Musicians; Benjamin Bagby, Elizabeth Gaver, Lena-Susanne Norin, and Barbara Thornton
Actors: Steve Karier, Benjamin Morgenstern

"Singing more beautiful than theirs is not to be heard today...Each carefully planned and balanced program is a modern adventure through the rich past."—The New Yorker

Edda is a thirteenth-century collection of Norse mythological and heroic poems, originally presented and preserved orally in pagan times. The Norse myths commence with the prophetic utterances of a seeress, her account of creation of god, humans, and other creatures, and the destruction of the world and gods at Ragnarök. The myths recount the exploits of the gods and goddesses (foremost Odin, Thor, Frey, and Freyja), their squabbles among themselves, and conflicts with the giants and monsters, including the Midgard-Serpent.

The musical reconstruction and staging interpretation of the Eddic myths in this MillerComm presentation are based on the folk music tradition of Norway, the Icelandic rimur tradition, and the ballad tradition of the Faroe Islands.

International acclaimed for reconstructing the living musical traditions (vocal and instrumental) of medieval Europe, Sequentia is currently recording the complete works of Hildegard von Bingen, scheduled for completion by the saint’s 900th birthday in 1998.

Cosponsored by: College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, School of Music, Department of the Classics, Department of English, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, Department of History, Department of Theatre, International Programs and Studies, LAS/Humanities Council, Musicology Program, Program for the Study of Religion, Program in Comparative Literature, Unit for Criticism and Interpretive Theory, Unit One/Allen Hall, Women’s Studies Program, World Heritage Museum, German American Arts Foundation of Chicago, Goethe Institute Chicago