Sunday morning concert
The unspeakable sin
Music shapes gender norms, now and in the past. In fact, looking back to the Middle Ages, there was a whole arsenal of compositions. From drinking songs about intersexuality to chants at sodomy trials. Jonas Roelens dusts off these classical and less classical songs. Together with soprano Lieselot De Wilde and Thomas Baeté on viola da gamba, he brings them to life.
During his research into sodomy in the Southern Netherlands (1400-1700), Jonas Roelens came across many songs about hidden loves or pigeonholed identities. Songs that had been gathering dust in the archives for centuries he distilled: Medieval compositions, courtly love, early modern drinking songs about intersexuality: examples aplenty. More than that, songs were even sung during executions following sodomy trials. Soprano Lieselot De Wilde and Thomas Beaté on viola da gamba accompany Jonas to revive the songs of the past.
