Hildegard von Bingen
“These watery varieties of sounds and silences, terrifying, mysterious, whirling, and sometimes gestating and gentle, must somehow be felt in the pulse, ebb, and flow of the music that sings in me” - Hildegard von Bingen on her music.
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
was a remarkable woman, a “first” in many fields. At a time when few women were
writing, Hildegard produced major works of theology and visionary writings.
When few women were accorded respect, she was consulted by and advised bishops,
popes, and kings. She used the curative powers of natural objects for healing,
and wrote treatises about natural history and the medicinal uses of plants,
animals, trees and stones. She is the first composer whose biography is known.
She founded a vibrant convent, where her musical plays were performed. Although
not yet canonized, Hildegard has been beatified, and is frequently referred to
as St. Hildegard.
Nine hundred years after her
birth, her life and work have captured the attention and imagination of
scholars and students in fields such as religion, music, literature, history,
medieval studies, gender studies, and the history of science and medicine.
This year, numerous festivities,
concerts, conferences and other events are being organised to mark Hildegard’s
900th anniversary.
A simple search on the Internet
will lead you to hundreds of pages of information on a long-ignored woman whose
valuable contributions to the arts and culture are beyond dispute.
Hildegard von Bingen: Special Programme
Sunday, 11.
Octber at 9pm
Artificial Eye: Zeena Parkins & Janene
Higgins
Kinoteka, Miklošičeva 28, Ljubljana
Sunday, 11.
Octber at 7pm
The Symphony of the Harmony of
Celestial Revelations: with
members of The Oxford Girls’ Choir
Cerkev Sv. Florijana, Ulica na
Grad, Gornji trg, Ljubljana.
Monday, 11.
Octber at 3pm
Stevie
Wishart on Hildegard (lecture)
Cankarjev dom, Prešernova 10,
Ljubljana.
