PROFANE MUSIC IN VILLAGES AND COUNTRIES

If in the aristocratic courts profane music was on the way to become always finer and finer and more and more complex, in countries and in villages, out of the castle walls, the plain folk enjoyed themselves with more elementary and more joyful popular forms. This music, generally merry and suitable for the dance, was played by wandering musicians, ballad-singers, acrobats and jugglers, jesters and minstrels. Some of them only sang, others accompanied with the drums, or with the viella. Far from the polyphonic virtuosity, the folk song was simple, catchy and repetitive, suitable for dancing. But, unfortunately, transcriptions of it are very few: our knowledge is limited to what has come down to us through ancient melodies handed orally. The reason is simple: the culture was the Church's monopoly; the only ones to be in a position to transcribe songs and melodies were the monks or their noble students, troubadours and trouveres, but the clergy couldn't turn their attention to popular music (from "volgo": people), which made use of instruments not accepted by the Church and besides, intended for dancing  to was also forbidden.

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