A Spanish Renaissance Songbook - Tapa dura

A selection of the best songs of the Spanish Renaissance—hitherto unavailable or inaccessible in modern form is presented here in an annotated edition. Although two of the great collections of vihuela music, those of Milan and Fuenllana, have been published in modern editions under Charles Jacobs's editorship, other sources until now remained essentially untapped. This book offers a selection of songs from such collections as those by Narvaez (1538), Mudarra (1546), Valderrabano (1547), Pisador (1552), and Daza (1576).

The music presented in A Spanish Renaissance Songbook represents a rich and varied repertory of solo songs accompanied by the vihuela, the six-course parent of the guitar. The vihuela music is presented on a bi-staff system, for the sake of clarity and ease of performance on a keyboard instrument as well as the guitar or lute. The notes include comments about the songs' composition, original publication, and early performance, together with translations of the lyrics and assessments of their literary value.

With the publication of this book, the best songs of 16th-century Spain are available for modern instrumental and vocal performers and students of the period.