Iseut de Capio is a mysterious composer born in 1140. It is well known that she was not only a noblewoman and lived in the Castle Capione on a hill over the River Mende but she was also a female trobairitz. Trobairitz were female troubadours and were respected poets and singers usually of noble birth.
While many of de Caprio’s compositions have mysteriously disappeared into the corners of history, one has stood the test of time. The composition in question is a poetic argument with the trobairitz, Almucs de Castelnau, in which each composed stanzas. The poem tells how Iseut begged Almucs to pardon Gigo, lord of a nearby town. Gigo was Iseut's knight, but had committed "a great fault" against Almucs. Since Gigo neither repented nor sought forgiveness, Almucs responded to Iseut's request in a stanza of her own. To this day, we do not know what Gigo did to offend Almucs so greatly.
In the years 1498 to 1519, de Capio’s great (times 15 great) grand daughter, Marguerite de Capio became a noted graduate of Bighorn Castle and renown cellist. In the year of 1502-3, de Capio’s name was misspelled on multiple concert programs in the residences of King Louis the 7th of France. The calligrapher accidentally added an R to the name. When presented with this mistake, rather than punishing the calligrapher with a month in the dungeon, King Louis degreed that Marguerite and all her ancestors were to be known as de Caprio. It was later learned that the calligrapher was King Louis’ beloved uncle Guillaume.
In secrecy, Iseut de Caprio met with composers Jaufre Rudel, Hildegard von Bingen, and Bernart de Ventadorn to create the Bighorn Castle, a school for students in the first three years of their musical studies. Caprio, Rudel, Bingen and Ventadorn all recognized the importance of the earliest years learning to play an instrument and, hence, created room 920 in the Bighorn Castle.
The composers then created “houses” which were families within the school which recognized and celebrated students’ character and gifts. Iseut de Caprio, known for her honor defending Gigo to Almucs and the ingenuity of using poetry and music to fight for his forgiveness, Caprio House is known for Honor and Ingenuity. Iseut de Caprio, herself, chose the Longclaw Falcon as the mascot for the Caprio House to serve as an example to students to follow their dreams and fly high.
While many of de Caprio’s compositions have mysteriously disappeared into the corners of history, one has stood the test of time. The composition in question is a poetic argument with the trobairitz, Almucs de Castelnau, in which each composed stanzas. The poem tells how Iseut begged Almucs to pardon Gigo, lord of a nearby town. Gigo was Iseut's knight, but had committed "a great fault" against Almucs. Since Gigo neither repented nor sought forgiveness, Almucs responded to Iseut's request in a stanza of her own. To this day, we do not know what Gigo did to offend Almucs so greatly.
In the years 1498 to 1519, de Capio’s great (times 15 great) grand daughter, Marguerite de Capio became a noted graduate of Bighorn Castle and renown cellist. In the year of 1502-3, de Capio’s name was misspelled on multiple concert programs in the residences of King Louis the 7th of France. The calligrapher accidentally added an R to the name. When presented with this mistake, rather than punishing the calligrapher with a month in the dungeon, King Louis degreed that Marguerite and all her ancestors were to be known as de Caprio. It was later learned that the calligrapher was King Louis’ beloved uncle Guillaume.
In secrecy, Iseut de Caprio met with composers Jaufre Rudel, Hildegard von Bingen, and Bernart de Ventadorn to create the Bighorn Castle, a school for students in the first three years of their musical studies. Caprio, Rudel, Bingen and Ventadorn all recognized the importance of the earliest years learning to play an instrument and, hence, created room 920 in the Bighorn Castle.
The composers then created “houses” which were families within the school which recognized and celebrated students’ character and gifts. Iseut de Caprio, known for her honor defending Gigo to Almucs and the ingenuity of using poetry and music to fight for his forgiveness, Caprio House is known for Honor and Ingenuity. Iseut de Caprio, herself, chose the Longclaw Falcon as the mascot for the Caprio House to serve as an example to students to follow their dreams and fly high.
Photo used under Creative Commons from G Yancy
