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Luis Milán

Fantasía [01] del primer tono

 

El Maestro (1536), fol. B1v

mi001

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Source title Esta primera fantasia que aqui debaxo esta figurada es del primero tono: y quanto mas se tañera con el compas apressurado mejor parecera el que tañera en la vihuela por los terminos que esta fantasia anda: tañe por el primero tono.
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Music

Category abstract

Genre fantasia

Fantasia type ImP

Mode 1

Voices 3

Length (compases) 85

Vihuela

Tuning A

Courses 6

Final V/0

Highest I/5

Lowest VI/0

Difficulty easy

Tempo fast

Song Text

Language

Vocal notation

Commentary

Given Milán’s statement that El Maestro is arranged in order of progressive difficulty, this first piece is not really all that simply, although in three voices. It is a sectional polythematic imitative fantasia. The number of sections in the work depends on the criteria used for analysing it. The view of it given in the Analysis here gives one coherent view, but should not be taken as a definitive analysis.

The work divides into 3 large periods [A B C] that have numerous independent episodes [I-V] as follows:
A – I (1-20) - II (20-35)
B – III (36-46) / IV (46-59)
C – V (60-74) / VI (75-85)

The work has a clear harmonic plan that complements the thematically based structure. This fantasia is unusual in that themes from earlier sections appear again later in the work as themes of new sections, but used in a different way.

Period A
• Episode I (1-20) is built from themes 1 (bars 1-9) & 2 (10-20), both imitatively. 1st interlocking, in 3 bar phrases, the second in non-interlocking 2-bar phrases with a more extended cadence.
• Episode II (20-35) interlocks into the cadence of episode I. The theme (theme 3) is give three times successively followed by a free cadence. The final passage, from b.30 is a coda built from theme 4, almost an inversion of theme 3. The final cadence here marks a clear conclusion of the entire first period of the work.

Period B
• Episode III (36-46) Theme 5 is used imitatively, beginning unusually on the 3rd of the previous chord. The imitations give way to four bars of free polyphony and a return to the modal final.
• Episode IV (46-59) Built on imitations of theme 3 (ascending) in the lower voices, and theme 4 (descending), followed by four bars of free polyphony to effect the close of the period on the mode 1 dominant, A.

Period C
• Episode V commences with what seems like a reiteration of theme 5, imitated in the bass, but then developing as a sweeping treble melody in bars 68-74, again concluding on the modal repercussio, A.
• Episode VI. A clearly terminal episode, due to the repition of its main substance (all the voices), bars 75-79 (cadence on A) and 79-85 (cadence on D). The texture is in three voices and non-imitative, with a strong upper-voice melody that gives continuity from the previous episode.

Recordings

fentross01 Ay Luna. Música española del Siglo de Oro Guillemette Laurens, Mike Fentross (vihuela) vihuela song Mudarra Valderrábano Narváez Milán

moreno01 Canto del Cavallero José Miguel Moreno solo Fuenllana, Pisador, Valderrábano, Milán

wilson01 Vihuela Music of the Spanish Renaissance Christopher Wilson solo Milán Narvaez Mudarra Valderrabano Fuenllana Pisador Daza Mendoza López

griffiths01 The Echo of Orpheus John Griffiths solo Narváez Daza Valderrábano Milán Mudarra Fuenllana

zayas01 Vihuelistas españoles del siglo XVI (IV) Rodrigo de Zayas & Anne Perret solo vihuela song Milán Narváez Mudarra Valderrábano Pisador Fuenllana Daza

moreno-quinteiro01 Luys de Milán: Fantasía José Miguel Moreno & Eligio Quinteiro solo ensemble Milán

lonardi01 El Maestro - Milan: Works For Vihuela Massimo Lonardi solo Milán Narváez

rumsey01 Music of the Spanish Renaissance Shirley Rumsey solo vihuela song Daza Narváez Fuenllana Milán Pisador Mudarra Valderrábano

maier01 The Art of Vihuela Ralph Maier solo Milán Narváez Mudarra Valderrábano Fuenllana Daza

martin01 Luis Milan - El Maestro Edward Martin solo Milán

fresno01 Spanish vihuelists of the 16th century I Jorge Fresno solo Milán Valderrábano

marchese01 Si amores me han de matar: Italian and Spanish music for Vihuela de Mano Massimo Marchese Mudarra Milán Narváez Fuenllana

bungarten01 Canción y Danza Frank Bungarten solo Milán

mito01 Music for vihuela 2: O gloriosa domina Shigeo Mito solo Milán Mudarra Narváez

muska01 Vihuela Fantasies - Roots of the Classical Guitar Series (Digital Only) Terry Muska solo Milán Mudarra Narváez

gerwig01 Milán: Musica de vihuela de mano, Ortiz: Musica de violones Walter Gerwig solo vihuela song Milan

escobar01 Luis Milán (c.1500-c.1561) El Maestro, Libro I (1536) Works for Solo Vihuela José Antonio Escobar solo Milán

cherici01 El Siglo de Oro: Obras para vihuela 1 Paolo Cherici solo Milán Narváez

Song Text

Intabulations
Modern edition(s)

Milán, Luis. Libro de Musica de vihuela de mano intitulado El Maestro. Ed. Leo Schrade. Publikationen Älterer Musik, 2. Leipzig, 1927; rpt Hildesheim: Georg Olms, 1967.

Printed source(s)
Manuscripts