Song, Dance and Poetry of the Court of Scotland under King James VI

This study examines the song repertory and two poets, Alexander Scott and Alexander Montgomerie, in sixteenth-century Scotland.

Helena Mennie Shire (Author)

9780521148290, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 26 August 2010

304 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.6 cm, 0.41 kg

Originally published in 1969, this is a series of linked studies of the character, origins and history of the court-song of Renaissance Scotland, with substantial critical discussion on poets, musicians and court culture generally. Mrs Shire shows that the song repertory of Scotland in the sixteenth century is rewarding poetically and musically both in itself and for the part it plays in the Renaissance culture of Western Europe. The author focuses on two poets, Alexander Scott and Alexander Montgomerie and adds to the value of her work by her constant preoccupation with period and background. She sets herself to answer such questions as: who made the songs and how were they presented? Was the music more important than the words? Did the singers act or dance in performance? Were songs a central part of the life of the court? Her answers illuminate this previously unknown area of study.

List of illustrations
Acknowledgements
List of abbreviations
Introduction: court-song of sixteenth-century Scotland
1. The ballatis preserved
2. The making of court-song
3. Alexander Scott (c.1525–c.1590) and traditions of court-song, dance and ceremony
4. Musicians and poets at the court of King James VI
5. The poet, the cherrie and the King: a reading of 'The Cherrie and the Slae'
6. Montgomerie and music
7. Younger Castalians: a court-tradition of poetry and song-making continues
8. From court to castle
9. The last Castalian: Sir Robert Ayton
10. Epilogue: courtly song in seventeenth-century Scotland
Appendices
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Literary studies: general [DSB]