Choirs of Angels: Paintings in Italian Choir Books, 1300-1500

Product Description
For millions of visitors, The Metropolitan Museumof Art is one of the top destinations in New York City,
where its unparalleled collection and special exhibits delight art lovers from around the world. This year,
visitors will fi nd new inspiration in the Met s upcoming
exhibition Choirs of Angels: Painting in Italian Choir Books, 13oo 15oo.
Some of the most celebrated Renaissance and Gothic masters of their day created illuminations for the choir books, Psalters, and antiphonaries used in churches and monasteries across Italy. Springing from a unique, artful marriage of painting, text, and music, these
miniature paintings of singing angels, Hebrew prophets, heroic saints, and Renaissance princes glow with rich,
jewel-like colors and shine with gold.
The Museum experience comes home with this widescreen DVD, which features more than 4o images from the Met s superb collection of Italian Renaissance paintings and cuttings from choral manuscripts. Period
music performed by world-famous Early Music New York accompanies the more than 6o-minute gallery tour
of illuminations, which includes breathtaking closeups of exquisite details. Notes from curators provide
illumination of their own, offering insights into the lives and faith of medieval religious communities while
describing the paintings and their subjects. The medieval music heard on the DVD is also featured on a separate CD. Selections include chants, motets, and laude, whose unexpected tonalities have abiding
appeal today.

Choirs of Angels: Paintings in Italian Choir Books, 1300-1500