Codex Krasiński
Warschau National Library, Ms III.8045
The codex was created in Krakow between 1424-26 and contains sacred and secular works of both local origin and international repertoire, for example by Ciconia. The codex is the most important Polish source of this period.
Now an exemplary recording of the entire codex has been made, which is also generally accessible! The performers are Ensemble Dragma and Ensemble Peregrina under the direction of Agnieszka Budzińska-Bennett. The result is an immediately appealing performance (also in terms of text comprehensibility!) that effortlessly transcends the 600 years to the present day. The sound is also particularly enticing.
Lieder für Krakau und das Königshaus
An excellent edition of the codex has now been published almost simultaneously with this recording:
Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne, Warsaw 2025, texts in Polish and English.
The edition is introduced by an account of the codex’s chequered history, its cultural-historical background and the problems of the edition (addition of missing parts, musica ficta, regrouping of the pieces according to genre). While the codex itself was never intended to be performed, the editors Agnieszka Budzińska-Bennett and Marc Lewon have primarily focussed on performers and make it easy for them to understand the pieces. Variants, editorial solutions etc. do not have to be laboriously sought out at the end of the book, but can be found clearly in the margins of the score. All pieces are also clearly annotated. The old mensural notation has been converted into a modern rhythmic notation that corresponds roughly to our modern understanding of tempo. The only pity is that the dotted ‘bar lines’ sometimes lead to over-connections. Essentially, however, the motivic and rhythmic relationships are clearly recognisable.
The codex has been edited in a large format that also allows a group of singers to sing directly from the edition. In addition, the paper is of high quality and it is a pleasure to own this important and interesting edition.