Colin Muset
Colin Muset (fl. c. 1210–50 or 1230–70) was an Old French trouvère and a native of Lorraine. He made his living in the Champagne by travelling from castle to castle singing songs of his own composition and playing the vielle. These are not confined to the praise of courtly love that formed the usual topic of the trouvères, but contain many details of a jongleur's life. His complete works are eighteen: nine attributed in chansonniers, three self-referencing, and six whose attributions are based on modern scholarship (one of which is held to be mis-attributed in the manuscripts). Twenty one poems credited to him were edited and published by Joseph Bédier in 1912 (Paris) and later, with the reduction of his authentic corpus to sixteen poems, by Massimiliano Chiamenti in 2005 (Rome). Nine of his poems have surviving music. Seven are chansons jongleuresques, that is, songs describing the life of a jongleur. His three serventois condemn the avarice of the nobility, but his moralising is balanced by self-deprecating humour. He also wrote two descorts, one lai, and one cynical tenson with Jacques d'Amiens.
The nickname "Muset" may derive from his inspiration ("muse") or from his habit of muser (wandering about, wasting time).
References
- "Colin Muset". Music Encyclopedia. The Concise Grove Dictionary of Music. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994. Retrieved 27 February 2009
- "Colin Muset". French Literature Companion. The New Oxford Companion to Literature in French. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. Retrieved 27 February 2009
