Girolamo Scotto, c.1505-1572 [publisher]

Villancicos de diversos autores, a dos, y a tres,
y a quatro, y a cinco bozes. RISM 155630

[Universitetsbibliok Uppsala]


Scotto, Villancicos de diversos autores
opening (choirbook format)


Højbjerg, 2/ 1991. 15 x 21 cm, 131 pp. Line-cut of the Venice 1556 edition. Cancionero de Uppsala is special in several ways. This is because the book is the only known copy in the world and because it contains profane songs in Spanish, with flamboyant lyrics and music. It is also an important source for the music genre "villancicos"—a kind of popular song that was refined in the court of the Spanish renaissance, of value not only for scholars of music, but also linguistics and literature. The book is also known as "Cancionero del Duque de Calabria", since the music it contains derives from the court in Valencia into which this duke, Ferdinand de Aragon, married in 1526. The Valencia court was widely known for its rich music life, attracting the most popular composers and skillful musicians. There were splendid parties with plays and music, particularly at Christmas time (the Aragon family was believed to be descended from one of the three wise men). Villancicos were composed for these Christmas festivities and 12 of them for three voices are in the song book, including "Rìu riu chiu", the most well known of all renaissance villancicos. Cancionero de Uppsala consists of 70 works, of which 54 are villancicos in madrigal style for 2, 3, 4 or 5 voices, and 16 are practice pieces in the different ecclesiastical modes. All the lyrics are in Spanish except for four in Catalan, one in Latin and one in a Portuguese dialect. The songs are mainly about eroticism and unrequited love, jealousy, home sickness and the Virgin Mary. No composers are named apart from Nicolas Gombert (song no. 49). Scholars have since identified some other composers: Bartolomé Cárceres, Matheo Flecha and Pedro de Castrana. [text adapted from the UB, Uppsala]. Wrappers. $43
 
 (view other renaissance works)





Scotto, Villancicos de diversos autores, cover


       
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