Crossdorf übers Jahr: The Playfords ("Luther tanzt"- ein musikalischer Beitrag zum Reformationstag)

“Luther Dances—Songs of the Reformation and Their Secular Roots”

Martin Luther was a highly learned yet deeply emotional man; whatever he was convinced of, he pursued with unwavering consistency. Thus, the fun-loving student from Erfurt became an extremely ascetic monk who—horrified by the hypocrisy of the church of his time—unintentionally sparked the Reformation, and eventually cast aside all asceticism to bring the pure doctrine to the people with all his senses—and above all, through music.

Unlike many of his fellow Reformers, he relied less on Germanized Gregorian chant than on new lyrics set to both familiar and newly composed folk melodies. Thus,“popular songs, riders’ songs, and mountain balladswere adapted to beChristian, moral, and virtuous…”and used in the spirit of the Reformation. The fact that Luther was an accomplished lutenist and also trained in counterpoint certainly benefited him in this endeavor, as did his close ties to Ludwig Senfl and Johann Walter. He thus served as a model for countless hymn writers and shaped the typical Protestant chorale in a folk style.
The Playfords bring out the often-forgotten,dance-like, and joyful characterof such church songs, and, in the process, also delve into the dark past of many afamous chorale, breathing new life into the “wicked, troublesome tunes—useless and shameful little songs sung in the streets, fields, houses, and elsewhere.”
The ensemble The Playfords was founded in Weimar in 2001, inspired by *The English Dancing Master* by John and Henry Playford. In this legendary collection, first published in 1651—the “Real Book” of its time—well-known melodies are notated with corresponding dance instructions, but without arrangements.Harmonies, bass lines, and variations were improvised and heavily influenced by the performers’ preferences and talents. A welcome, virtuosic, and creative challenge for every musician—then as now. The Playfords, all specialists in their field, carry on this tradition with their playful approach.