One of the most recognizable pieces of music of all time, Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana (Songs of Beuern) is an exhilarating cantata for vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra. For the text, Orff selected 24 poems from a 13th-century codex discovered in the Bavarian monastery of Benediktbeuern. These mostly secular Latin and Medieval German poems illustrate various aspects of Medieval life, from religious declarations to love songs and drinking tunes. The most recognizable section from the cantata, “O Fortuna,” serves as both the prologue and epilogue, warning of the fickleness of fate. Take your seat on this powerful and ancient wheel of fortune.
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