Medieval Music - Martin Best Medieval Ensemble

 Medieval Music

 Martin Best Medieval Ensemble.

The Martin Best Medieval Ensemble recorded great interpretations of the surviving works of some of the greatest 12^th and 13^th century troubadours and trouveres.

Martin Best is my favourite performer of medieval music. He has a fine voice and it is obvious that he enjoys singing the songs.  The musical accompaniment is really good, I especially like some of the complex percussion.

The albums, The Last of the Troubadours & The Dante Troubadours, came out just as I started doing 13^th century re-enactment in 1983 and even now listening to them brings back memories of hand sewing kit wrapped up in a duvet in a freezing cold bedsit.

 

Discography – from Wikipedia  (I have edited out the non-medieval ones)

The albums in bold are still easy to get, you may have to hunt for the others.

 
1978. Martin Best: The Dawn of Romance, LP. Songs and music of the early troubadours of Provence.

 

The original vinyl LP cover.

it just happens to be a good photo of my favourite castle at Goodrich, a few miles from where I grew up.

1982 - Martin Best Medieval Ensemble: The Last of the Troubadours – The Art & Times of Guiraut Riquier, LP. Later reissued in the 1999 CD box Music from the Age of Chivalry. French ballads

1983 - Martin Best Medieval Ensemble: The Dante Troubadours, LP then CD. Later reissued in the 1999 CD box Music from the Age of Chivalry. French ballads by Bertran de Born, Guiraut de Bornelh, and others

1983. Martin Best Medieval Ensemble: Songs of Chivalry, LP? Also in the 1999 CD box Music from the Age of Chivalry. French ballads by Thibaut de Navarre etc

1984. Martin Best Medieval Ensemble: Cantigas of Santa Maria of Alfonso X El Sabio, LP? Also in the 1999 CD box Music from the Age of Chivalry. Songs from Cantigas de Santa Maria

1987. Martin Best: The Testament of Tristan, LP/CD. Songs of Bernart de Ventadorn

1988. Martin Best Medieval Ensemble: Thys Yool – A Medieval Christmas

1994. Martin Best Medieval Ensemble: Forgotten Provence – Music-making in the South of France, 1150–1550, CD.

1996. Martin Best Consort: Amor de Lonh – The Distant Love of the Troubadours, CD. Also in the 1999 CD box Music from the Age of Chivalry


You can find their work on Spotify here and here and a search on Youtube will provide a couple of the albums and several individual tracks.