Erasmus van Rotterdam - Praise of Folly

With this CD-book, Jordi Savall pays tribute to Erasmus, one of the most fascinating historical figures of the Renaissance. Erasmus of Rotterdam was a Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, social critic, teacher and theologian. An early proponent of religious tolerance, Erasmus's words provided a catalyst for the Reformation; but while he was critical of the abuses within the Church and called for reform, he kept his distance from Martin Luther and continued to recognize the authority of the pope. This three-disc collection pairs the words of Erasmus with music of the period. Disc one alternates excerpts from his essay The Praise of Folly with variations on the theme of La Folia. Discs two and three feature new recordings of music from the period interspersed with texts by Erasmus and Luther. Discs four through six include the musical selections from discs 1-3 without the spoken texts. In keeping with Erasmus's concept of a reconciled Europe, the album includes a code to download the spoken texts in English, German, Dutch, Italian, Spanish and Catalan.