THE GREAT CATHEDRALS: TOLEDO relaxing, contemplative, peaceful, inspirational, consoling

Original orchestral music from MusicTreks.org (www.musictreks... From the 8th century, the Iberian Peninsula was under Muslim control, and Islam didn’t relinquish all power in Spain until the late 15th century. But in 1088, Islam control was beginning to crumble, and Toledo was the first major Islamic stronghold to fall to the Christians.
When the cathedral of Toledo was designed in the mid-13th century, the master architect’s first requirement was clear: the footprint of the new construction must cover all of the sacred ground previously occupied by the former city mosque. As a consequence, the building is particularly wide: the nave includes a central aisle along with four pillared side aisles. And behind the high altar, there are two ambulatories, not the usual one. (The ambulatory is the semi-circular walkway inside the curved east wall of the cathedral.)
For many historians, the Cathedral represents the epitome of Spanish Gothic style. And the cathedral’s setting is visually arresting, rising as it does from the middle of a closely-packed medieval center, essentially unchanged for nearly 800 years
For the text, I chose Dies Irae from the Mass. This brief and simple interpretation of the text is performed acapella by tenors and basses.
Toledo Cathedral is also known as Santa Iglesia Catedral Primada de Toledo.
About The Great Cathedrals collection: The great medieval cathedrals of Europe are among the world’s oldest and most magnificent buildings. Nowhere else can we experience the artistry and ethos of the Middle Ages so vividly. Nowhere else can we come face-to-face with the skill and imagination of ancient architects, stone masons, sculptors, and stained-glass artists and craftsmen.
Walking through these sacred places, we can almost hear the voices of the many thousands of worshippers and visitors who have trod these same stones in centuries past. The great cathedrals are, indeed, windows on an ancient world. They are inspiring monuments to the artistry of medieval Europe, and to the vision and skill of the people who built them.
Like all MusicTreks programs, this video features original “neoclassical” music that is relaxing, tranquil, contemplative, romantic, peaceful, consoling, soothing, inspirational, beautiful, and cinematic in tone.
No stock footage or photography, and no internet content of any kind, is used in any MusicTreks.org videos. This video, including all music and images, is original, and is © 2024 by D. Ellicott Ray