Joan, Song 1 of 7

Joan, Song 1 of 7 - INSTRUMENTAL A sweeping, wordless instrumental immersion into Joan's entire journey, from the earthly innocence of a simple shepherdess through the blinding mandate, the fire, and her 600-year legacy, acting as a definitive prelude for the album. "IN THE NAME OF THE LORD, AMEN. HERE BEGIN THE PROCEEDINGS IN MATTER OF FAITH AGAINST A DEAD WOMAN, JEANNE, COMMONLY KNOWN AS THE MAID." A little over five hundred years ago, a trial took place in the King of England’s military headquarters in Rouen, France; a trial that has become second in importance only to the Trial of Christ. The young woman examined, tried, and condemned in that medieval town has remained a dynamic, challenging, and controversial figure throughout history. Her followers believed she came from God, adoring her as a prophet and military idol. The Burgundians and English were stricken with fear at her success, condemning her as a witch and apostate when she was captured. The reputation of this woman had gone forth into many parts: how, casting aside traditional expectations, she wore the garments of male soldiers with astonishing brazenness and presumed to act upon divine mandate. For this, Pierre, Bishop of Beauvais, and brother Jean Le Maistre, Inquisitor of the Faith, orchestrated her condemnation. Jeanne d'Arc was burned at the stake on May 30, 1431. Yet, her legacy could not be reduced to ashes. Writers, historians, and theologians have debated her existence ever since, while the Roman Catholic Church ultimately canonized her as a saint. This album explores the burdon, the warfare, the betrayal, and the eternal echo of her nineteen years on earth. "As long as I lived at home, I worked at ordinary domestic tasks... I learned to spin and to sew; in sewing and spinning I fear no woman in Rouen." — Joan of Arc, Trial Transcripts • Historical Text: Before the armor, the banners, and the fire, there was simply a peasant girl in the obscure village of Domrémy. Born to Jacques d'Arc and Isabelle Romée around 1412, Jeanne was known for her exceptional piety, her skill in spinning wool, and her quiet devotion to the local church bells. She lived a life deeply rooted in the soil, entirely unaware of the celestial burdens that would soon be placed upon her. This instrumental prelude establishes the complete arc of her nineteen years on earth—spanning the pastoral quiet of her childhood, the violent trials of warfare, the betrayal of courts, the flames of Rouen, and her enduring echo across history. "In my own town, they called me Jeannette, and after I came into France, I was called Jeanne." — Joan of Arc, Trial Transcripts SOURCE: https://sourcebooks.web.fordham.edu/basis/joanofarc-trial.asp === (Joan of Arc, Joan, by Praxis & Blackdraft) ===