Valderrábano’s arrangement of a vocal setting by Juan Vásquez of a text from the ballad known as the “Romance de la muerte de Don Beltrán” (see menéndezpidal 1928, 107). Valderrábano’s rubric states: “This romance has to be performed in accordance with the indicated tempo which is slow, and the voice in red ciphers is the melody. Second grade”. Gil reports that “the version for vihuela presents a practically direct connection with the version by Juan Vásquez, from which it can be deduced that prior to including it in his collection, it was already known through a manuscript copy.” This refers to the fact that Valderrábano’s version was published thriteen years before the Vásquez version appeared in print in his Recopilación of 1560 (vasquez1560, fol. 27). Comparing the two versions suggests considerable reworking between Valderrábano’s version and that of 1560. As in Vásquez’s setting, the transcription for a vihuela in E gives the mode 3 melody transposed a fourth.

The text is a historical ballad from the time of Alfonso II “the Chaste” of León, and was well known in Spanish tradition from the fifteenth century. Other musical settings of the text are in the Cancionero de Palacio, the Cancionero de Barcelona and the Cancionero Masson. These are not musically related to this version. The CMP version is by Millán in three voices (CMP Anglés no 446, Barbieri no 344); the version in the Cancionero musical de Barcelona Ms.454, 144 (1520 - 1534) ed. in Ros-Fábregas diss) is by Other settings of the same text: Millán in three voices (CMP Anglés no 446, Barbieri no 344); Peñalosa in three voices, Cancionero musical de Barcelona Ms.454, 144 (1520 - 1534) ed. in Ros-Fábregas diss) is by Peñalosa and ilso in three voices, while there is an anonymous monophonic version in F-Pba 56: Masson, fols. 66v-67r (Ca. 1523), París, Bibliothèque École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts Masson 56 (Cancionero de París / Cancionero Masson).

Sources of the text include: Silva de varios Romances (Zaragoza, 1550) fol. 112r; Cancionero de Romances, Antwerp, 1550, fol. 188r (Ed. Rodríguez Moniño, 1967). Full text in Binkley Spanish Romances (with English translation), 145. Text variants
Recopilación de sonetos y villancicos (1560): Los braços traygo cansados / De los muertos rodear / Vide a todos los franceses / Y no vide a don Beltrán.
Cancionero de Palacio: Los braços trayo cansados / De los muertos rodear: / Fallo todos los franceses, / No fallo a don Rreynalte.
Barcelona Ms.454: Los braços trayo cansados / De los muertos rodear / Fallo todos los franceses / Y no fallo a don Reynalte.
Cancionero Masson: Los braços traygo camsados / De los muertos rrodear / Alho todos los franceses/ Y no alho a dom Beltrane