12th-century German
mystic. Hildegard was a
composer, a
scientist of sorts, and a prolific
writer.
She was born in 1098 into a wealthy family, and was dedicated to the
church at birth. She began having
visions at the age of three, but attempted to hide this gift for many years. At the age of 8, she was sent to be educated by an
anchoress; when she was 38, she was elected the head of a
convent.
Hildegard's major life-changing point came when she was 42 years old. She had a vision in which
God told her to write down all of her visions. She had to be careful, for the
Medieval church was wary of new teachings, lest they be
heretical. So she obtained an
imprimatur from Pope Eugenius, and finished her first book,
Scivias.
Other works by Hildegard von Bingen include:
Causae et Curae, a work on
natural history. In addition to other subjects, she addresses the
personality types of
women.
Physica, another work on
natural history.
Liber divinorum operum, which records some of her mystical visions.
Ordo Virtutum, a
morality play.
Hildegard also composed
chants for women, in which several women chant a single
melody without
harmony. Her chants are growing in
popularity.
Source: http://tweedledee.ucsb.edu/%7Ekris/music/Hildegard.html by Kristina Lerman.