Alonso Mudarra (c. 1510 – April 1, 1580) was a Spanish composer of the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
, and also played the
vihuela
The vihuela () is a 15th-century fretted plucked Spanish string instrument, shaped like a guitar (figure-of-eight form offering strength and portability) but tuned like a lute. It was used in 15th- and 16th-century Spain as the equivalent of t ...
, a
guitar
The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
-shaped string instrument. He was an innovative composer of instrumental music as well as songs, and was the composer of the earliest surviving music for the guitar.
Biography
The place of his birth is not recorded, but he grew up in
Guadalajara
Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...
, and probably received his musical training there. He most likely went to
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
in 1529 with
Charles V Charles V may refer to:
Kings and Emperors
* Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558)
* Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain
* Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise
Others
* Charles V, Duke ...
, in the company of the fourth
Duke of the Infantado
Duke of the Infantado () is a Spanish peerage title that was granted to Diego Hurtado de Mendoza y Figueroa, son of Íñigo López de Mendoza, 1st Marquis of Santillana, by the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile ...
,
Íñigo López de Mendoza, marqués de Santillana
Inigo is a masculine given name deriving from the Castilian rendering (Íñigo) of the medieval Basque name Eneko. Ultimately, the name means "my little (man)". While mostly seen among the Iberian diaspora, it also gained a limited popularity ...
. When he returned to Spain he became a priest, receiving the post of canon at the cathedral in
Seville
Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
in 1546, where he remained for the rest of his life. While at the cathedral, he directed all of the musical activities; many records remain of his musical activities there, which included hiring instrumentalists, buying and assembling a new organ, and working closely with composer
Francisco Guerrero for various festivities. Mudarra died in Seville, and his sizable fortune was distributed to the poor of the city according to his will.
Mudarra wrote numerous pieces for the
vihuela
The vihuela () is a 15th-century fretted plucked Spanish string instrument, shaped like a guitar (figure-of-eight form offering strength and portability) but tuned like a lute. It was used in 15th- and 16th-century Spain as the equivalent of t ...
and the four-course guitar, all contained in the collection ''Tres libros de musica en cifras para vihuela'' ("Three books of music in numbers for vihuela"), which he published on December 7, 1546 in Seville. These three books contain the first music ever published for the four-course guitar, which was then a relatively new instrument. The second book is noteworthy in that it contains eight multi-movement works, all arranged by "tono", or mode.
Compositions represented in this publication include
fantasias,
variations (including a set on
La Folia),
tientos,
pavane
The ''pavane'' ( ; , ''padovana''; ) is a slow processional dance common in Europe during the 16th century (Renaissance).
The pavane, the earliest-known music for which was published in Venice by Ottaviano Petrucci, in Joan Ambrosio Dalza's ...
s and
galliard
The ''galliard'' (; ; ) was a form of Renaissance dance and Renaissance music, music popular all over Europe in the 16th century. It is mentioned in dance manuals from England, Portugal, France, Spain, Germany, and Italy.
Dance form
The ''gal ...
s, and songs. Modern listeners are probably most familiar with his Fantasia X, which has been a concert and recording mainstay for many years. The songs are in Latin, Spanish and Italian, and include romances,
canciones (songs),
villancico
The ''villancico'' ( Spanish, ) or vilancete ( Portuguese, ) was a common poetic and musical form of the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America popular from the late 15th to 18th centuries. Important composers of villancicos were Juan del Encina, P ...
s, (popular songs) and
sonetos (sonnets). Another innovation was the use of different signs for different
tempo
In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...
s: slow, medium, and fast.
References and further reading
*John Griffiths: "Alonso Mudarra", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed March 24, 2005)
(subscription access)
*
Gustave Reese
Gustave Reese ( ; November 29, 1899 – September 7, 1977) was an American musicologist and teacher. Reese is known mainly for his work on medieval and Renaissance music, particularly with his two publications ''Music in the Middle Ages'' (1940 ...
, ''Music in the Renaissance''. New York, W.W. Norton & Co., 1954.
*Guitar Music of the Sixteenth Century, Mel Bay Publications (transcribed by Keith Calmes)
*The Eight Masterpieces of Alonso Mudarra, Mel Bay Publications (transcribed by Keith Calmes)
Fantasia VIin hypermedia (Shockwave Player required) at th
BinAural Collaborative Hypertext*Jacob Heringman and Catherine King: "Alonso Mudarra songs and solos". Magnatune.com (http://www.magnatune.com/artists/albums/heringman-mudarra/hifi_play)
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mudarra, Alonso
Composers for the classical guitar
1510s births
1580 deaths
People from Guadalajara, Spain
Spanish male classical composers
Spanish guitarists
Spanish male guitarists
16th-century classical composers
16th-century Spanish composers