HeiBlog

I am never disappointed by a concert given by the Boston Camerata. The performance was based off of their 1991 CD (and 1995 video) release of “Le Roman de Fauvel” first staged in Paris in 1999. The work consists of major excepts of a early 14th century French manuscript by the same name. This is a work of satire, based on an “underground” pamphlet of the time, criticizing the corruption in the French government and the degradation of morality in French (especially Paris) in general.

Fauvel is a horse, who is thought to be based on a high ranking advisor to the French of the time. People of all ranks come from all walks of life and parts of the country to “kiss Fauvel’s butt.” He represents all that is sinful and foul in humanity, strictly looking after his own interests. In the poem he seeks the hand of Fortune in marriage, only to receive “Vain Glory” instead as she as is vain as he. Celebration follows and Fauvel’s children flow forth from the loins of Vain Glory, corrupting and spreading sinful behavior. At the end is an appeal to God to free France from the tyranny of the wretch Fauvel.

The staging of the poem was simple, following close to the text. Lines from the work were read followed by music (vocal and instrumental) highlighting the text. The players positioned themselves on the stage to reflect some of the illuminations seen in the original manuscript. Though the spoken readings were from an English translation and the various song types were sung in French (the CD is completely in French), the audience could fill in meaning by the players movements.

It’s really the quality of the performance and storytelling that draws to the Camerata’s performances. The music director Joel Cohen brings his fine hand and human to all parts of the performance. He tries to bring some relevance to the performances, bridging the old works with conditions in modern times. He pointed out that since Fauvel is a fictional satirical device, he could really be applied to any selfish, corrupting public figure. When you look at the text it is funny how little things can change in 700 years.

The Brattle Theater is showing Lucas Belvaux‘ Trilogy during the month of April. I caught the first installment “On the Run” this evening. The basic plot is that a leftist revolutionary activist leader breaks out of prison after being incarcerated for 15 years. He returns to his town to settle some old scores. The man was planing his escape from day one judging by the planted stashes of food and weapons that he has stashed around.

He is 15 years in the past and still thinks that his revolutionary activities have a place in modern day France. What he fines is that everything has changed and that he is alone. Through out the film he refused to accept this, and just keeps running, hiding, and following his plan. He is blind to what old friends and a lover are telling him. Still though he has is cunning and people control skills. Really this is what drew me into the character, his will to live and make the best of each situation that he runs into. The film captures the tension of the characters in an amazing fashion. You genuinely feel the pain and torment of the characters.

The trilogy is billed as bring three different stories in three different styles. My guess is that this one has the most “grit” value to it. The next film, “The Amazing Couple” is the comedy. I am reminded of Krzysztof Kieslowski’s trilogy “Three Colors” (, where he looks at the lives of three women and how they reflect a virtue (I think reflected in the symbolism of the colors of the French flag). In his work many of the characters overlap between the films. In the Belvaux trilogy three women in the film work at the same school. I’m interested to see if Belvaux works the characters in to the films in a more than surface fashion (as seen with Thee colors).

World Music is never disappointing with the groups that they bring in. Solas is a five member band with it’s roots strongly in traditional Irish music. They expand themselves though to other areas. For instance you might hear a Bob Dylan or Woody Guthrey song done in a Celtic style. I would place them between a group like Clannad that takes a more modern approach and Battlefield Band or The House Band. Solas has the type of genuine artistry and musicianship that I seek out in a live performance.

Like the experience I had with Altan I felt almost like the venue was out of place with the music. Both groups seemed like they should be in some pub or a living room. You really feel close to the artists and what that are giving to you. This might just be the nature of the music, not sure, but the audience was captivated.

Before the concert, in the lobby I ran into a gentleman selling books. Deep Community highlights the modern underground folk movement. Scott Ararkin was the man selling and has many year experience writing about the folk scene in the Boston are as well as world wide. The book has an antidotal style focusing in on specific artists, groups, and groups of artists. It looked to be the reference for modern folk that I have been looking for. Most of my best discovering have been by word of mouth, so why not get it from a book.