Moniot d'Arras ('' fl.'' 1213–1239) was a French composer and poet of the

trouvère ''Trouvère'' (, ), sometimes spelled ''trouveur'' (, ), is the Northern French ('' langue d'oïl'') form of the '' langue d'oc'' (Occitan) word ''trobador'', the precursor of the modern French word ''troubadour''. ''Trouvère'' refers to poet ...

tradition. He was a

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

("Moniot" is a diminutive for monk) of the

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The con ...

of Arras in northern France; the area was at the time a center of ''trouvère'' activity, and his contemporaries included

Adam de la Halle Adam de la Halle (1245–50 – 1285–8/after 1306) was a French poet-composer '' trouvère''. Among the few medieval composers to write both monophonic and polyphonic music, in this respect he has been considered both a conservative and progr ...

and

Colin Muset Colin Muset (''fl''. ''c''. 1210–50 or 1230–70) was an Old French trouvère and a native of Lorraine. He made his living in the Champagne by travelling from castle to castle singing songs of his own composition and playing the vielle. ...

. His songs were all

monophonic Monaural or monophonic sound reproduction (often shortened to mono) is sound intended to be heard as if it were emanating from one position. This contrasts with stereophonic sound or ''stereo'', which uses two separate audio channels to reproduc ...

in the tradition of pastoral romance and courtly love; he also wrote religious songs. About fifteen of his secular songs, and two religious songs, survive; his most famous song is "

Ce fut en mai "Ce fut en mai", or "Ce fu en mai", (It happened in May) is a French trouvère song, written in the 13th century by Moniot d'Arras. Its lyrics, in Old French, describe how a man sees a knight and a maiden cavorting in a garden. He follows them, an ...

".Denis Stephens, ''A History of Song'' (W. W. Norton & Company, 1970; ), p
28
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moniot d'Arras 13th-century Christian monks 13th-century French composers Medieval male composers French male classical composers French classical composers Trouvères French Christian monks