Course: Testators of western civilisation

In Heerlen, we know a lot about the Romans and the mines but what happened in the centuries in between? We know pretty little about that. Starting with the Middle Ages. During this series of the HOVO, we dive into this exciting time through five themes.

In five lectures, the five lecturers, each from their own discipline - music, philosophy, art history, history and literature respectively - will highlight direction-setting Heritors from this period. You will get to know the notorious figures who determined the face of Europe in this period, such as Thomas Aquinas, Erasmus, the Lymborch brothers and the poet of the Nibelungenlied.

The five sessions

Art history:
The Lymborch Brothers and Johan Maelwael
Friday 2 June, 11:00 a.m.

On the Burchtstraat in Nijmegen, the Maelwael van Lymborch family worked around 1400. The three brothers from this family, Herman, Johan and Paul van Lymborch, and their uncle Johan Maelwael, are the founders of Dutch painting. They were far ahead of their time. Their realistic depictions of castles, nobles and peasants still define our image of the Middle Ages. With new techniques, visual innovations and subjects hitherto unknown to tide books, they broke with the traditional painting of the Middle Ages and paved the way for the Renaissance painters who came after them. 

Lieke Kamphuis studied History in Nijmegen and then did the master's degree in Medieval Studies at York in England. She also recently completed the master's in Art History at Radboud University, where she graduated in the use of clothing in the work of the brothers van Lymborch to ascribe meaning to certain persons and groups. From 1 January 2023, she will be director of the Maelwael Van Lymborch Foundation and the Brothers van Lymborch House.

Literary history:
The Song of the Nibelungs
Friday 9 June, 11:00 a.m.

Dr Liesbeth Vonhögen delves into literary history using the world-famous manuscript: the Song of the Nibelungs. The Song of the Nibelungs is a Middle High German epic from the 13th century, consisting of about 2,300 stanzas, describing the downfall of the House of Burgundy. It is an account of 'sisters in arms' exploding a society. and is the main Middle High German form of the Nibelungensage. In its richness and depth, as well as its compelling style, the song is an absolute highlight of high-medieval literature. In 2009, the three most important manuscripts of this epic from 1200 were placed on the World Heritage List by Unesco. We take a closer look at this song, the time in which it was written, its knock-on effects in later times, its impact on the history of Germany in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and its significance today.

Liesbeth Vonhögen is a neerlandica and cultural scholar. She studied Dutch MO a and b at the Katholieke Leergangen in Sittard and Cultural Studies at the Open University in Heerlen. Here she obtained her PhD in 2017 with 'Nu alles voorbij is, begint wat voorbij is opnieuw', a dissertation on the impact of the Second World War in Dutch poetry between 1945 and 2005. She writes poetry reviews, supervises reading groups and lectures on literary and (literary) historical topics.

Music history:
Machaut and Josquin
Friday 16 June, 11:00 a.m.

Jan Ezendam dives into music history accompanied by music on the grand piano. Ezemdam gives us an overview of the main developments in the musical world of the Middle Ages. We observe how in a process spanning hundreds of years, musical composition gradually progressed from unison to polyphony and polyphony. Between 500 (Boëthius) and 1500 (Josquin), the vision of music will also shift 180 degrees from 'Musica Speculativa' - part of mathematics, the so-called quadrivium - to 'Musica Poetica' - part of rhetoric, the so-called trivium.

The first testator to come into focus is Guillaume Machaut.  He was the main interpreter of the 'Ars Nova', which flourished in 14th-century France. He wrote the first fully polyphonic mass. With the period of the Dutch (I Fiamminghi) in the 15th century, polyphony based on a renewed harmonic understanding emerged. As a second testator, we study Josquin des Prez here. He became a legend and fulfilled a symbolic function in music history. Josquin brought a completely new attitude to musical creation.

Jan Ezendam is a pianist and conductor. He studied piano, orchestral conducting, theory and composition at the Maastricht and Liège Conservatories. He has worked as a lecturer in theory, arranging and ensemble conducting at the Maastricht Academy of Music since 1980, and previously gave lectures in HOVO contexts.

History of philosophy:
Thomas Aquinas and William of Ockham
Friday 23 June, 11:00 a.m.

The High Middle Ages brought peace and progress. To that success, the philosopher/theologian Thomas Aquinas certainly contributed. How that came about is explained in the first half of the lecture. The second half of the lecture shows how the hard-won unity was challenged by philosophical ideas of William of Ockham, among others. With this, the road to the Renaissance lies open. 

Drs Wim Fiévez: After a lifelong university career as a philosophy lecturer, Drs Wim Fiévez has been teaching philosophy to secondary schools and interested beginners in recent years.

History:
Erasmus and Emperor Charles V, Desiderius Erasmus and Emperor Charles V
Friday 30 June, 11:00 a.m.

At the end of the Middle Ages, we meet the scholar Erasmus and the emperor Charles V. Erasmus, counselor to Charles, argued in vain for tolerance in Europe. And Charles, already ruler of all Europe as a young man, fought many wars in vain to make his great empire an administrative and religious unit.

Drs. Constance van der Putten is a historian who likes to talk and write about all kinds of historical topics.

Practical information

• Course: five lectures of 2 x 1 hour with break and room for questions and discussion
• When: Friday mornings 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
• Cost: € 30,- for five meetings (cannot be booked separately)