ENSEMBLE COLUSCA f.l.t.r: Cora Schmeiser – voice; Lucia Mense – recorder and traverse flute; Susanne Ansorg – fiddle, rebec and other stringed instruments. With the program O Seel', wo bistu morgen?, the new German ensemble COLUSCA creates a musical bridge between the emotions of the medieval plague and the current pandemic. They present works by van Veldeke, Anna von Köln, de Sisteron, Hildegard von Bingen and various medieval manuscripts like Llibre Vermell, Codex Paris BN Fr. 844. After the concert O Seel', wo bistu morgen?, which COLUSCA performed in Bocholt in autumn 2021, Der Seelen Paradies is the new, thematically subsequent program to be presented first at the Bocholt city festival. With the program Der Seelen Paradies, COLUSCA lifts you up from worldly events, sings of earthly and heavenly love through the 800-year-old music of the Middle Ages and illuminates the paradise present in the soul. Like pilgrims entering a church, COLUSCA observes and sings about different stations of St. George's Church in order to finally immerse itself in the paradisiacal sensory and emotional levels of the Hortus conclusus. In there you find wondrous nature as a reflection of the five human senses. Mary, the so-called Queen of Angels, presides there in love and sentiment. The praise of Man's soul that possesses paradise is sung in the Codex Engelberg. This is an occasion to trace these timbres of life and seek the angelic light connection in a future-oriented manner. With Hildegard von Bingen's vision of the center of mysteries and her song to the Angels, which contains 800 years of wisdom, we rise above everyday life for a moment. The three COLUSCA-members are fascinated by the "verdigris from the Middle Ages". By rubbing it off, they manage to expose concealed musical treasures. The trio treats the patina with voice, flute and fiddle, and brings into the light texts that appear almost dadaistic. As proven specialists in early European music, the three musicians succeed to keep their interpretations fresh and up to date. COLUSCA features Rotterdam resident Cora Schmeiser, who matches contemporary songs and sound poetry with songs and poetry from the past; Lucia Mense (Cologne) - recorder and traverse flute - who performs repertory from all times and improvises on that rich material; and Susanne Ansorg (Dresden), who plays all over the world on fiddle, rebec and other instruments, who also contributes to the research into medieval stringed instruments, and serves as the artistic leader of the montalbâne-festival. The three musicians also meet regularly at Ars Choralis Coeln projects and concerts. Click here for the extended biographies   Recording of COLUSCA's performance in August 2020 during the festival “Wunderhören” in Worms, Germany.   Heinric van Veldeke: Tristan muose sunder sînen danc   Albertet de Sisteron: Belle m’eis la veis altana