The superstars of early music explore the Llibre Vermell, which originates from Montserrat. Since the 14th century, pilgrims have been travelling to the holy mountain, where the Black Madonna holds vigil over Catalonia. The ‘Red Book’, as it was called for its brightly coloured velvet cover, even survived Napoleon’s arsonists setting fire to the monastery there. The fascinating manuscript preserves songs that pilgrims left behind like breadcrumbs on the mountain paths, whether marching along or mindfully contemplating on their way to the land where Latin, Catalan and Occitan melt into an intoxicating murmur. Jordi Savall leads a top cast on this thrilling journey through a unique collection, whose incantatory rhythms and atmospheric soundscapes promise to be as sensual as they are spiritual.
