Scaramella Va Alla Guerra

Woodcut portrait of Josquin des Prez (1611)

I usually prefer celebrating great artists on the date of their birth, but sometimes that isn't known. So, I'm left memorializing on the anniversary of their date of death. Such is the case with my favorite Renaissance composer, Josquin des Prez.

In my generation, most hardcore enthusiasts of classical music enter through cinematic soundtracks and scores. For instance, by being exposed to the orchestral music of John Williams' movie masterpieces, such as Star Wars or the Indiana Jones movies, the listener might be encourage to try out the music that inspired Williams, be it Holst, Wagner, or Richard Strauss. And by developing a familiarity with the art of orchestra music, the listener becomes a fan of "classical music" as a whole.

That's not how I became a classical fan. I have always been deeply interested in religion and spirituality. I'm especially wild over artistic expressions of devotion and spiritual insight. As a Catholic, I was no stranger to sacred music and its ceremonial role. And so, I began to listen to classical music from the other direction, early music into the modern.

And Josquin des Prez was the composer who sealed the deal with my love for classical music. Here's a bit from Wikipedia:

Josquin lived during a transitional stage in music history. Musical styles were changing rapidly, in part due to the movement of musicians between different regions of Europe. Many northern musicians moved to Italy, the heart of the Renaissance, attracted by the Italian nobility's patronage of the arts; while in Italy, these composers were influenced by the native Italian styles, and often brought those ideas with them back to their homelands. The sinuous musical lines of the Ockeghem generation, the contrapuntal complexity of the Netherlanders, and the homophonic textures of the Italian lauda and secular music began to merge into a unified style; indeed Josquin was to be the leading figure in this musical process, which eventually resulted in the formation of an international musical language, of which the most famous composers included Palestrina and Lassus.

Now let's listen to some music.


Here are some of my favorite works:

Enjoy!!!