The name Hildegard von Bingen may not ring a bell, but her compositions, written in the 12th century, left an indelible mark on music – and women's – history.

It's only been in recent decades that academics have begun to seriously study the German nun's contributions to medieval music, explains Faculty of Fine Arts music professor and solo singer, Dr. Janet Youngdahl. For centuries, Hildegard von Bingen remained a footnote in history despite her enduring compositions and clever use of musical notation.

Youngdahl, who specializes in performance practice (the study of how vocal music is performed), is studying the works and life of the composer. She says Hildegard was one of the 12th century's most prolific composers. Her ornamental chants express an original view of the world.

"She has a very unique, female sense of the divine, and she used all sorts of beautiful imagery she invented herself to talk about God from a female perspective."

Possibly to circumvent public censure about her work as a composer – which wasn't something women usually did – Hildegard asserted her work was a divine calling.

"She claimed she didn't know how to write music and that everything she wrote was a direct revelation from God," Youngdahl explains.

Youngdahl first encountered the historic figure as a doctoral student, when she met a woman performing Hildegard's works. Now, as a new professor, Youngdahl has earned a
U of L Internal SSHRC grant to continue her research and involve the choir and a student research assistant in bringing Hildegard's works to life for modern audiences.

"She was a wonderful thinker and someone who needs to be remembered," she says.