a perfomance edition of the six solo romances of luys milán and luys de narváez

8/15/2019 A Perfomance Edition of the Six Solo Romances of Luys Milán and Luys de Narváez

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A PERFORMANCE EDITION OF THE SIX SOLO ROMANCES BY LUYS MILAN

AND LUYS DE NARVAEZ

by

DAVID ALLEN GRESHAM

(Under the Direction of Gregory S. Broughton and Stephen Valdez)

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this document is to provide a performance edition of the six solo

romances of Luys Milán and Luys de Narváez. The document begins with brief

historical information on the solo romances as a genre and includes a discussion of

performance considerations for the modern performer, addressing the topics of

ornamentation and instrumentation. The document also explores issues of diction as they

relate to sixteenth century Peninsular Spanish. The edition that comprises chapter four of

the document is taken from the tablature found in Milán’s Libro de música de vihuela de

mano El maestro and Narváez’s Los seys libros del Delphín de música de cifra para

tañer vihuela and is presented in modern notation with updated barring, tempo and

dynamic markings, and a translation and IPA transliteration of the text for the romances.

A key feature of the edition is an ornamented vocal line added to each romance for

optional use by the performer.

INDEX WORDS: Luys de Narváez, Luys Milán, Solo Romance, Vihuela, Sixteenth

Century Spanish Diction, Ornamentation


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AND LUYS DE NARVAEZ

by

DAVID ALLEN GRESHAM

B.M., Wingate University, 1995

M.M., University of Colorado, 2001

A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial

Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree

DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS

ATHENS, GEORGIA

2007


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© 2007

David Allen Gresham

All Rights Reserved


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AND LUYS DE NARVAEZ

by

DAVID ALLEN GRESHAM

Major Professors: Gregory S. Broughton

Stephen Valdez

Committee: Allen Crowell

Jolene Davis

Stephanie Tingler

Electronic Version Approved:

Maureen Grasso

Dean of the Graduate School

The University of Georgia

August 2007


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DEDICATION

This is dedicated to my loving wife, Kathye, without whose support,

encouragement, and editing, this project would have been much less rewarding.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to gratefully acknowledge the help of my two major professors, Dr.

Gregory S. Broughton and Dr. Stephen Valdez, for their tireless help in the completion of

this project. Their insights on performance practice, presentation, ornamentation, and

style have been invaluable. I also would like to give special thanks to Mitch McCoy and

Dr. Noel Fallows of the Romance Language Department at the University of Georgia for

sharing their expertise on sixteenth-century Spanish language and the history of the

romance as a literary form. Mitch McCoy’s assistance in finding sources by which to

determine authentic period pronunciation was of great value. Finally, I wish to thank

Rylan Smith and Anna Ho for their help with the transcription of the guitar and keyboard

accompaniments, respectively. Their insights on notation and tuning and their careful

proofreading of the parts facilitated the transition from vihuela tablature to modern

scoring and made the final edition much more usable by modern performers.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ......................................................................................................v

LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... viii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION........................................................................................1

Statement of Purpose...................................................................................................1

Historical Information.................................................................................................1

The Composers and their Books for Vihuela ...............................................................4

Need for This Study ....................................................................................................5

Methodology...............................................................................................................6

Choice of Instruments .................................................................................................7

Review of Literature....................................................................................................8

CHAPTER TWO: ORNAMENTATION AND PERFORMANCE CONSIDERATIONS ......................11

Doubling of the Melody ............................................................................................11

Considerations for the Instrumentalist .......................................................................15

Considerations for the Singer ....................................................................................21

A Brief Comparison of Style and its Influence on Performance and Ornamentation...26

CHAPTER THREE: SIXTEENTH CENTURY SPANISH DICTION.............................................31

Introduction...............................................................................................................31

Seseo, Ceceo and Distincíon......................................................................................32

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The Letters /s/, /ç/, /c/ (before i or e) and /z/ ..............................................................33

The Letters /x/, /j/, /g/ (before i or e) and /h/ ..............................................................35

CHAPTER FOUR: THE EDITED AND ARRANGED MUSIC....................................................37

Editorial Comments ..................................................................................................37

Durandarte ................................................................................................................40

Romance de Moriana ................................................................................................55

Sospirastes, Baldovinos.............................................................................................72

Triste estava y muy penosa........................................................................................91

Ya se sienta el rey Ramiro.......................................................................................105

Passeávase el rey moro............................................................................................115

BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................123

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LIST OF FIGURES

Page

Musical Examples

1 Milán: Durandarte, mm. 1-5 .............................................................................11

2 Narváez: Ya se sienta, mm. 10-12.....................................................................13

3 Milán: Romance de Moriana, mm. 12-15..........................................................13

4 Narváez: Ya se sienta, mm. 4-6.........................................................................15

5 Milán: Romance de Moriana, mm. 13-14..........................................................17

6 Milán: Romance de Moriana, mm. 6-9..............................................................18

7 Milán: Sospirastes, Baldovinos, mm. 21-24......................................................19

8 Milán: Sospirastes, Baldovinos, mm. 1-4..........................................................22

9 Milán: Durandarte, mm. 46-49..........................................................................27

10 Milán: Sospirastes, Baldovinos, mm. 1-6..........................................................27

11 Narváez: Passeávase el rey moro, mm. 16-18....................................................28

12 Narváez: Ya se sienta, m. 18.............................................................................29

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Chapter One: Introduction

Statement of Purpose

The purpose of this document is to provide a performance edition of the six solo

romances of Luys Milán and Luys de Narváez. The document begins with brief

historical information on the solo romances as a genre and includes a discussion of

performance considerations for the modern performer, addressing the topics of

ornamentation and instrumentation. The document also explores issues of diction as they

relate to sixteenth century Peninsular Spanish.

Historical Information

The word romance comes from the Latin word romanice, meaning “in the

vernacular tongue.” The term denotes a literary form – a ballad with sixteen syllables per

verse, each verse being subdivided equally into two eight-syllable lines. The other

distinguishing feature is the use of assonance on the final syllable of each verse. Initially,

romances chronicled historical events of the time, extolled the virtues of mythical figures,

or conveyed biblical stories. They were probably first composed in the early fourteenth

century by Castilian troubadors, or juglares, but were quickly carried to other regions,

with texts adapted to suit the audience. A testament to the adaptability of the form of the

romance can be noted by its use not only in Christian communities of Spain, but also in

Jewish and Muslim communities, even beyond the date of the Moorish expulsion.1 While

the earliest romances were often very long, over time the verses became less numerous

1 For an interesting article that discusses the specific connection between the Sephardic

and Spanish romances, see Judith Etzion, “The Spanish and the Sephardic Romances:Musical Links,” Ethnomusicology 32, no. 2 (1988).

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and by the 16th century individual scenes were often presented in lieu of the full narrative.

It has been suggested that the full text, or at least the general idea of it, would have been

known by the listener, allowing performers to forgo the tediousness of reciting the entire

romance.2

The earliest romances, also called Spanish ballads, were disseminated through

oral tradition (almost always sung), and there is very little information documented on

their style or performance practice. The first purveyors of this art form were the juglares,

who carried their chronicles of the border wars or legends like El Cid from palace to

palace. These performers were often known to sing with a strummed accompaniment,

but there is no mention of instrumental virtuosity to illustrate the text. The early

performances of these ballads were accompanied, in all likelihood, with intermittent

strumming of chords on the vihuela to punctuate cadences and begin new stanzas. In the

15th century there are some examples of Spanish romances in polyphonic texture, as

found in Cancionero musical de palacio. The first printed book containing what might

amount to solo romances is Cancionero General, compiled by Hernando del Castillo.3

This book contained thirty-seven romances, some of which were newly composed by

famous poet-musicians such as Juan del Encina, while others were transcribed from oral

tradition. (Scholars often distinguish the earlier romances from those composed during

the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries by using the term romance viejos – or old

romances – to describe them.) The Cancionero General, first published in 1511, enjoyed

2 T. Binkley and M. Frenk, Spanish Romances of the Sixteenth Century (Bloomington &Indianapolis: Indiana University Press). Simpson and Mason also point out that the

common practice of placing only one verse in a printing of a romance is an indication

that the public at large knew a great deal of the text.3 Only the texts appear in this volume, but they were known to be sung, often withstrummed accompaniment.

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several printings – a testament to the popularity of the romance. Some of the most

popular romances from the Cancionero General appeared later in the 16th century in the

songbooks of several noted Spanish vihuelists. It is from these vihuela books that the

present study takes its launching point. (“Durandarte” is one example of a romance from

Cancionero General later adapted by the vihuelists; Luys Milán’s setting of this romance

is among those examined in this document.)

There are twenty-three solo romances contained in the books of the 16th-century

vihuelists. The term “solo romance” refers to a romance for which a single vocal line is

printed with instrumental accompaniment. (It is likely that during this period, polyphonic

romances were also performed as solos with vihuela accompaniment, or with a variety of

instrumentation.) The seven vihuelists who contributed most to this repertoire are Luys

Milán, Luys de Narváez, Alonso Mudarra, Enríquez Valderrábano, Diego Pisador,

Miguel de Fuenllana, and Estavan Daza. Their books were published over a forty-year

period, from 1536 to 1576. Milán’s Libro de música de vihuela de mano El maestro was

the earliest publication in 1536, followed by Narváez’s Los seys libros del Delphín de

música de cifra para tañer vihuela in 1538.4 As the two earliest examples, these books

share a similarity in style of vihuela accompaniment that would later be abandoned by the

last three composers, beginning with Pisador. (The books by Mudarra and Valderrábano

appear as transitional in style, but are more closely allied with the style begun by Milán.)

The accompanimental style of Milán and Narváez includes many melodic flourishes on

the vihuela, while the later style favors a simpler, more consistently chordal texture.

Because of this similarity in style between Milán and Narvaéz, some of the performing

4 These publications are hereafter referred to as El Maestro and Delphín de música,respectively.

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notes contained in this musical edition can be generalized to apply to the romances of

both composers. Focusing on these pioneers of the form also allows this document to be

the starting point for later continuation of this work, possibly a publication of all twenty-

three solo romances found in the vihuela books.

The Composers and Their Books for Vihuela

Little is known about the lives of Milán and Narváez. What we know may be

deduced from their publications and a scant few historical documents attesting to their

associations with different courts. Milán, who lived most of his life in Valencia, was a

courtier, poet, and musician. He was born of noble blood and enjoyed the good fortune

of being in the court of Germaine de Foix, famous as the second wife of King Ferdinand

V (the first being Isabella). After Ferdinand’s death, she married John of Brandenburg,

governor of Valencia, and became vicereine of Valencia. Germaine’s court was always

well appointed with musicians and, during the time of her marriage to Ferdinand, it was

reputed to have “the finest chapel musicians in all Spain.”5 Milán was among the most

accomplished of the noblemen in the Valencian court and believed music was “one of the

indispensable accomplishments of the perfect courtier.”6 His publication El Maestro had

the aim of training other courtiers in the art of music making. It is in essence a book

designed to teach the non-musician to become a vihuelist and singer. The music within

5 Gilbert Chase, The Music of Spain (New York: Dover Publications, 1959), 55.6 Ibid, 56.

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takes the student from easier works to harder works, “providing him music suitable for

his hands at each stage [of development].”7

Narváez’s book follows the same format in its attempt to train a novice musician

to become a competent vihuelist. Narváez, unlike Milán, was not a noble courtier, but he

did enjoy the patronage of the Spanish Crown, being maestro de vihuela to Phillip II. He

was noted by Juan Bermudo as one of the finest players of the time, able to improvise

difficult parts without practice or forethought.8 Narváez’s ability to improvise is seen in

his use of a new compositional form, theme and variations (diferencias). Aside from the

inclusion of theme and variations and some transcriptions of vocal works by other

composers, Narváez’s Delphin de música is very similar to El Maestro. Both begin with

rules for reading the tablature and tuning the vihuela and progress with written

instructions for the use of the book as a student. Despite their usefulness to developing

vihuelists, these books should not be thought of merely as instruction manuals. The

music is of high quality and was performed not just by beginners but also by

accomplished musicians of the time.

Need for this Study

There is a dearth of Spanish renaissance art song available in modern performance

editions. In fact, there are no performance editions of the six solo romances presented in

this document. In addition, the available critical editions do not address performance

considerations related to accompaniment, nor do they address ornamentation for the

7 From the introduction to Milán's Libro de música de vihuela de mano El maestro,

translated by Charles Jacobs.8 Gilbert Chase, The Music of Spain (New York: Dover Publications, 1959), 58.

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voice. This study will fill a void in presenting a historically informed performance

edition of the six earliest solo romances recorded in the books of the vihuelists.

Another rationale for this study is the suitability of these works for young singers.

As a voice teacher, I am often faced with young singers, especially males, who have a

very limited range. These romances usually stay within the range of an octave, allowing

for the training of good vocal technique before working to extend range. Teaching a

singer, rather than a specific voice type, is crucially important in the early stages of vocal

development, and these works add to a small number of art songs that allow for this

process. Furthermore, in choosing foreign language texts for beginning singers, it is

helpful to begin with a language with which they may have some experience. For the

majority of high school students and college freshmen in the United States, this language

is Spanish. Using Spanish song as a starting point for foreign language texts allows the

student to more easily understand the rules of pronunciation and translation that will later

be applied to other singing languages. All of these pedagogical factors would make a

publication of 16th-Century Spanish Romances a welcome alternative to the widely used

book for young singers, Twenty-Four Italian Songs and Arias.

Methodology

The modern edition contained in this document begins with a brief historical

sketch of each romance. Each printed song provides optional ornamentation for the

voice, presented on a separate stave. The vihuela accompaniment is transcribed for

guitar, with an alternate transcription provided for piano. Vocal ornaments are written,

where appropriate, in the style advocated by the vihuelists themselves.

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Choice of instruments

It is extremely rare to find a vihuela today. With only one surviving vihuela from

the time period, any assumption of what the instrument might have sounded like would

be spurious at best. However, we do know that the strings were short, the back was

slightly arched, and that the acoustical spaces for the usual performance of a romance

were small. With this information, we can deduce how one might perform this music

today, attempting to allow some of that flavor in a performance. J. B. Trend advocates

the lute as a good substitute: in fact, he calls the romances lute songs.9 The lute shares

with the vihuela a similar body size and a quick decay of sound, so the choice of this

instrument is plausible. But finding a lute is also difficult and, since it differs from the

vihuela in its tuning, it doesn’t seem the best substitute. The lute is tuned by thirds, while

the vihuela is tuned by fourths, with the inclusion of only one third. This fact suggests

guitar as a more suitable option for accompaniment. There are, indeed, some

arrangements available that make this option a more viable possibility.10 The benefits are

obvious: guitarists are not hard to find, and being a stringed instrument, the guitar sounds

as much like the vihuela as any modern instrument could. Further, its similar tuning

proffers the use of some of the same open strings. The drawback is that the string length

is much longer, and the decay not nearly as rapid. To compensate for this difference, it is

suggested that the guitarist use a capo. This will shorten the string length, making the

decay quicker – thereby more closely evoking the sound of the vihuela. In so doing,

9 J. B. Trend, The Music of Spanish History (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1926).His chapter entitled “Romanceros” consistently refers to these songs as lute songs.

Though scholarship has changed quite a bit since the publication of Trend’s book, there is

still a prevailing belief that lute is a good substitute.10 A good example of this is Daniel Benko’s Spanish Renaissance Songs (Budapest:Editio Musica Budapest, 1982).

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guitarists can employ the exact ornamentation described in the books of the vihuelists

without the dissonances that would result from chords ringing too long on a guitar

without capo. Of course, this requires writing the accompaniments in a different key,

after choosing the appropriate position for the capo. However, transposition is necessary

anyway, as the original accompaniments are often in unfriendly modes for the guitar.

Another option for performance is to play the vihuela part on a keyboard

instrument. Harpsichord would be the best choice if available: the plucked strings and

quick decay, like that of a lute or guitar with capo, would more closely suggest the sound

of the vihuela than that of piano. However, piano is the most common accompanimental

instrument for singing, and modern audiences are accustomed to hearing early music

played on piano.

Review of Literature

There are no modern performance editions of the collection of Spanish

renaissance songs presented in this document. There are some critical editions that

include these songs and use an updated tablature for guitar; other editions put the vihuela

tablature into two staves that would allow the music to be performed on piano. The

differences between these critical editions and my performance edition, other than the

obvious one of size and usability, has to do with the judicious choice of key, the use of a

capo around the 3

rd

fret, the addition of ornamentation using period sources for guidance,

and the inclusion of a rehearsal, and optional performance, accompaniment for piano in

the absence of a guitar. The other advantages to this performing edition have to do with

the text. Each song text is printed separately with an accompanying translation (both

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word-for-word and poetic) and IPA transcription. I have limited the amount of text

printed for each romance, omitting certain verses as performers of the time often did. I

also provide a brief historical background for each song, and have chosen the verses that

best illustrate a scene or the theme of the story.

There were few direct sources available for use in researching this edition, but the

auxiliary sources have been very helpful. The articles by Jordi Savall offer a performer’s

vantage point into interpretation of style; the article by Simpson and Mason along with

the earlier works by Trend and by Gilbert offer a concise historical perspective; Gásser’s

book on Milán and El Maestro gives a nice overview as well as a good conjecture about

musica ficta when adding ornaments; and the more recent work by Binkley and Frenk

provides insight into the complete texts of the romances as well as some idea of what

each composer thought about ornamentation. There are also several articles on the

vihuela that are useful in determining how to treat the guitar in the current arrangements.

The articles by Horsley are helpful in understanding the compositional style of the

romance and Etzion’s work shows how that style is connected to that of the later

Sephardic romances. The towering figure in the research related to this project, though,

is Charles Jacobs. Jacobs has worked on this repertoire for over thirty years and has

presented great insight on performance practice for the period as a whole. His work on

the tempo notation of the Spanish Renaissance has been of great benefit in determining

tempo markings for the six songs in this edition. Jacobs’s foreword to Orphénica Lyra is

also helpful in that it broaches the subject of a style change from the time of Milán and

Narváez to Fuenllana. Most importantly, Jacobs’s critical edition of El Maestro includes

a complete translation of Milán’s introduction and discussion of modes. Though Jacobs

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says very little in his preface, his previous work, along with his translation of Milán’s

writing, provided a firm background for my work on the four romances from El Maestro.

For Narváez’s two romances, I worked from a facsimile reprinting of Los seys libros del

Delphín de música de cifra para tañer vihuela, as well as Binkley and Frenk’s critical

edition.

The paucity of research in the field of Spanish vocal music of the 16 th century has

been a limiting factor in this project, but has also served as an impetus for me to add to

the field. This is music that ought to be performed often: it is my hope that publication of

this edition will make that more possible. This edition of six songs will add to the field

of vocal literature, in which anthologies of Spanish song are few. It will also add to the

body of song literature for young singers, a great help for the pedagogue working with

the oft-limited range of young singers.

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Chapter Two: Ornamentation and Performance Considerations

Doubling of the Melody

Ornamentation is an important part of the performance of the solo romances of

the sixteenth century. This aspect of performance is discussed in several historical

documents, including the vihuelists’ introductions to their books. For the modern

performer wishing to ornament and perform this music in a historically appropriate way,

the first issue to be considered is the relationship between the vocal and instrumental

parts. One question that arises is whether the line in the vihuela tablature that serves as

the vocal line was meant by the composers to be played and sung simultaneously. All

available critical editions print this melodic line in both the voice part and

accompaniment; this performance edition maintains this practice, as shown in Example 1.

Here, the guitar is written an octave higher than it sounds, and the vocal melody

corresponds to the alto voice of the accompaniment.

Example 1. (mm. 1- 5 from Durandarte by Milán)

The presence of the melody within the vihuela tablature is a common feature in the

romances of Milán and Narváez, and it begs certain questions related to performance

practice and ornamentation. Was this line given to the vihuela only as an aid to the singer

who needed assistance? If the voice part is ornamented, should the corresponding line in

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the vihuela also be ornamented? If the doubled vihuela line is not ornamented while the

voice is, are the dissonances created acceptable?

We will first look at the issue of omitting the line altogether. There is some

debate about this amongst the scholars who have chosen to address it. J. B. Trend

maintains that it would have been an insult to the singer for the vihuelist to play the

doubled line, whereas Jesús Bal disagrees.11 One fact that supports Trend’s argument that

the line should be omitted is that it appears in a different color (red) in the vihuela part,

setting it apart as the vocal line. However, his belief that it would be an insult to have the

voice line played by the vihuela doesn’t make sense with regard to the courtly performers

who were both playing the vihuela and singing – and this was the case more often than

not. Another problem with Trend’s statement can be seen by again looking at Example 1.

Notice that the doubled line is in an inner-voice in the vihuela part. This makes it more

difficult to leave out, as the player would have to play around the part and notice when,

or when not, to play that voice (even with the line being colored in red, this is a difficult

task, as it breaks up the tablature visually). Notice also that in the fourth measure, the

doubling of the melody is shifted from one inner voice to another (from the alto to the

tenor). Clearly, this presents an added difficulty for one trying to leave out the doubling

of the voice part: its position within the voicing of the chords is inconsistent.

Another problem with omitting the doubled line is presented in Example 2.

11 Chase, 48. This topic is also discussed by Charles Jacobs in his edition of Orphenicá Lyra.

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Example 2. (mm. 10 - 12 from Ya se seinta by Narváez)

The replica of the vocal line found in the vihuela part is slightly altered. The voice’s

dotted quarter note at the beginning of m. 1 is ornamented in the vihuela part. This

alteration of the melody in the vihuela shows the composer’s deliberate choice to have it

played. Example 3 shows even more decisively that the doubled line is to be played.

Example 3. (mm. 12-15 from Romance de Moriana by Milán)

Here the melody is doubled in the tenor voice, and after the first beat of mm. 2 and 4, the

doubling gives way to a written out redoble.12 (Notice too that, as in Example 1, the

doubled melody shifts from one voice to another – in this case it actually lands in the

lowest sounding voice, making it even more unlikely to be omitted on the vihuela.) It

seems evident that the composers intended for these lines to be played. Therefore, it is

12 This term, generally defined as a flourish on the vihuela, will be discussed in moredetail later in the paper.

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safe to assume that it was the practice during this time for doubled lines to be played;

most of the scholars who have approached this topic agree with this assumption.

The previous two examples also provide clues as to which types of ornamentation

are appropriate when a line is doubled. It seems that the composers felt no need to avoid

temporary dissonances in the doubled part when choosing to ornament these lines. There

is, of course, the possibility that the composers’ intention was for performers to ornament

both lines the same way, keeping the doubling consistent, or in ways that at least create

consonances between the two parts. But, ornaments were most often improvised during

this period, making this an unlikely solution for a duo to have attempted. The two

performers would have to work out the ornamentation ahead of time. Considering,

however, that this music was intended for the “courtly” musician, as described by

Thomas Binkley, it is reasonable to assume that this type of ornamentation was a

possibility, since the vihuelist was often also the singer.13 The real difficulty with

accepting this solution as historically accurate is that there is simply no mention of it in

writings of the period. Also, one must question why the composer would not have

indicated applying this type of doubled ornamentation anywhere. With no discussion of

how it might have been accomplished, and no historical documents that show that it was

done, along with the impracticality mentioned earlier, executing this double

ornamentation seems an ineffective attempt at achieving authenticity.

13 Binkley and Frenk, 17.

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Considerations for the Instrumentalist

Assuming that the doubled line is to be played by the vihuela (and not always in

the same fashion as the voice), the focus now may turn to what types of ornaments are

possible, and which of them were plausible in the time period. By far the most common

type of ornament for the vihuela was the redoble. The technique for this ornament is

addressed by all of the vihuelists in the introductions to their books. Milán, for instance,

points out that “redobles are to be played ‘dedillo’ (with the index finger), or ‘dos dedos’

(i.e. with the thumb and finger).”14 This makes clear that the redoble is primarily an

instrumental technique; so, for now, we will discuss ornamentation in the instrumental

part. Redobles are defined by Binkley and Frenk as “the passaggi or rapid runs, the

flourishes generated by an exuberant instrumental technique reflecting a colorful and

dramatic statement of personality.”15 Example 4 shows a composed example of such an

ornament.

Example 4. (mm. 4-6 from Ya se sienta by Narváez)

The text, interestingly enough, seems to play little role in Narváez’s romances as an

impetus for such “dramatic” statements. In this example, the text is not at a climactic

point; in fact, it is in the middle of the phrase, both musically and textually, that the

14 G. Simpson and B. Mason, “The Sixteenth-Century Spanish Romance,” Early Music

vol. 5 no. 1 (Jan., 1977), 55.15 Binkley and Frenk, 19.

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vihuela departs from the doubling of the vocal line with a flourish. The two words sung

over this flourish, “sienta” in part one and “otro” in part two of the strophe (“sitting” and

“other,” respectively), have no significance in the text other than helping set the scene

and to denote the second of three people being introduced. So, if Binkley and Frenk are

correct and these are dramatic statements of personality, they are related to something

other than the text. This is not to say that there are no moments when the text does justify

a written-out redoble. In the same piece, the word “señor” is sung over another

ornament from the vihuela, and this word is referring to the king (“el rey”), whom the

travelers are beseeching to believe their story.

16

Such an ascending and dramatic line

from the vihuela seems appropriate when addressing the king. That being said, as all of

Narváez’s romances and one of Milán’s are strophic works, there will always be different

words occurring over the same vihuela part – some that will seem to be enhanced by the

vihuela’s flourishes and some that won’t seem to warrant such attention. Therefore, we

may conclude that while words may have occasionally influenced the vihuela’s

flourishes, especially in the romances of Milán, they were not the only determining factor

for instrumental embellishment.

If not always text, then what were the determining factors for the composers to

add ornaments? In looking through the repertoire, two durational aspects present

themselves as primary. First, note values of a half-note or longer occurring at the end of

a phrase are often ornamented; second, ornaments that occur within a phrase only appear

on note values of a dotted quarter-note or longer. The length of the melodic pitch, then,

seems to be the most important aspect related to ornamentation in the vihuela. Another

16 The word “señor,” not present in Example 4, occurs in m. 5 of a later strophe, at thesame point where the word “sienta” appears in the example.

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factor that has an impact on ornamenting, related also to duration, is the stasis that often

appears following a cadence. As shown in Example 5, these harmonically static

moments invite and (because of the rapid decay of the instrument) require redobles to

maintain interest and continued tone.


In this instance the doubled note is stated and then embellished, while the vocal line

remains static. This cadential flourish is more melismatic than some of the other

examples, due in part to the length of time assigned to the held note in the vocal line.

Another line from the same romance shows, however, that note length and post-

cadential stasis are not the only important factors in determining these embellishments.

In Example 6, the vihuela plays a redoble equal in adornment to the aforementioned

example. The melody is not at or immediately after a cadence, nor is the text at an

important moment (the word being sung is “de,” meaning “of”). As in the previous

example, the voice is sustaining a whole note, providing one reason for this

embellishment. But, why is the adorned whole note placed at this point in the melody?

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To answer this question, we must look beyond the simple element of duration and

consider melodic and harmonic implications resultant from such ornamentation.

Noteworthy here, as well as in Example 5, are the specific pitches ornamented, and the

way in which they are embellished. The pitches being ornamented in Examples 5 and 6

are D and C, respectively. The piece at this point seems to fluctuate between D Aeolian

and F Ionian.17 In Example 5, the D’s ornamentation allows the listener to hear D

Aeolian as prominent at that particular cadence. With the C-sharps acting as leading

tones, the melismatic figure leading up to A, and the continual return to D, there is little

doubt that D Aeolian is the mode being performed. This is even true, in spite of the fact

that a few measures earlier, F Ionian was the mode. Similarly, in Example 6, F Ionian is

outlined. The vihuela part, after leaving A (the third of the F triad), leaps to C and

immediately gives way to a redoble that serves to continue the outline C before ending

the flourish on a B-flat that resolves down again to A, acting the third of the next F triad.

It seems, in this work as well as in other romances, that “tonic” notes or sonorities are

ornamented. This doesn’t happen only because such mode-defining notes occur on

longer note values. In other works, there are sustained notes not related to tonic that are

17 For a more detailed discussion of modes in this music, including the specific aspect of

the finalis of each mode, please see Luis Gásser’s discussion in his book, Luis Milán onSixteenth-Century Performance (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1996), 41.

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not ornamented. Saving ornaments for these mode-defining notes is one reason Milán

and Narváez are able to successfully employ mode mixture to a high degree. The general

rule that seems to be followed by the composers is that parts of a tonicized triad may be

ornamented with passagi.

There also are several instances in which a dominant functioning chord is

ornamented; but the embellishment is less ornate and more directed toward the tonic

itself. Example 7 shows such a case in the movement from m. 22 to m. 23.

Example 7. (mm. 21-24 from Sospirastes, Baldovinos by Milán)

Notice the cadential flavor of this ornament. It resolves the dissonance held over from

the C moving down by step to the consonance, then, with increasing momentum toward

the tonic goal, moves down by step and retraces its motion back up to the C. This is a

very different type of ornament than those shown in previous examples. Whereas the

others are flourishes that merely extend the sound during a harmonically static moment,

this ornament is more goal-directed, leading toward a new harmony.

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My conclusions about ornamentation on the vihuela in the sixteenth-century solo

romances can be summarized as follows:

1.

The doubled vocal line was played by the vihuela rather than being omitted.

2. Written-out redobles appear in the instrumental part only and occur on note

values of a dotted quarter or longer.

3.

The ornamentation used usually outlines a “tonic” harmony and occurs at a

moment of relative repose musically.

4. Ornaments that take place during cadential moments, involving a dominant

functioning chord, are less ornate, and more goal-oriented.

These observations give the following ideas about how instrumentalists might ornament

this music today. In sections of music that don’t have the ornamentation already written

in, and the composer suggests doing so in the introduction, the same type of

ornamentation discussed above would seem appropriate. Furthermore, it would be safe to

assume that the complexity of improvised ornaments during this time period was

dependent upon on the skill of the player. The same consideration should obviously be

brought to bear today. These songs speak well by themselves: to perform them with little

or no ornamentation would not adversely affect the authenticity of the performance, as

there undoubtedly were musicians in the day who performed them simply. In fact, it is

Gásser’s contention that adding ornaments to the vihuela accompaniments found in El

Maestro would be ill-advised, unless they are confined to graces, because the composer

has written-out the ornamentation already.18

18 Luis Gásser. Luis Milán on Sixteenth-Century Performance (Bloomington: IndianaUniversity Press, 1996), 106.

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Considerations for the Singer

Vocal ornamentation presents a larger problem. The vihuelists did not write out

ornaments for the vocal part in the same way that they did for their own instrument. It

might have been that they preferred for ornamentation to be limited to the vihuela, or that

they themselves simply preferred to play ornaments rather than sing them. Perhaps they

were not gifted singers and therefore saved their virtuosic flourishes for the instrument

they knew best. Whatever the reason, the vocal melodies are not embellished on the

page. Therefore, we have to turn to writings of the time to discern what might have

happened in performance. One piece of historical evidence brought to the fore by Chase

is a novel by Vincente Espinel in which music is discussed. “Espinel writes: The tenor,

whose name was Francisco de la Peña, began to make some very excellent vocal

passages [hacer excelentísimos pasajes de garganta], which, as the accompaniment was

slow, there was time for him to do.”19 The author does not indicate what type of

composition the singer was performing, so this passage does not provide definitive

evidence that romances specifically were vocally ornamented during the time; it simply

gives us a clue that singers did embellish their melodies. Furthermore, there is no

mention of how this ornamentation was accomplished. It merely mentions that the vocal

passages took place over a slow accompaniment, which made it appropriate. One might

wonder, then, whether the tempo of the piece itself was slow, or if the author is referring

to a relatively static passage in a piece with a brisk tempo. Part of this might be answered

by another bit of information found in Chase’s book – this time speaking of Milán’s

villancicos: Milán would give “two versions of each song, one in a slow tempo with a

19 Chase, 48.

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purely chordal accompaniment, and one in a faster tempo with ornamental scale

passages.”20 The slower tempo would allow time for vocal ornamentation, while the

faster one would not.

To answer more specifically the question of vocal ornamentation of the romance,

we may begin by looking at the performance guidelines given by the composers. Milán’s

introduction does not give conclusive advice: for one of the romances, he says nothing

with respect to vocal ornamentation; for another, he specifies that vocal ornamentation

should be employed; and for the remaining two he simply states that the singer should

sing “plainly.” This last directive is somewhat puzzling. If the vihuela part for these two

romances were filled with redobles underneath the vocal line, it would make more sense.

However, this is not the case in either piece. Note in the following example the slow-

moving melody and sparse accompaniment.

Example 8. (mm. 1-4 from Sospirastes, Baldovinos by Milán)

In this romance, Milán’s advice to sing “plainly” might also be explained by a

prohibitively fast tempo; however, his tempo indication for this piece reads “not too fast

and not too slowly.” In Jacob’s work on tempo notation, his conclusion is to recommend

20 Ibid, 47-48.

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a “moderate” tempo for the two romances that call for a plain style of singing.21 This

certainly is not too fast for a singer to ornament. It is, however, faster than the tempo for

Triste estava muy quexosa, which Milán asserts is to be performed “very slowly” and

with vocal ornaments.22 We are led to wonder, then, how Milán perceived tempo and

ornamentation to be related – and whether his recommendations are a matter of

practicality or a matter of aesthetics. We might assume that, in an instructional book for

vihuela, only slow, chordal passages would be suitable for the adding of passaggi, since

the nascent performer would only be able to accomplish the florid style of ornamenting in

such an instance. The admonition to sing “plainly” on these two ballads might have been

intended only for the student, though it is unclear whether accomplished singers of the

time would have obeyed this directive out of respect to the composer or ignored it.

Certainly we can make the assumption that a professional singer accompanied by a

vihuelist would have been more qualified and therefore more compelled to add vocal

flourishes than a vihuelist playing and singing simultaneously. Indeed, the written

accounts we have of a singer and vihuelist performing together during the time confirms

that singers did ornament.23 Modern musicologists agree that performers made regular

practice of ornamenting during this period. Howard Mayer Brown, for instance, writes,

“we should not underestimate the liberty – some might call it license – of the sixteenth-

21 Charles Jacobs, El Maestro (Critical Edition) (University Park: The Pennsylvania StateUniversity Press, 1971), 305. For more detailed information as to Jacobs’ reasoning for

this tempo marking, see his book Tempo Notation in Renaissance Spain (Brooklyn,

Institute of Mediaeval Music, 1964).22 Ibid, 317.23 Chase, 48.

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century performers in fleshing out what they considered the skeletons of scores provided

by the composers.”24

If it was the practice for accomplished singers to ornament during the sixteenth

century, singers approaching this repertoire today should also ornament. Deciding

exactly how to ornament with the voice is yet another matter to consider. The composers

gave little technical guidance on this subject (and their language is imprecise in a modern

context), so their words must be considered in conjunction with the writings of other

authorities on ornamentation. While Narváez says nothing of how to ornament vocally,

Milán uses the phrase hacer garganta in his annotations for the singer. Literally meaning

“use the throat,” this technique is defined by Binkley and Frenk as being similar to the

redobles of the instrumental part and “is employed when the vihuela is not playing in an

ornamental manner.”25 The idea of using the redobles as a guide is helpful in

determining how to better interpret hacer garganta. In fact, this seems the only logical

solution to the problem of authentic vocal ornamentation when the directions of the

composer are so vague. That instrumental embellishment manuals in this period were

used by vocalists is an established fact – from 1535 on, not one manual on instrumental

embellishment fails to mention its approval of the singer’s usage.26

Milán also uses the word “quiebro” in El Maestro: this term describes the

embellishment of a single pitch. These embellishments might be grace notes,

appoggiaturas, mordents, or trills. Some authors and performers have speculated that the

use of appoggiaturas in the music of Milán and Narváez should consist of the more

24 Howard Mayer Brown, Embellishing Sixteenth-Century Music (Oxford: Oxford

University Press, 1977), 75.25 Binkley and Frenk, 19.26 Brown, 66.

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vocally aggressive ornament that probably occurred as an influence from the Moorish

occupation.27 This ornament involves the application of a quick appoggiatura with a

strong accent on the dissonant tone. It is the same type of throaty, sometimes glottal,

adornment as would be heard still today in some Mediterranean and Middle-Eastern

music. In fact, the performance of present day Sephardic traditional music, including the

romances, still makes use of this ornament.

Other than the few indications given by Milán, all the information we have related

to the process of vocal ornamentation in the romances is pure conjecture. It is my belief

that vocal embellishment was employed quite often and that the manner in which it

occurred, save the instances of the aggressive quiebro, are similar to the redobles found

in the vihuela part. As was true in the vihuela, these flourishes for the voice can be used

to heighten the text, but they need not be confined to textually significant moments. In

the edition that follows, I have used the ornaments found in the vihuela part, both in the

romances and in other works in both of the vihuelists’ books, as a guideline for

ornamentation in the vocal part. While it is my belief that these works benefit from

ornamentation, they can be performed with little or no adornment and still be effective.

27 A great example of this vocal technique is demonstrated on the recording of the songsfrom Milán’s El Maestro by Montserrat Figueras.

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A Brief Comparison of Style and its Influence on Performance and Ornamentation

To this point, I have mentioned some similarities between Milán and Narváez

with respect to their books for vihuela and the type of ornamentation encountered in their

romances. Indeed, when one looks at the ornamentation employed by each, the rhythmic

and pitch content are almost identical in some instances. This is particularly true in the

lengthier redobles. Therefore, flourishes of this type for the vihuela or voice added by

the performer should be similar in the romances of each composer.

It is important now to mention a couple of key differences between the music of

the two composers that affect the performance and interpretation of the romances. The

differences can be seen in their usage of rhythm and their setting of the text. While the

similarities of the ornamentation seem to indicate a closeness of style, the treatment of

the text and the rhythmic figures employed in certain instances exhibit a major

divergence in compositional style between Milán and Narváez.

In setting the text, Milán has a proclivity to write two different sections of music.

He also has a tendency to set apart the two hemistiches of a verse with redobles for the

vihuela.28 In doing both of these things, Milán can illuminate the text in a variety of ways.

Using different sections of music, Milán is able to alert the listener to a change in mood

or speaker. In Durandarte, for instance, a new section of music begins when Durandarte

first speaks, responding to the scorned lover. Because Durandarte himself feels betrayed,

Milán also changes the quality of the music at the start of the second section. Notice in

Example 9 that he employs a C-flat for the first pitch of Durandarte’s reply. This is an

aural surprise because of the C-natural in the vihuela part immediately preceding it. This

28 Hemistiches in this instance are the two eight-syllable lines resultant from the equaldivision of the sixteen syllable verse.

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lowered half-step alerts the listener to a change in speaker and mood, and the strength of

the ascending line that follows can be tied to Durandarte’s character.

Example 9 (mm. 46-49 from Durandarte by Milán)

Milán also tends to write flourishes after each hemistich, further enhancing the text

setting. The redobles that appear immediately following a hemistich sometimes simply

lead the ear to the next hemistich, completing a thought, or other times act as a word-

painting device. Notice how in Sospirastes, Baldovinos (Baldovinos Sighed), Milán

melodically conjures the sigh of the first hemistich in the redoble that follows.

Example 10 (mm. 1-6 from Sospirastes, Baldovinos by Milán)

When the lowest note of this downward, scalar ornament is reached (the sigh), rather than

reversing course and creating a stepwise, ascending melodic movement typical of a

redoble, Milán chooses to use a large upward leap so that he can begin the sigh again.

The previous two examples show a couple of ways in which Milán’s sensitivity to

the text affects his compositional form, and should be considered in the addition of

appropriate ornamentation and style of performance. For instance, ornaments that

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illuminate the text seem well warranted and should be used to heighten the drama in the

narrative. Also, emphasizing existing ornaments that embellish textual thoughts can aid

in a better interpretation of these works by the performer.

The type of textual sensitivity noted above is not seen as often in the writing of

Narváez. In fact, Narváez doesn’t separate the hemistiches or verses by redobles and he

rarely shows much interest in pointing up specific moments in the text. As discussed

earlier (Chapter Two, Example 4), since all of his romances are strophic, he has less

opportunity to musically enhance the texts. While not given to emphasizing many

individual lines of text in his music, Narváez is effective in setting an overall scene. The

regal mood of the music for the romance, Ya se sienta el rey moro, with its frequent and

ascending scalar ornaments, is wholly appropriate for a text that portrays a king dining

and receiving visits from his proxy.

One instance in which Narváez, somewhat uncharacteristically, shows keen

sensitivity to a specific line of text comes in a refrain – an unusual device in the

romances. Notice below in Example 11 how he has set the text to the lamenting refrain,

“ Ay, mi Alhama.”

Example 11 (mm. 16-18 from Passeávase el rey moro by Narváez)

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The sighing motive of a downward scalar motion coupled with the introduction of

hemiola effectively paints this lament (Ah, my Alhama). The downward motion is seen

in the longer note values, as well as the diminutions, so that the descent of C to G is

stated initially and then telegraphed to the phrase as a whole before finally returning to A

in the cadence. The use of hemiola in this phrase pulls the ear out of the well-established

duple rhythm that precedes it, illustrating the wrenching, unbalanced feeling that can

accompany grief and despair.

Narváez’s use of rhythm in this instance is indicative of another major difference

between his and Milán’s music. Whereas Milán writes music that is in line with the

tactus, Narváez often employs syncopation. In Passeávase, syncopation is reserved for

the lament in the final cadence, but this rhythmic feature is much more pervasive in Ya se

sienta. In Ya se sienta, Narváez uses the following rhythm four times in the first strophe.

Example 12 (m. 8 from Ya se sienta by Narváez)

Notice how Narváez subdivides the four equal beats of the measure unevenly into three.

The first two subdivisions are of three eighths and the last is of two eighths. The effect is

almost like a change in meter to two 3/8 measures followed by one 2/8 measure. As the

rest of the music falls very nicely into 4/4, this new, asymmetrical division of the beat is

striking, making the syncopation one of the most notable features of the work.

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While Milán’s usage of rhythm is fairly straight forward throughout and easy to

read at first glance, the type of rhythmic ingenuity in Narváez can pose some difficulties

to young musicians or to those first looking at his romances. It is important that the

performer of these works note the measures in which these rhythmic intricacies occur and

spend time learning them in the context of the rest of the work.29 It will also be important

to bring out syncopations in the performance of Narváez’s romances as they are so

characteristic of his writing and bring a good deal of life and interest to the music.

29 Please see Chapter Four for the editorial comments on the syncopated rhythms inNarváez’s romances and some suggestions on the performance of them.

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Chapter Three: Sixteenth Century Spanish Diction

Introduction

The history of sung Spanish, from the times of the first romances in different

dialects with regional pronunciation to the modern day standardized Spanish diction for

singers, has seen many changes. Unfortunately, the changes that occurred during the

sixteenth century are not well documented. In fact, the sixteenth century seems to have

been a time when there was very little standardization in pronunciation, even though the

Castillian dialect had become the official dialect of Ferdinand and Isabella’s kingdom in

1492. It was a transitional time, from the fairly well-defined Old Spanish that started to

lose sway at the end of the fifteenth century, to the beginnings of modern Spanish,

documented in the seventeenth century. Making matters more complicated are issues

related to orthography. Because some of these romances were written in the fifteenth

century or before, they retain some of the spellings of Old Spanish. This might suggest

an older pronunciation for these romances, much like Shakespearean writing for the

theater calls to mind a different approach to elocution even in modern performance. Or,

it might be that antiquated orthography was pronounced with modern affectation during

the sixteenth century. To the benefit of the performer, the historical pronunciation of

vowels in the three regions of Spain that we will be concerned with, Valencia, Valladolid,

and Andalucia, were the same in the sixteenth century as they are today. It is the

deciphering of consonants that comprises the real difficulty in phoneticizing the

romances. With no concrete evidence on which to base the IPA transcriptions, I

synthesized the hypotheses of several experts, making decisions where there was no

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agreement.30 This discussion will begin with consonants that appear often and were

pronounced differently in the fifteenth century than in the seventeeth century, and come

to some conclusions about sixteenth century pronunciation.

Seseo, Ceceo, and Distinción

The first set of consonants that need deciphering are s, ç, c (before i or e), and z.

In modern day Spain, the pronunciation of these consonants is varied. Seseo, ceceo, and

distinción are three words that describe the Spanish pronunciation of the phonemes listed

above. Seseo, pronounced ZrDrDN\, is most common outside of Spain (i.e., New World

Spanish as opposed to Peninsular Spanish). It uses the sound [s] for s, ç, c (before i or e),

and z. Thus, la casa (the house) and la caza (the hunt) are both pronounced Zk` j`r`\.

In ceceo, pronounced Z7D7DN\, the sound [7] is used for s, ç, c (before i or e), and z.

Thus, la casa and la caza are pronounced Zk` j`7`\. In distinción, very common in

Peninsular Spanish, there is a distinction between s, pronounced as [s], and the rest of the

sibilant phonemes, all pronounced Z7\-

So, la casa is pronounced Zk`

j`r`\ and la caza

is pronounced Zk` j`7`\. The phonetic evolution that would end with these distinctions

in modern Spanish began around the year 1500.

30 Please note that the rest of this chapter will use many IPA symbols. For a book that

describes all of the Spanish sounds associated with each of the symbols used in this

chapter and in the transcriptions found in the edition, please see Nico Castel’s book, ASinger’s Manual of Spanish Lyric Diction (New York: Ex Calibur Publishing, 1994).

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The Letters /s/, /ç/ /c/ (before i or e) and /z/

What is referred to as Old Spanish, before 1500, used the sounds Zr\ and Zcy\

for

s and z respectively. In addition, Old Spanish used Zy\ for medial s, as in la casa, and for

ç and c (before i or e) it employed the sound Zsr\. At some point before the seventeenth

century, these four phonetic distinctions, Zr\+ Zy\+ Zcy\+ and Zsr\, narrowed to the two

used in modern Spanish, Zr\ and Z7\. The question that remains is when and how this

occured, and which of these variants, or transitional phones, were used by Narváez,

Milán, and their contemporaries.31 On this matter there is no definitive answer. Since

Milán and Narváez were born before or around 1500 and composed their vihuela books

only in the third decade of the sixteenth century, setting texts that were written before the

turn of the century with antiquated orthography, one might assume that the pronunciation

was more closely allied with Old Spanish. While this is one valid argument, Robert

Hammond argues that it was during the sixteenth century that the sounds for z, ç, and c

(before i or e) started merging to form Z7\ in regions adhering to the Castillian dialect

(virtually all of Spain after 1492) and simply became Zr\ in Andalucia (Narváez’s

home).32 Hammond indicates that a new, transitional pronunciation for the phonemes in

question was in process between 1492 and 1530-1550.33 If the version of the Castillian

dialect in the early sixteenth century was a new pronunciation, then it would be

reasonable to assume that this new vogue would have been adopted by the young

courtiers. It seems especially likely in Milán’s case, since Ferdinand of Aáragon (the

one-time king with Isabella who united their kingdom under the common dialect of

31 A phone is a speech sound: more specifically, it is the smallest definable speech sound.32 Robert Hammond, The Sounds Of Spanish (Somerville: Cascadilla Press, 2001), 346.33 Ibid, 343.

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Castillian) presided with Germaine de Foix over the court at which Milán was a courtier.

Similarly, Narvaez would have been compelled to use the speech patterns of his patron,

Philip II, even though his homeland would have had a different pronunciation.

Ian Macpherson also posits that the phonetic change was gradual and that the

sixteenth century had a different pronunciation than the fifteenth or the seventeenth

centuries.34 Macpherson asserts that s would have been pronounced as Zr\

or Zy\

depending on location in the fifteenth century, but only as Zr\ in the sixteenth century,

though the voiced Zy\ would still have been used when s was paired with a voiced

consonant, as in modern Spanish. Ç, c (before i or e), and z, on the other hand, all would

have been pronounced Zsr\ – a precursor to the Z7\ that appeared by the beginning of the

seventeenth century. There is agreement, though not as explicitly stated, by José Hualde

on this matter.35 Hualde theorizes that the eventual arrival at Z7\ was a progression that

took place in the sixteenth century. The first step in the evolution was for the voiced

affricates to lose their voicing; so, the Old Spanish phones for z Zcy\ and ç or c (before i

or e) Zsr\, became the same phone, Zsr\. The next step, occurring later in the century was

for Zsr\ to change from an affricate to a fricative, making the dental, less sibilant, s sound

Zr÷\- The final stage of the evolution, which Hualde posits was completed by the

beginning of the seventeenth century, was the forward movement of the tongue to arrive

at the interdental Z7\. Based on the scholarship by Hammond, Macpherson, and Hualde,

34 Ian Macpherson, Spanish Phonology: Descriptive and Historical (Manchester:

Manchester University Press, 1975), 157.35 José Hualde, The Sounds of Spanish (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005),157.

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I have used Zsr\ for z, ç, and c (before i or e) and treated s as it is treated in modern

Peninsular Spansish for the IPA transcriptions of the romances.

The letters /x/, /j/, /g/ (before i or e), and /h/

The next consonants to consider are x, j, and g (before i or e). The Old Spanish

pronunciation for all of these consonants, ZR\ for x and ZY\ for j and g (before i or e), gave

way to the single phone Zw\ by the seventeenth century. There is no firm evidence with

which to conclude when these consonants merged to form the modern sound, but Hualde

asserts that the voiced/voiceless distinctions of Old Spanish are still apparent in Judeo-

Spanish and therefore may have still been in use into the sixteenth century. 36 There is

even evidence that some small areas of the peninsula were using this antiquated

pronunciation at the beginning of the twentieth century and only in the last hundred years

began speaking modern Castillian, meaning that the change was slow to take hold

throughout the Spanish Kingdom.37 While these two pieces of evidence give some

consideration to the persistence of Old Spanish beyond 1500, a look at the evolution of

the phonemes in question will help better determine which sounds were likely to have

been employed during the first half of the sixteenth century.

The evolution proposed for the consonants x, j, and g (before i or e) in the

majority of Spain is similar to what transpired with s, ç, and z. First, the voiced

consonant became unvoiced, so that j and g (before i or e) went from ZY\

to ZR\+

giving

the three consonants the same phonetic value; then, the position of the tongue eventually

36 Ibid, 34, 156-157.37 Ibid, 157.

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changed to form Zw\.38 Therefore, the transitional stage was one in which x, j, and g

(before i or e) were all pronounced ZR\. While this is inconclusive, and a modern

pronunciation of Zw\

would be plausible, I have used the theorized sixteenth century

transitional Spanish for the IPA transcriptions that follow. Likewise, for the letter h, now

a consonant with no phonetic value, I have used Macpherson’s supposition that it was not

until the latter half of the sixteenth century that h became silent. 39

As a point of conclusion, I would like to reiterate that the suppositions stated

above are theories, and that any teacher or singer wishing to employ, for their students or

themselves, the modern pronunciation of Castillian Spanish in these romances would be

justified in doing so. With the exception of the consonants discussed above, all sounds in

this edition are transcribed using modern Spanish diction as outlined in Nico Castel’s A

Singer’s Manual of Spanish Lyric Diction. Young students that already know Spanish

might be better off using pronunciation they already know, while older students or

accomplished performers might prefer attempting the theorized sixteenth century

pronunciation.

Below is a list of sixteenth century phonemes that differ from modern Spanish.

Letters: IPA Symbols:

Z, Ç, and C (before i or e) Zsr\

X, J, and G (before i or e) ZR\

H Zg\

38 Macpherson, 157.39 Ibid, 156.

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Chapter Four: The Edited and Arranged Music

Editorial Comments

The music that follows is arranged for solo voice with separate accompaniments

provided for guitar and keyboard (piano or harpsichord). The original vocal line appears

in the top staff, with an ornamented vocal line in the staff beneath. The ornaments are

suggestions and can be altered as the performer sees fit. I have left the accompaniment

unadorned, as it already contains many flourishes. It is my opinion that any additional

ornamentation added to the instrumental part by the performer should be minimal,

consisting merely of graces (as discussed in Chapter Two).

In an effort to make the works more easily readable by the modern performer, all

of the original note values have been halved. In addition, I made several more

substantive editorial decisions in the works by Milán. His romances contain many

sections of inconsistent barring: in these pieces, I have rebarred several measures to be

more easily interpreted by the performer. In this rebarring, I have attempted to honor the

textual and musical accents that I feel would have been accentuated in performance. For

instance, rather than replicating the original tablature and placing a bar for every syllable

of the name Durandarte (Du/ran/dar/te), I have chosen to bar with less intrusion of the

musical line and to coincide the accent of the penultimate syllable by barring thusly: Du-

ran/dar-te. In other areas, I have changed some of the original note values based on

Milán’s stated views of performance practice and the quick decay of the vihuela’s tone.

Specifically, I have altered the values of several internal, cadential notes originally

written as longas. In some instances I have made them half notes, always marked with a

fermata. As no fermata has been used for any other purpose in this edition, the performer

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upon the nature of the ornamentation and which dynamics I feel work well with particular

ornaments. All of the dynamics presented in this edition are merely suggestions and can

be changed or ignored as the performer sees fit. Likewise, the addition of breath marks is

editorial and can be similarly regarded.

The choice of key in this edition is intended for medium-high voice types. The

keys were arrived at by considering the best keys in which the guitarist could perform the

romances with a capo placed around the third fret, while still fitting the range of a

medium-high voiced singer.

The keyboard reduction is a fine alternative to the capoed guitar, but it is my

belief that these romances still sound better with guitar than with any keyboard

instrument. If performing the keyboard transcription on the piano, it is advisable to play

in a detached style, with little to no pedal. When the vihuela or guitar plays quick

passaggi, the notes are discreet and do not bleed into one another. This discreet style

should be observed by the pianist to better represent the style of these pieces.

Each piece in the edition is printed with the following elements: a title page with a

translation of any advice given to the performer by the composer; a translation and an

IPA transcription of the text of the romance with background notes on the narrative; and

finally, the edited and arranged music.

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Durandarte

Translation of Luys Milán’s address to the performer:

“This romance that follows is in the manner that the singer should sing plainly and the

vihuela proceeds neither very rapidly nor very slowly. Play the first part twice as

indicated by the text, and the second part similarly.”

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Durandarte

(IPA and literal translation)

Durandarte, buen cavallero provado

ct3`mc`qsD

avDm

j`A`KD3N

oqNA`CN

Durandarte, good knight well-proven

acordarse te devria

`bNqC`qrD

sD

cDAqh`

remember you should

d’a quell buen tiempo passado.

c`

jDk

avDm

siDloN

o`r`CN

of the good times past

Quando en galas y invenciones

jv`mcN

Dm

f`k`r

h

hmAdmsrhNmDr

when in finery and grace

publicavas tu cuydado

otAkhj`A`r

st

jthC`CN

proclaimed you your love

agora desconocido di,

`FN3` cDrjNmNsrhCN ch

now ignored tell me

porque me has olvidado.

oNqjD lD g`r NkAhC`CN

why me have forgotten.

Reading Translation:

Durandarte, good, well-proven knight you should remember

the good times now past

when in finery and with grace

you proclaimed your love to me.

Now I am ignored.

Why have you forgotten me?

(Durandarte speaks)

“These words are mere flattery from you

for if I have changed,

you have caused that change.For you loved Gayferos

when I was banished.

And so as not to suffer greater insult,

I will die despairing.”

Background:

Durandarte was originally the name of

Roland’s sword. In popular Spanish

culture, this name was applied to a

chivalrous character who appeared in

several stories. The character could beRoland himself, an invincible hero, or

another knight. Gayferos was a

legendary compatriot of Roland who

spent many years trying to rescue his

wife from the Moors. He was eventually

successful and was, along with

Durandarte, a favorite subject of

romance literature.

It is unclear who the speaker is that

apparently betrayed Durandarte.

Milán’s setting only sets this particularly

dramatic scene and chooses to leave the

rest of the details untold.

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Palabras son lisongeras,

o`k`Aq`r

rNm

khrNMfd3`r

Words are flattery

señora, de vuestro grado,

rDIN3`

cD

avDrsqN

fq`CN

lady, of your station,

que si yo mudança hize

jD

rh

iN

ltC`msr`

ghRD

for if I change feelings

haveys me lo vos causado.

g`ADhr

lD

kN

anr

j`tr`CN

have me it you caused.

Pues amastes a Gayferos

ovDr

`l`rsDr

`

f`heD3NrFor loved you Gayferos

quando yo fuy desterrado,

jv`mcN

iN

evh

cDrsdq`CN

when I was banished

y por no sufrir ultrage

h oNq mN rte3hq tksq`FD

and for no suffering insult

morire desesperado.

lN3h3d

cDrdroD3`CN

die despairing.

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V

V

?

bbbb

b

b

b

b

b

bbbb

b

b

b

b

C

C

C

C

C

Voice

(Original)

Voice(Ornamented)

Guitar(Capo at 3rd fret)

Keyboard

h»40 - 60F

˙ ˙

Du ran

˙ ˙

Du ran

˙ ˙

˙ ˙

˙ ˙

˙ ˙

,

dar te,

˙ ˙

,

dar te,

˙ ˙

œ

œ

œ

˙ ˙

˙ ˙

œ

œ

œ

œ ˙ œ

Du ran dar

œ

˙

œ

Du ran dar

œ

˙

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ ˙ œ

˙ œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

- - - - - -

- - - - - -

V

V

?

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

2

2

2

2

2

C

C

C

C

C

4

˙ Ó

te,

˙ Ó

te,

4

˙ . œ œ œœ œœ œ œ œ œ

4

˙

.

œ

œ

˙ œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙

U

˙

U

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

˙

U

˙ ˙

˙

buen ca va

˙ ˙

˙

buen ca va

˙ ˙ ˙œ œ œœ œ œ

˙ ˙ ˙

˙

œ

œ

œ

œ

˙

œ

œ

œ

˙

˙

lle ro

˙

˙

lle ro

˙̇bb ˙̇œ . j

˙

˙

˙

˙

œ

.

j

- - -

- - -

Durandarte

Luys Milán

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V

V

?

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

bbbb

b

b

b

b

2

2

2

2

2

C

C

C

C

C

8

œ

˙

œ

pro va

œ

˙

œ

pro va

8˙

˙

˙

˙

˙

œ

œ

8

˙ ˙˙ œ

˙ ˙

œ

˙

˙

Ó

do,

˙

Ó

do,

.

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

. œ œ œ œ œ œ

˙

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

˙

U

œ œ œ œ œ œ

œ

œ

˙

U

œ

œ

œ

œ œ

œ

œ

œ

˙

- -

- -

V

V

?

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

C

C

C

C

C

2

2

2

2

2

11

˙

˙

a cor

˙

˙

a cor

11

˙ œ œ œ œ œ˙

11

˙ ˙

˙

œ œ

œ

œ

œ

˙ ˙

dar se

˙ ˙

dar se

˙ œ œ œ œ˙

˙ ˙

œ

œ

œ

œ

˙

œ

œ

˙

te dev ri

œ

œ

˙

te dev ri

œ ˙ œœ ˙

œ

œ

˙

œ

œ

˙

˙

œ

- - - - - - - - - -

- - - - - - - - - -

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V

V

?

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

b

bbbb

b

b

b

b

2

2

2

2

2

C

C

C

C

C

14

˙

a

˙

a

14

w

.

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

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14

w

.

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

˙

˙

d'a quel

˙

˙

d'a quel

w

˙

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

œ

w

œ

œ

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˙

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œ

a perfomance edition of the six solo romances of luys milán and luys de narváez

Documents