Troubador
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- For the article about the night club in West Hollywood, California, see: Troubadour (nightclub).
A troubador (or troubadour) was a composer and performer of songs in particular styles during the Middle Ages in Europe.
The word troubadour comes from the Occitan verb "trobar" which means find. It is used to designate artists using occitan or langue d'oc whose style spread to the trouvères who used the langues d'oïl of the north of France. The custom began in France during the 11th century; the earliest being William, IX Duke of Aquitaine (1071-1127, also Guillaume d'Aquitaine). The style flourished in the twelfth century and was often imitated in the thirteenth (ibid). Many troubadors travelled for great distances, aiding in the transmission of news from one region to another.
Troubadors mainly dealt with themes of chivalry and courtly love, although their songs might deal with all sorts of other themes as well. Perhaps most famous were the songs addressed by the singer to a married lover. Perhaps due to the prevalence of arranged marriages at the time, this theme of true love outside the bonds of marriage (usually chaste love, at least in formal works) apparently hit a strong chord with the listeners. The aubade formed one popular genre.
Similar roles were filled in different times and regions by persons known as minstrels and jongleurs. The German Minnesingers are closely related to, and inspired by, troubadors, but have distinctive features of their own.
Troubadors whose works have survived to the present day include Arnaut Daniel and Jaufré Rudel.
See also
- List of troubadours
- Provençal literature
- Sestina
- Kyrielle
- Envoi
- Minstrel
- Medieval music
- A Million Open Doors
Additional reading
- Ardis Butterfield (1997). "Monophonic song: questions of category", Companion to Medieval & Renaissance Music. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0198165404.
Other uses
- De Troubadour, sung by Lennie Kuhr, was one of the winning songs in the Eurovision Song Contest 1969.
- The Troubadour Theater Company is a Shakespearean acting troupe that performs productions of Shakespeare plays put to rock music from the 1970s.ca:Trobador
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