This song is simply one of the cleverest pieces of contemporary music ever to have come out of France—sometime before the year 1418.
Le greygnour bien is a benchmark of the Ars subtilior—that ‘more subtle art’ which deploys conflicting time signatures and complex rhythms to display its conceits. This exquisitely mannered repertoire has fascinated audiences since it was written, and easily bears comparision with the most ‘difficult’ of modern music.
from notes by Catherine Bott © 2006
