Ysabella (trobairitz)
Encyclopedia
Ysabel or Ysabella was a 13th-century trobairitz
. Almost nothing is known about her with certainty, but many conjectures have been put forward. She has been identified with:
Ysabella is mentioned three times in the verses of Elias Cairel
. "Estat ai dos ans" is addressed a ma dona Ysabelh (to my lady Ysabel). The tornada
of "Mout mi platz lo doutz temps d'abril" contains the line Don'Izabel, ma chanso prezen: to Lady Isabel, my love song. "Pois chai la fuoilla del garric" also mentions ma dona Izabel. Elias travelled to Greece
in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade
(1202–1204) and was in Thessalonica, at the court of Boniface, by 1207. By 1215 he was back in Italy
, where he remained until 1225. It is possible that he met Isabella either in Greece or in Italy, if she was a relative of Boniface or the Pellavicini.
Ysabella composed one tenso
, "N'Elyas Cairel, de l'amor", with Elias that survives. Early in the study of the trobairitz, it was commonly supposed that some of the more obscure women, like Ysabella, who are named as interlocutors with male counterparts, were not in fact real women, but rather fictions created by the troubadours for the sake of creating intersexual tensos. Ysabella was one such victim, though her existence is now presumed. Her tenso has been translated into English
(Bogin), French
(Pierre Bec), and German
(Oskar Schultz and, more recently, Angelica Rieger).
The situation of the composition of the tenso between Elias and Ysabella has been a matter of dispute. One recent editor of Elias' corpus, Giosuè Lachin, believes the tenso was composed in Greece in 1204. The Old French
song "L'autrier avint en chel autre païs", by the trouvère
Conon de Béthune
, whom Elias knew, has many thematic similarities with the tenso of Ysabella, though they are metrically dissimilar. Interesting for the purposes of determining the tensos provenience is the mention in line 40 of lo patriarch'Iuan ("the patriarch John"), a possible reference to Patriarch John X of Constantinople (1199–1206).
The tenso opens with Ysabella recalling with fondness the days of her and Elias' former love. The factualness of their relationship is usually accepted and Elias is considered to have courted Ysabella, either in Aquitaine
, Greece, or Italy. Whatever the historical background, Ysabella and Elias are clearly no longer in a relationship when their dialogue begins, and Elias places the blame for their falling apart on her. This precipitates a spate of verbal assaults that eventually end in Elias' admission of uncourtliness and their reconciliation, with Ysabella offering to help him win over his new lady and he politely declining to share her name. This basic structure can be viewed as a deviation in the middle stanzas from the norms of courtly love
(with Ysabella insulting instead of flattering her lover and he taking another love despite her continued affection) and a subsequent return to the norm in the closing stanzas. Recently, Catherine Ganiere, by analysing the use of negations by the interlocutors, has argued that Ysabella was more concerned with her inner feelings (of being loved), while Elias was more concerned with outward appearances, i.e. courtly behaviours, social standing, etc.
In 2011, Canadian composer Serouj Kradjian
's work "Trobairitz Ysabella" was premiered by soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian
and the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Anne Manson.
Trobairitz
The trobairitz were Occitan female troubadours of the 12th and 13th centuries, active from around 1170 to approximately 1260. The word trobairitz was first used in the 13th-century romance Flamenca. It comes from the Provençal word trobar, the literal meaning of which is "to find", and the...
. Almost nothing is known about her with certainty, but many conjectures have been put forward. She has been identified with:
- Isabella, Queen of Jerusalem (died 1205), daughter of Amalric I of JerusalemAmalric I of JerusalemAmalric I of Jerusalem was King of Jerusalem 1163–1174, and Count of Jaffa and Ascalon before his accession. Amalric was the second son of Melisende of Jerusalem and Fulk of Jerusalem...
and Maria ComnenaMaria Komnene, Queen consort of JerusalemMaria Komnene or Comnena , , was the second wife of King Amalric I of Jerusalem and mother of Queen Isabella of Jerusalem. She was the daughter of John Komnenos, sometime Byzantine dux in Cyprus, and Maria Taronitissa, a descendant of the ancient Armenian kings...
, widow of Conrad of MontferratConrad of MontferratConrad of Montferrat was a northern Italian nobleman, one of the major participants in the Third Crusade. He was the de facto King of Jerusalem, by marriage, from 24 November 1190, but officially elected only in 1192, days before his death...
(died 1192) - IsabellaIsabella PallaviciniIsabella Pallavicini , sometimes Jezebel, was the marchioness of Bodonitsa from 1278. She succeeded her brother Ubertino and also inherited her elder sister Mabilia's Italian possessions in Parma. The three were the only children of the first margrave Guy...
, Marchioness of BodonitsaMargrave of BodonitsaThe margraviate or marquisate of Bodonitsa , today Mendenitsa, Phthiotis , was a Frankish state in Greece following the conquests of the Fourth Crusade. It was originally granted as a margravial holding of Guy Pallavicini by Boniface, first king of Thessalonica, in 1204...
(1278–1286), daughter of Guy PallaviciniGuy PallaviciniGuy, Guido, or Galdo Pallavicini , called Marchesopoulo by his Greek subjects, was the first margrave of Bodonitsa in Frankish Greece from 1204 to his death in 1237...
(died 1237) - Isabella, Triarch of NegroponteLordship of NegroponteThe Lordship of Negroponte was a crusader state established on the island of Euboea after the partition of the Byzantine Empire following the Fourth Crusade. Partitioned into three baronies run by a few interrelated Lombard families, the island soon fell under the influence of the Republic of...
(1217), widow of Ravano dalle CarceriRavano dalle CarceriRavano dalle Carceri was a Lombard nobleman. He was one of the first triarchs of Negroponte from 1205.In August 1205 Ravano was among those who led forces in the capture of the island of Euboea from the Byzantine Empire as part of the Fourth Crusade... - An otherwise unnamed daughter of William V of Montferrat (died 1191), sister of Boniface of Thessalonica, and wife of Albert MalaspinaAlbert MalaspinaAlbert Malaspina , called Alberto Moro and lo marches putanier , was a member of the illustrious Malaspina family. He was a noted troubadour and patron of troubadours...
- An otherwise unknown woman from the PérigordPérigordThe Périgord is a former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne département, now forming the northern part of the Aquitaine région. It is divided into four regions, the Périgord Noir , the Périgord Blanc , the Périgord Vert and the Périgord Pourpre...
Ysabella is mentioned three times in the verses of Elias Cairel
Elias Cairel
Elias Cairel was a troubadour of international fame. Born in Sarlat in the Périgord, he first travelled with the Fourth Crusade and settled down in the Kingdom of Thessalonica at the court of Boniface of Montferrat before moving back to Western Europe, where he sojourned in both Spain...
. "Estat ai dos ans" is addressed a ma dona Ysabelh (to my lady Ysabel). The tornada
Tornada (Occitan literary term)
In Occitan lyric poetry, a tornada refers to a final, shorter stanza which is addressed to a patron, lady, or friend. They often contain useful information about the piece's composition and the troubadour's circle....
of "Mout mi platz lo doutz temps d'abril" contains the line Don'Izabel, ma chanso prezen: to Lady Isabel, my love song. "Pois chai la fuoilla del garric" also mentions ma dona Izabel. Elias travelled to Greece
Latin Empire
The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. It was established after the capture of Constantinople in 1204 and lasted until 1261...
in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...
(1202–1204) and was in Thessalonica, at the court of Boniface, by 1207. By 1215 he was back in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, where he remained until 1225. It is possible that he met Isabella either in Greece or in Italy, if she was a relative of Boniface or the Pellavicini.
Ysabella composed one tenso
Tenso
A tenso is a style of Occitan song favoured by the troubadours. It takes the form of a debate in which each voice defends a position on a topic relating to love or ethics. Closely related genres include the partimen and the cobla exchange...
, "N'Elyas Cairel, de l'amor", with Elias that survives. Early in the study of the trobairitz, it was commonly supposed that some of the more obscure women, like Ysabella, who are named as interlocutors with male counterparts, were not in fact real women, but rather fictions created by the troubadours for the sake of creating intersexual tensos. Ysabella was one such victim, though her existence is now presumed. Her tenso has been translated into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
(Bogin), French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
(Pierre Bec), and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
(Oskar Schultz and, more recently, Angelica Rieger).
The situation of the composition of the tenso between Elias and Ysabella has been a matter of dispute. One recent editor of Elias' corpus, Giosuè Lachin, believes the tenso was composed in Greece in 1204. The Old French
Old French
Old French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories that span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from the 9th century to the 14th century...
song "L'autrier avint en chel autre païs", by the trouvère
Trouvère
Trouvère , sometimes spelled trouveur , is the Northern French form of the word trobador . It refers to poet-composers who were roughly contemporary with and influenced by the troubadours but who composed their works in the northern dialects of France...
Conon de Béthune
Conon de Béthune
Conon de Béthune was a crusader and "trouvère" poet.-Life:...
, whom Elias knew, has many thematic similarities with the tenso of Ysabella, though they are metrically dissimilar. Interesting for the purposes of determining the tensos provenience is the mention in line 40 of lo patriarch'Iuan ("the patriarch John"), a possible reference to Patriarch John X of Constantinople (1199–1206).
The tenso opens with Ysabella recalling with fondness the days of her and Elias' former love. The factualness of their relationship is usually accepted and Elias is considered to have courted Ysabella, either in Aquitaine
Aquitaine
Aquitaine , archaic Guyenne/Guienne , is one of the 27 regions of France, in the south-western part of metropolitan France, along the Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. It comprises the 5 departments of Dordogne, :Lot et Garonne, :Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Landes...
, Greece, or Italy. Whatever the historical background, Ysabella and Elias are clearly no longer in a relationship when their dialogue begins, and Elias places the blame for their falling apart on her. This precipitates a spate of verbal assaults that eventually end in Elias' admission of uncourtliness and their reconciliation, with Ysabella offering to help him win over his new lady and he politely declining to share her name. This basic structure can be viewed as a deviation in the middle stanzas from the norms of courtly love
Courtly love
Courtly love was a medieval European conception of nobly and chivalrously expressing love and admiration. Generally, courtly love was secret and between members of the nobility. It was also generally not practiced between husband and wife....
(with Ysabella insulting instead of flattering her lover and he taking another love despite her continued affection) and a subsequent return to the norm in the closing stanzas. Recently, Catherine Ganiere, by analysing the use of negations by the interlocutors, has argued that Ysabella was more concerned with her inner feelings (of being loved), while Elias was more concerned with outward appearances, i.e. courtly behaviours, social standing, etc.
In 2011, Canadian composer Serouj Kradjian
Serouj Kradjian
-Early life and education:At fourteen earned a scholarship to study in Vienna, and was gaining allocades by the age of seven. He moved to Vienna at fourteen to pursue his training on a scholarship. He later studied with Marietta Orlov at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Music, where he...
's work "Trobairitz Ysabella" was premiered by soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian
Isabel Bayrakdarian
Isabel Bayrakdarian is a Grammy Award-nominated Armenian Canadian opera singer.-Early life:Born in Lebanon in 1974, she moved to Canada as a teenager. Bayrakdarian graduated in 1997 from the University of Toronto with an honours B.A.Sc...
and the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Anne Manson.
External links
- Les écrits féminins non-fictionnels du Moyen Âge au XVIIIe siècle from the University of OttawaUniversity of OttawaThe University of Ottawa is a bilingual, research-intensive, non-denominational, international university in Ottawa, Ontario. It is one of the oldest universities in Canada. It was originally established as the College of Bytown in 1848 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate...
.