Venue: University of Helsinki and the National Library of Finland (Helsinki)
Date: 13–14 November 2025, with pre-conference programme on 12 November 2025.
Liturgical books were undoubtedly the most common books of the Middle Ages, and the ones whose contents reached the largest number of people. Simultaneously, they were particularly vulnerable to the ravages of time and often survive only in fragments. In this colloquium, we will explore medieval liturgical books, liturgical music, liturgical practice, and the relationships between them.
We welcome contributions from a variety of methodological perspectives, including (but not limited to) musicology, theology, history of religion, history of art and architecture, palaeography, and the history of the book.
The pre-conference programme will take place on the afternoon and evening of 12 November and will include a viewing of manuscript fragments at the National Library of Finland, followed by a concert.
The event is organized by the research projects Books of the Medieval Parish Church (ERC) and Tradition and Variation. Medieval Chant in the Diocese of Turku (Research Council of Finland).
Abstract deadline: 30 April 2025
For abstract submission and further information, please visit Books, Music, and the Liturgical Life of the Medieval Church. For questions regarding the colloquium, please contact bmll2025@helsinki.fi.