Tonight, with my friends Janet, and Alex, I attended Amour Courtois: Medieval Meets Jazz at KIAC (Klondike Institute of Art & Culture).

Janet and I purposely didn’t look up anything about this concert or the musicians ahead of time. We wanted to be surprised! All we knew was that Janet’s favourite genres of music are jazz and medieval, so she was pretty sure she was going to have a good time!

To start the show, the 3 musicians came out, sat on the edge of the stage, answered questions, and told us a bit about what was in store for us. Janet and I sat right in the front row so we could experience everything they had to offer!

One of the musicians was from Spain, another from France, and the third from North Dakota! They all live in València, Spain now. They told us about the rare and old instruments they were going to play for us. They described it as playing a mix of the greatest hits from the 14th century, and that they were going to put their own spin on it.

I am not a music historian. I can’t even identify many instruments. Like what do you think the musician, Efren López, is playing in the photo above?

It is a hurdy-gurdy! It is a stringed instrument, with a crank on the right side, and a keyboard of sorts along the front. The crank lets the tone persist, like a bagpipe does, only this was more of a vibrational droning – with a little bit of a buzz? Really amazing hearing it vibe with the pianist’s notes. This musician also played the oud (like a lute), the mandolin, and some sort of square drum whose name I forgot.

Do you know which large stringed instrument the musician, Matthew Baker, is playing on the left?

If you guessed the baryton, you are right! (I know you didn’t. You’ve never even heard of the barytone. Admit it.) It’s an instrument from the 17th and 18th centuries. He explained that maybe 9 people in the world play them often now. His was made for him about 9 years ago. Very few of them have survived over the centuries. They are also complicated to play – a bit like patting your head while rubbing your belly he said.

It has strings on the front AND strings on the back that the musician can pluck with his left hand. He can play the front strings with a bow, held underhand, but we also saw him pluck the front strings and slap it like a bass. It has the most incredible sound – like an entire orchestra coming out of one magical wooden chamber.

The music we heard tonight was complex. Magical. So many dimensions. It was like jazz where you can’t really just simply tap your foot. The beat was complicated and it changed and got really quiet and then loud, and then next thing you know, the band leader, Baptiste Bailly, was playing the INSIDE of the piano, suppressing the strings, and then plucking them!

It was dynamic and fun. This is the type of music I think I could get into a deep concentration while listening to, like when I’m writing code (if it was still 2024 and AI didn’t take over writing code). Fortunately, for all of us, they recently recorded their first album together in an 11th-century abbey. It was just released last Friday and is on Spotify! I think the third song might be my favourite. Song 7 and 8 are a close second. 10 too!

After the show I wanted to get a closer look at the baryton. Look at this beautiful thing!

I didn’t figure out what animal is carved on the top. We thought dragon, then dog, but by the end of the performance, I was thinking lion. I didn’t get quite the right angle to figure it out.

I’m so glad I pushed myself this winter to get out more and experience new things. This was new alright, and it was very enjoyable!

Here’s the format description of the show:

Amour Courtois is a bold and evocative musical project led by French jazz pianist Baptiste Bailly, reimagining 14th-century French songs through the lens of contemporary improvisation. Inspired by the enduring emotional resonance of medieval melodies, Bailly collaborates with Matthew Baker on the baryton and Efren López on the hurdy-gurdy and ouds, crafting an anachronistic yet striking soundscape. Their repertoire – featuring works by Machaut, Binchois, and Lescurel – bridges centuries and highlights the timelessness of human expression.

Amour Courtois treats medieval songs not as static artifacts but as living works. While the original melodies are respected as closely as possible, with the aim of preserving their essence, the musicians change the settings, time signatures, chords, context, and costumes. Improvised or newly written passages are integrated into the pieces, like moments of intimate expression nourished by the eclecticism of their personalities and influences, revealing a touching and spontaneous musical craftsmanship, boundless and timeless.