that the senhal abbreviated in the poetic text refers to Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc, pucelle d'Orléans, pucelle de France, Maid of France). The hypothesis confronts us with the possibility of a rare—if not unique—15th-century song directly referring to Jeanne’s épopée, set to music shortly after the events.
Seachanges. Music in the Mediterranean and Atlantic Worlds, 1550-1800, Roma: Officina Libraria; Firenze: I Tatti - The Harvard University Center for Italian Renaissance Studies, 2021
Paper read at the international conference 'Musique et société dans les Caraïbes françaises, 1750-1810', Tours, Centre d'Etudes Superiéures de la Renaissance, 5-7 May, 2022
Paper read at the international conference 'Musique et société dans les Caraïbes françaises, 1750-1810', Tours, Centre d'Etudes Superiéures de la Renaissance, 5-7 May, 2022
Lecture given at I Tatti Debriefs, Villa I Tatti, 25 March, 2021
in: Nick Havely and Jonathan Katz (eds.), Dante Beyond Borders. Context and Reception, 2021
Johannes Ciconia: musicien de la transition, 2003
Bulletin de la Société d'Histoire de la Guadeloupe
Bulletin de la Société d'Histoire de la Guadeloupe, 2020
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Papers by Pedro L Memelsdorff
Some of the new documents discussed therein are included in this short communication.
Some of the new documents discussed therein are included in this short communication.