Contre raison me donnez martire

Josquin Baston was a composer active in the mid-sixteenth century, writing secular part-music in the popular style of the time. This four-part French chanson, Contre raison me donnez martire, displays the typical Renaissance madrigal texture. The text expresses a lover's plea against unreasonable suffering, lamenting that a noble heart should not be rejected and that his unfulfilled desire troubles his spirit and hinders his recovery. Baston sets this text with clear melodic lines and careful attention to the syllabic setting of the French words, creating a work that is both expressive and engaging for an SATB choir.