The Carmina Burana is a collection of poems and songs from the 12th and 13th centuries, published in the 18th century under the title Carmina Burana (the title means Songs of Beuren, but nobody knows exactly where the manuscrpt comes from.)
Composer Carl Orff did this great piece of music inspired by these manuscripts.
That's all I know...

vodka_kayou, June 17, 2004; 11:35 PM

My reference book refers to the Carmina Burana being a collection of almost 200 medieval poems and songs discovered in the library of the Benedictine monastery of Beuren near Munich in 1803 - the title was given to them by Joseph Schmeller who edited the collection in 1847.

Carl Orff took about 20 of these poems and arranged them into "profane songs for soloists and choruses, accompanied by instruments and magic images". The cantata (as it is called) received its premiere in Frankfurt on 6 June 1937.

archangelmoor: What is the movie soundtrack connection?

Mitch, June 18, 2004; 2:18 AM

The connection could be that the famous piece O FORTUNA (or the longer FORTUNA IMPERATRIX MUNDI) is used in so many movie trailers. Could be....

baalgehenna, June 18, 2004; 5:28 PM

I heard a theory that the Carmina-burana lyrics are somehow related to the Canterburry tales (note the Burana vs. burry suffix). Can someone elaborate?

asafv, March 18, 2008; 5:33 AM