A composer has surely “arrived” when not only her life and works are being studied but also her afterlife. In Hildegard of Bingen and Musical Reception Jennifer Bain asserts that, despite certain academic misgivings about the Hildegard “hype” among the “fandom” (p. 2), “in musicology, the Hildegard revival is in a sense complete” (p. 6). To cite just one example, the recent interdisciplinary Companion to Hildegard of Bingen (a companion of course in itself indicating her canonic status) synthesizes the research undertaken during and since the 1998 anniversary celebrations (another pointer toward Hildegard's unassailable position in European cultural history) and includes an overview of her reception, which historically has focused on her status as a saint and seer.1 Bain herself has written about the use of Hildegard's chants by the record industry,2 and her profound knowledge of the current popularity of the medieval composer is also apparent in...

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