Triumphal Procession – Gala Concert

he cycle of pictures entitled “Triumphal Procession of Emperor Maximilian” still impresses today: a gigantic series of around 150 woodcuts, lined up in a row, presents the emperor’s court in review before the viewer’s eyes. For planning, sketches and the final printing blocks, Maximilian enlisted the greatest artists of the time, including Albrecht Dürer, under whose pen and engraving a grandiose propaganda image was created. It shows a procession of the members of the court on foot, on horseback and in wagons, among them in a prominent place the court orchestra: the trumpeters of the emperor, the “Pfiffer und Prosoner” of alta musica, the “Canterey” under the direction of Heinrich Isaac himself, the wagons with the lutes, great violins, transverse flutes, tines and organs – the latter played by the skillful fingers of the famous Paul Hofhaimer.

ReRenaissance brings together the musicians of Basel’s Renaissance hotspot at the festival, uniting them in a magnificent gala concert that musically brings the processional floats of the Triumphal Procession to life on the large stage of the Martinskirche. Between fanfare blasts, the alta musica (loud wind groups) and bassa musica (softer notes), alternate. Secular songs, motets, and dance compositions spotlight a full array of textures, from soloistic performance and purely vocal groups to grand tutti settings with up to 30 musicians.

Musica ReRenaissance (30 musicians)
Marc Lewon – direction

Introductory background talk before the concert:
18:45 – Prof. Dr. Martin Kirnbauer, Basel: Between Wish and Reality – Maximilian’s Triumphal Procession (in German)