You Will Raise a Little Your 4th Fret

7/24/2019 You Will Raise a Little Your 4th Fret

1/44

ANTONIO

CORONA-ALCALDE

Y o u w i l l

r a i s e

l i t t l e

y o u r

t h

f r e t :

a n

Equivoca l

Instruct ion

y

L u i s

M i l a n

We have seen

players

who.try

to

play

in

the

fourthmode

using

the

[same]

rets that

they

use

for

playing

n

the

sixth,

and

fail,

until

they

change

the

frets

according

o their

keen ears.

J.

Bermudo,

Declaratidn

e

Instrumentos,

ol. civ.

T

HE first

known

book

of

music for

vihuela,

El

Maestro

by

Luis

Milan,

is a

work

intended

-

as its name

shows

-

to

teach a

complete

beginner.

To

achieve

this end

Milan

presents

a series of

pieces

of

increasing

difficulty,

providing

each with

a rubric

that

specifies

its mode

and,

in

some

cases,

the

tempo

and directions

about the

right-hand techniques

best

suited

to

play

certain

pieces.

While

placing

the

emphasis

on the

recognition

of

the

modes

and their correct

cadences,

he also

supplies

some

indications

that

imply different tunings for the vihuela and, in two separate instances,

directions

to

shift

fret

IV?

From

a

study

of the

tablature

these

last

instructions

seem

unnecessary

at first

sight;

furthermore,

a number of

other

pieces

also

require

a

different

position

for

this

fret,

and for these

Milan

offers

no

directions

to

alter ts

position.

This

problem

is

closely

linked

with the use

oftemperaments

other

than

equal,

since the fret

positions

on the

fretboard

are determined

by

the

temperament

in use

as well

as

by

the

functions

they

have to

fulfil.

The use of

equal

temperament

in

fretted

instruments

during

the

sixteenth

century

has

been

explored

at some

length byJ. Murray

Barbour,

who

arrived

at the

conclusion

that

this

temperament,

or some

variety

approaching

it,

was

probably

favoured?

This is confirmed

in

sources

ranging

chronologically

from

the work

of G.

M. Lanfranco

(1533)

to

that

of

M.

Mersenne

(1636-

1637),

including

the

treatises

of

two

Spanish

authors:

Juan

Bermudo

and

Francisco

Salinas.4

Barbour

accepts,

however,

that other

temperaments

may

have been

used,

such

as the

Pythagorean

with

untempered

fourths

and

fifths,

and

the

meantone,

where

the

fifths were sacrificed

in

favour of

pure

or

moderately tempered

thirds

and

sixths.5

These two

temperaments

are

of

special

interest

for

the

music

of the vihuela. The

Pythagorean

is discussed

by

Bermudo,

who

gives

three

different

ways

to

fret the

vihuela,

in

ascending

order

of

difficulty.

In

the

first

place

he shows how to

place

the diatonic

frets

(queforman

ono),

that

is,

frets

II, IV, V, VII,

IX and

X,

and

advises

the

reader

to

place

the

remaining

frets

according

to

this rule:

'If it is to be

afa

[i.e.

flat],

place

it closer

to

the side

of the

nut,

and

if it is

to

be

a mi

[i.e. sharp],

place

it

2


2/44

towards

the

side of the

bridge.'6

The second

manner

is an

extension

of

the

first:

Bermudo describes

a

series

of

elaborate

geometrical

calculations

which

allow one

to

determine with

precision

the

position

of

all the

frets,

diatonic

as

well

as

chromatic;

these

last ones are

I, III,

VI and

VIII,

and

may

be

placed

in

two different

positions

depending

on whether

they

serve to

provide

flats

or

sharps.

In

Bermudo's

view it was

feasible to

imagine

seven

different

vihuelas,

that is, to assume seven different tunings for the same instrument; each

tuning

would thus have

a

particular

combination

of

sharp

and

flat

frets.

In

order to

illustrate these

combinations Bermudo

also

provides

the

corresponding diagrams.7

These

directions are meant for a

vihuela

fretted

with the

Pythagorean

temperament,

where

semitones have

to be

either

minor

or

major,

but a

third set of

instructions

shows how to

place

the frets

so

'all

semitones can

be

played' ('que

se

tangan

odos

os

semitonos'),

hat

is,

a

sort

of

equal

temperament.8

Bermudo

claims the

authorship

of this

last

system, and it can therefore be regarded as something of a novelty around

1555?

The

meantone

temperament

is

hinted at in the rules

for

tuning

the

vihuela

and

monochord

of Tomas de

Santa Maria's

Arte

de Tatier

Fantasia,

where

he states that

'each fifth

should be a

little flat'

but,

since

Santa Maria

deals

with the

vihuela

only

in

passing,

his

advice

is

more

likely

to

be

directed

towards the

keyboard

player.lo

The main

problem

posed

by

the use

of

any temperament

other

than

equal

in

fretted

instruments is

the

existence of what

may

be

called

'missing

notes'

on the

fretboard.

This means

that if

a

particular

fret is in

a 'flat'

position

and

a

sharp

note is

required

on

some

course,

it will

not

be usable in

that

particular

fret and

vice-versa.

The

fretboard

locations

where this

combination

appears

correspond

to

missing

notes: notes

that

do not

exist,

at

least

from a

theoretical

point

of

view.

This

characteristic is

pointed

out

by

Bermudo in the

following

terms:

It

happens

hat

a

fret

is

sharp

and

thus it

must stand

or four or

five

courses,

but

it

should

be

flat

for the

otherone

or

two. For

example,

n

the

firstand

fifth

frets

of

the

gamaut i.e. G]

vihuela: t

is true that

any

fourth

[course]stopped

at the

fourth

ret

forms

a

unison with

the

open

third

[course];

therefore,

the

aforesaid fourth

[course]

stopped

at the

fifth

[fret]

should

agree

with

the third

[course]

stopped

at

the

first

[fret],

but in

this

gamaut

ihuela

t

does not

happen

o. The

causeof this

is

the

following:

the

first

fret

is flat and the

fifth

is

sharp

..

If

the

firstfret

was

to be

placed

closer to the

nut,

transforming

t

from a

sharp

o

a

flat,

a

faultlessunison

would be

formed,

but in

the

way

it is

placed

a

unison

s not

formed.You

will find n

many

other

frets

what

I

have

shown

for

these

two."

Bermudo

shows,

in

each

of

his

diagrams,

the

location of

these

missing

notes by means of blank spaces (see Ex. 1, which shows the

gamaut

or

G

vihuela).

The

presence

or

absence

of notes

which are

theoretically

'missing'

can

provide

the

basis to

determine if a

particular

tablature

was

intended for an

instrument

fretted

for an

equal

or

unequal

temperament:

the

consistent

absence

of

'missing

notes'

betrays

a

high

probability

that

such

a

tablature

3


3/44

EX.

1.

1

2

3

4

5

5

7 8

9

X

g t

was destined

for

an

instrument fretted

for

an

unequal temperament.

On the

basis of this

kind of evidence Mark

Lindley

has

suggested

that it is

very

likely

that

Luis

Milan

used the

meantone

temperament.12

Part

of

Lindley's

argument

lies

on two of Milan's

rubrics,

which

instruct

the

player

to shift

the

position

of fret

IV.13

The first

part

of this

article

will

be devoted

to

reconsidering

the first

rubric,

placed

at

the

head of

Fantasia

14,

limiting

the

evidence

used here

to

the

pieces

for solo vihuela

from

the

first book of

El Maestro.This discussion intends to show that, in the limited context of the

first

book,

there

seems to

be an

inconsistency

between the

instructions

provided

by

this

rubric and

the

actual

use of fret

IV.

The

evidence

provided

by

the second book of

El Maestro

presents

further

complexities,

which will

make it

necessary

to

modify

somewhat the

preliminary

conclusions

drawn

from

the first

book's

pieces

and,

ultimately,

question

some of

Lindley's

conclusions;

this

study

is

undertaken

in the

second

part

of

the article.14

PART I

It has been

generally

accepted

that

the A

tuning

is the most

appropriate

for

the

transcription

of Milan's

works,

and it is

indeed the

best

one for most of

the

first

book.'5

If

we

assume,

following

Lindley,

that Milan used

a

meantone

fretting,

the

tablature

must

therefore

present

missing

notes.

Among

the

diagrams

which Bermudo

published,

he

included

one for an

A

vihuela

that defines

the

sharp

or

flat

function of

the

frets and identifies the

'missing

notes

that

appear

on

this

tuning',

but does not

pretend

to show

graphically

the

position

where the frets

must be located.

The

difference

between

the

Pythagorean

and meantone

temperaments

resides

in

the

actual

position

of

the

frets;

but,

since the

sharp

and

flat

functions

behave in

a

similar

fashion,

it is valid to use Bermudo's

diagrams

in

order

to

illustrate

a

meantone

fretting

scheme,

despite

the fact that

they

were

originally

intended to show

a

Pythagorean

fretting,

bearing

in mind that

the

only

thing

these

diagrams

show

is,

precisely,

functions. For

clarity's

sake the

diagram

(Ex.

2)

is

shown

here with the first course

on the

upper

line,

just

as

it is used in Milan's tablature. In this

diagram

fret IV has a

sharp

function

with a

missing

note on

course

3:

Eb.

The examination of some

examples

of

how

Milan uses this

fret

in Fantasia 1

(Ex.

3)

discloses

that it

agrees

with the

theoretical

diagram,

fulfilling

the

function

of

sharp.

Similar

examples

can

be found

in

Fantasias

2,

4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 18,

21 and

22;

in Pavans

1, 2,

4,

5 and

6;

and in Fantasia

14,

where the rubric

concerning

the fret shift

is

to

be

found.

4


4/44

EX.

2.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9 X

aIt

G

D

A

,

- i,

i, ,

EX. 3.

Fantasia1

? " -0

dA

-o 6- _

w

W

45-46

73-74 67

It

is

worthwhileto

classify

these

pieces according

o the

modes

to

which

they belong,

following

Milan'srubricsat the head of

each:

1st

& 2ndmodes:Fantasias

, 2, 4,

6;

Pavan .

3rd& 4th

modes:

Fantasias

, 8, 9,

14:

Pavan

.

7th

& 8th modes:Fantasias

8, 21,

22;

Pavans

, 5,

and

6.

This

classification

s

specially

elevant,

incethe rubricunderconsideration

excludes

all

othermodal

complexes,appearing

ftera seriesof

pieces

n

the

same modal

group,

namely

the

3rd-4th,

Aeolian or

E

modal

complex.

It

reads as

follows:

Whenever

youplay

he ourth

nd

hirdmodes

by

the erminos

n

which

his

antasia

goes:you

should

aise hefourth reta

little,

o that

he

noteof

thesaid retwillbe

strong

ndnot

weak.'6

Thereare threepointsto consider n thisrubric: heprecisemeaningof

the word

terminos,

he

directionof the shift

(as

ndicated

by

the word

alCar,

'to

raise'),

and the

words

'strong'

and 'weak'

(fuerte

ndflaco espectively).

Terminos

take

to mean the

general

scheme

in

which

the

notes

of

any

particular

mode

fit

in

the

fretboard

f

anyparticular

uning

or the

vihuela,

and

therefore t

could be

synonymous

with assumed

tuning;

but

this is a

matter

hatwill be

dealtwith more

fully

later.

The

directionof

the

shift

is

clarified n

two

other

rubrics;

he

instruction hat

appears

at

the head of

Fantasia 7

states:

The

present

antasia

goes

hrough

he

same erminosn the

vihuela sthe

past

one,

and t

goes down o the tenth ret of the

vihuela

.

.17

The

other

rubric

hat

ndicates

a

shift

n

the

position

of fret

IV,

placed

at

the head

of

the

Romance

Con

pavor

ecordo

l

moro,

n

the

second

book

of

El Maestro

eads

as

follows:

5


5/44

[When]

playing

hrough

hese

parts

on the

vihuela,

you

shouldraise

he fourth

ret

a little towards

the

pegs

of

the

vihuela.18

According

to these instructions

'down' means towards the

bridge

and

'to

raise'

means

towards

the

head of the

vihuela;

this indicates

that the result

of

raising

the fret

is

effectively

to

lower the sound since

the

string-length

is

increased.

The

third

point poses

more

problems:

weak and

strong

are

subjective ways of referring to the quality of the sound, and a precise

answer

is difficult.

Lindley

interprets

these

terms

as a

description

of the

quality

of

the

thirds

produced

between fret IV

and

the

open string,

but

I

would

rather

suggest

that

they

indicate the different

effect a

major

or minor

semitone

would achieve.19

The

rubric states

that 'the note

should

be

strong',

and

this

last

word

might

more

plausibly

indicate the

leading-note

effect

a mi

or

sharpened

note would

have.

If

this

is

the

case,

the

hypothesis

should find

support

in the music

itself.

As

already pointed

out,

the

general

tendency

suggests that fret IV should be sharp,andin Fantasia14 no exception is to be

found;

in

fact,

the

missing

Ek6

n

course

3 is used

as

DO

(see

Ex.

4),

which

confirms

the

function

of

the

fret

and offers

a solid basis for the

theory

that

fuerte

might

mean

a

leading-tone

quality.

In

view of the considerations

expressed

above,

the

rubric to

Fantasia

14 could

be

translated

in modern

terms

as follows:

'Whenever

you

play

the 3rd

and 4th

modes

in

the

[assumed]

A

tuning,

you

should lower

fret IV

a

little

towards the

pegs,

so

that its

notes

will

be

sharp

and not

flat.'

This

interpretation

is consistent

with the meantone temperament,

where the

sharp

is lower

than the

flat.20

On

the other

hand,

it

argues against

a

Pythagorean

fretting

scheme,

whose

sharps

are

higher

than its

flats,

since

it would

imply

shifting

the

fret to

a flat

position

that

is

completely

inconsistent with

the function

it

has to fulfil.

EX. 4.

Fantasia

14

1-3

Looking

more

closely

at

the distribution

of the

pieces

in

the

3rd

and 4th

modes, it

emerges

that Fantasia14 is the last of the fantasiasof this modal

group,

and that

the

only

later

piece

that

belongs

to

this

group

is Pavan

2

(see

Appendix

1).

In

other

words,

the rubric

appears

at the

end of the

series of

fantasias:

this

is not

the best

place,

if

it

is intended for

a

beginner

on

the

instrument

who

would

find,

upon

reaching

this

point,

that

he

might

have

played

all the

previous

fantasias

of

the 3rd

and 4th

modes with

a fret out of

6


6/44

place.

Yet,

the rubric seems to

apply retroactively

the

the

fantasias

preceding

it;

the

wording

siempre ue

means

'whenever',

with the

additional

force behind

it

of

the normal

meaning

of

siempre

as

'always'.

There

is,

however,

a

difference between

this

fantasia

and

the other

pieces

in

the

3rd

and 4th

modes:

Fantasia14 evinces a

fuller use of

fret IV.

Whereas

fret

IV

is

used

only

for

courses 2 and 4 in

the

preceding

fantasias and in Pavan

2,

in

Fantasia 14 it is used for courses 2, 3, 4 and 5. This exceptional usage could

justify

the

special

rubric, but,

on

the other

hand,

the

use of two

more

courses could

merely

be an

extension of the

same

principle.

This

question

may

be

answered

through

an

examination

of

the

way

in

which Milan

uses

fret

IV in

some of

the earlier

fantasias

(see

Ex.

5).

While

EX. 5.

a)

Fantasia

18-19

26-27

64-65

122

b)

Fantasia

44-45

47-48

c)

Fantasia

6-8 82-83 100

e%-#,

_u'K-,5

7


7/44

in

Fantasia

2

thereare

no

examples

as clear-cut

as

these,

it

can be

inferred

that ts

function hould

be

similar,

hat s:

in

the whole

group

of

pieces

fret

IV has

a

sharp

unction.This also

applies

o Pavan

,

whereseveral nstances

of

this use

can

be found. Ex. 6

confirms

hat fret

IV exhibits

exactly

the

EX. 6.

Fantasia 14

1-3

8-9

11-12 44

samefunctionof sharpn Fantasia 4; furthermore,he asterisked hord s

found

n all the

previous

antasias, r,

as

in

Fantasia

,

bar

44

(see

Ex.

5b),

with one

of the notes

arriving

after the

others;

t

is also the final chord of

Pavan

.

Surely

here s no reason o

suppose

hat

he

final

chordof Fantasia

14 was ntended o sound

differently

romthe

final

chordsof Fantasia

(see

Ex.

5a)

and Pavan

2. This

evidence shows

that

the

rubricto Fantasia

14

makes

sense

only

if it

applies

to all

the

pieces

of the

3rd

and 4th

modes

intabulated

assuming

an

A

tuning.

It

is

worthwhilenow

to

pose

the

question:

s the rubric

necessary

t all?It

has

already

been shown

(p. 5)

that he

sharp

unctionof

fret IV also

appears

in

pieces pertaining

o other

modes,

so this

indication o

move

the fret to

a

position

it

should,

theoretically,

already

occupy

if

the meantone

temperament

s

used,

or to

a

flat

position

in

the

case

of

a

Pythagorean

temperament,

eems

inconsistent

and

illogical.

It

is feasible to adduce

further

evidence to

support

his

hypothesis.

The

chord

llustrated

n

Ex.

7

appears

n

Fantasia

4;

its

dispositionpresents

an

octave between the

B

of

course

4 and the

B

of

course

1. If the

octave

is

achieved

by

the shift of

fret

IV,

and the rubric

appliesonly

to the

pieces

of the 3rd and 4th

modes,

this

chord

should

not be

found in

pieces

belonging

to other

modes,

but it

occurs

n Fantasia

,

which s described

by

Milanas

pertaining

o the 1stand

2nd

modes

(Ex.

8).

This fantasia

vinces

even

a

fuller

use of

fret

IV:

it

is

EX.

7.

Fantasia

14

8

EX. 8.

Fantasia

8


8/44

used

for

all

the

courses

save for

course

6,

and its

function

is,

again,

that

of

a

sharp

fret,

to the extent of

using

the

missing

E6

of

course 3

as

D#

(see

Ex.

9)

as it

happens

in

Fantasia

14

(see

Ex.

4).

EX.

9.

Fantasia6

96-97

EX.

10.

EX. 11.

a

?X

Further

proof

of

the stable

position

required

f fret IV is

provided

by

the

cadential

figure

shown

in

Ex.

10: this

figure

can be

found

in

Fantasias

,

4

and 6,

belonging

to the 1st and 2nd

modes;

and in Fantasias and

9,

belonging

to the 3rd and 4th.

There is still

more

evidence to

support

he

need for

fret

IV

to

remain n

the

same

position:

he

G

major

chord,

when

found

n the

disposition

hown n

Ex.

11,

has the

B

natural n

fret

IV.

This

chord s

found,

n

several

hree-note

combinations,

n

pieces

belonging

to

the

three

modal

groupsalready

mentioned:

1st/2nd,3rd/4th

and

7th/8th;

Ex. 12

shows

some of these

cases.

As these

examples

how,

the use

of fret IV s

consistent

throughout

ll the

examined pieces; this confirmationquestions, for the moment, the

usefulnessand

validity

of the

rubric to Fantasia

14,

since

it

apparently

requires

he

shifting

of

the

fret

to a

position

where

it

has to

fulfil

the

same

functionthat

it had served

for all the

pieces

preceding

t,

as well

as

for

a

good

number

of

the

pieces

that

follow,

belonging

o three

different

modal

groups.

Yet this is

not all. If a

temperament

ther

than

equal

was

used

by

Milan,

there

is an actualneed

to shift

fret IV

for

some

pieces,

but

for

this

Milan offers

no indication.

Before

embarking

on

this

subject

t

will

be

helpfulto make a digression n orderto clarifya word that hasalready

appeared:

erminos.

In

previous

writings,

erminos

as been

translated

s

'endings',

meaning

the

end

of

the

piece, presumably

oinciding

with

thefinalis

f the

mode,

or

the

notes

in

which the

internal

cadences

finish?1

This is

not

necessarily

wrong,

but it

is

not exact

either,

and it

can be

misleading.

n

a literal

way

terminomeans

end,

but it

also

means

limits

or

boundaries,and,

in

my

opinion,

Milan

uses it

metaphorically

n

this

last

sense.22

The

rubric to

Fantasia showsclearlythatMilandoes not confusethe terminos ith the

cadencesor

the

end:

Lookwell

at

the

cadenceshesaid

antasia

akes,

nd

what

erminos

t hasand

where

it ends:

because

n it

you

will

see

everything

hat he

first

mode

can

rightfully

do.3

Since the

cadences

and

the

endings

are

referred

o

separately

rom the

terminos,

t is

clear

that this last

word must

mean

something

else.

Further

9


9/44

clarification

is

found

in

the

rubric

to Fantasia 2:

The

fantasia

written

below

belongs

o the first

mode,

and

t

shouldbe

played

with

a

hurried

beat,

and t

goes

by

the

same

erminos

n the

vihuela

as the

previous

antasia,

because

n

these

terminos

he music s easieron the

vihuela han

n

otherswhere the

musicwould riseabovethe fifth

fret,

and

n

order o

make hem ess difficult or the

beginner,

it

goes by

these

easy

terminos.24

EX. 12.

Fantasia

Pavan

2

(1st

mode)

(3rd

and

4th

modes)

4 63 78 24

Fantasia

-

Pavan

(3rdmode)

(7th

nd

th

modes)

83

27

36 37

Fantasia

(2nd

mode)

13

Fantasia

4

3

Fantasia

8

(3rd

and

4th

(7th

and

8th

modes) modes)

12

45-46

In this context the mode

(and presumably

ts

cadences

and

end)

is

mentioned

independently

rom the word

terminos,

hich is

related o

the

vihuelaitself.Furthermore,t impliesthatthe 1stmodeis easier o playin

these terminos:rom this

it can

be inferred hat the

term

is a

practical

ne.

The

rubric

also mentions

hat

f the terminos

re

changed

he

music

will be

played

higher

on

the

fretboard,

ndthis meanseither

a

transposition

f

the

music,

or

a

change

n

the assumed

tuning25

Terminoas

been defined

above

as the

general

scheme

n

which the notes

of

any

particular

mode

fit

on

the

10


10/44

fretboard f

any

particular

uning

or

the

vihuela,

pointing

out that t

could

be considered s

synonymous

f 'assumed

tuning'.

The reason or this

s

that

every

mode

(with

its own

range

and

particular

cadence-notes

already

predetermined

y

the

theory)

will

form

a different

and distinct

pattern

on

the

fretboard,

nd these

patterns

will

be determined

by

the

tuning,

which

defines

what

note

will

be

found

in

any specific

ocation on the fretboard.

All these elementscombinetogether o delimitthe available instrumental

territory'

where

the

fingers

of

the left

hand

will

move.26

It is

convenientto examine here the

way

in

which Milan

handles

the

concept

of

terminos,

r

rather,

hatof a

'change

of

terminos'.

n

Fantasias

-15

the

only

comment

concerning

he terminos

(whenever

he word

appears),

s

thatthe

piece

in

question

s in

the same

terminos

s

the

preceding

one. If

all

these

pieces

aretranscribed

ith

an

A

tuning,

he fundamental

ote of

their

final

chordswill

coincide

with

the

correct natural

finalis

of

the

mode

to

whichthey belong (see Ex. 13).7The rubric o Fantasia 6 statesthat the

terminos

ave

changed

see

Appendix

2):

if

the

tuning

s still

assumed

as

A,

the final

chordwill

not

be built

upon

the

correctfinalis

ut

upon

Bb

(Ex.

14a);

if,

on theother

hand,

he

tuning

s

assumed s

E

the

resulting

hord

will

be

built

upon

the

correctfinalis

f

the 5th and

6th modes:

F

(Ex. 14b).

This

observ-

ation

also

applies

o

Fantasia

7,

whose rubric

nforms hat it

has the

same

terminos

s

the

precedingpiece.

Although

he

rubric o Fantasia

8

makesno

reference o

the

terminos,

he 7th

and 8th modes

appear

or

the

first

time in

this

piece,

and

the

A

tuning produces

the correct

finalis,

G

(Ex. 15).

In

Fantasia 9 Milan returns o the

5th

mode,

again

without

any

indication

EX.

13.

a)

Fantasias

1,2,13:

1st

mode

a

]

b)

c d

e

f)

4: 2nd

mode

10:

1st

and 2nd

_

4

.

b)

3:

1st

5: 2nd

_

,

:

1st

and 2nd

c)

7:

3rd

14:

3rd

and 4th

.

o

d)

8:

4th

9:

3rd

and 4th

- -

-

e)

12: 3rd

and 4th

_ _

-

_

,

)

15: 5th

and6th

19:

5th

EX. 14.

a) b)

EX. 15.

11


11/44

about

he

terminos:he

tuning

hatworks

best

is stillA

(Ex.

13f).

Fantasia

0

belongs

to the 6th

mode,

but this

time

a

change

of

terminos

s

mentioned,

with a resultsimilar

o thatfound

n

Fantasias

6

and 17

(Ex.

14b).

Fantasias

20 and

21

belong

to the

7th

and

8th modes

respectively,

and come out

correctly

f

they

are

consideredas

being

intended

or

anA

tuning,

as in

the

case

of

Fantasia 8

(Ex. 15).

Applying

he same

criterion he correct

tuning

for the pavans s A. A clearpictureemergesfromthis:A tuningis used

throughout

he

solo

part

of the first

book,

with the

exception

of three

fantasias,

ll of them

belonging

o the

5th/6th

modal

complex,

andfor these

a

change

of terminos

s

distinctly

ndicated

by

Milan.

It

may

not

always

seem

reliable

to use the

final chord

as a conclusive

criterion

to establish he

finalis

of the

mode

(and

thereforethe

tuning),

taking

nto account

hat,

as Milan

himself

states,

his

chorddoes

not

always

correspond

o the

final

cadence:

Allofthe antasiasonot inishwitha[proper]adence,ince ome inishnaclose

or

consonance,

nd

when

hey

inish

hus

ou

shallnot akeas he

final

adencehe

said

close,

but the lastcadence

made

n

the fantasia

efore heclose.28

This consideration

s

merely

academic for

the

practical

purpose

of

determining

he

tuning:

ven

though

ome

pieces

may

finish

with a seriesof

consonances,

he final chord

is

invariably

based

on

the same

note as

the

conclusive

chordof the final

cadence

(see

Ex.

16)?9

There

is,

besides,

still

EX. 16. Fantasia20

0

.

301

0

10

4

,10

.

01

3

209-214 [cadence

*

Lconsonance

another

way

to

corroborate

he

conclusions

tatedabove.

Each

particular

tuning

(assumed

or

real)

has a

specific

structure

on the

fingerboard,

determined

by

the

place

where

the natural

notes,

and therefore

the

semitones,

are found.

If the

semitones

n the

tablature oincide

with

those

in a

theoretical

diagram,

he

tuning

can be

recognized

with a

reasonable

degreeof certainty.To illustratehispoint,Ex. 17 showsthe diagramshat

correspond

o

the

A

and

E

tunings.

The accidental

notes that

appear

n

the

tablature

an

be accounted

or

by

the

frequency

with which

they

appear,

r

by

taking

nto consideration

he conventions

hatruled

theirnormal

usage,

such

as

the consistent

ubstitution

f

B ~

for

B

6

in the 5th and 6th modes

or

FO

nstead

of

Fk for the

7th

and

8th?oOn

the other

hand,

Ex. 18

provides

12


12/44

EX.

17.

1

2 3

4 5

a

2'"

EX.

18.

2

5

i

"

1 234

578

Fantasia6

EX. 19.

1 2

3

4 5

5

7

Fantasia 14

v

1 2t34L5 6

Fantasia6

i i

v

I

,

v

+atai {Eb @

A o

thediagrams f two pieces (Fantasia 4inA, and 16 in E), showingall the

fretboard ocations

used in the course of them. The

diagrams

n Ex. 19

correspond

o

the same

pieces,

now

with the

accidentalnotes

indicated.

These

examples

how the

complete

tructural ifferencebetween

the

pieces

inA

andE

tunings,

andsince

they agree

with

those

obtainedbased

solely

on

the

theory,

it

may

be concludedthat the

original proposition

s

correct.

Having

established hat a

change

of terminos

eansa

transposition,

t is

worthwhile o remember hat

Bermudo,

when

referring

o the

intabulation

of music,states hatthe playershavetwo differentoptionsto achievethis

end:

'they

either

change

the music

for

the

instrument,

r

they change

the

instrument or the

music';

he also

describes he

'changing

of

the

music'

as

the old

usage,

as

opposed

to

the

changing

of the

instrumentwhich

he

considers

the

practice

of his

time31

The

final

result is the

same

in

the

tablature,

egardless

f the

system

used

to

intabulate,

nd s of

consequence

13


13/44

only

when

transcribing

he

music,

n

whichcasethe

resultwill

depend

upon

the criterion

adopted

for

the

transcription.

The

choice lies between

transcribing

ith the

natural

notes

(assuming

'change

of

instrument'),

r

transposing

he

music

(if

the

'change

of music'

is

adopted

as a

criterion).

The

decisionaboutwhich

method o

use mustbe

determined

by

the

context

in

which the

piece

is

found,

or

the

intendeduse

of the

transcription.

have

chosen to

speak

about'A andE

tunings'

rather hannaturalor

transposed

modes for

two reasons:

first,

because the

different

tunings

show

more

clearly

the different

use of the

available

notes of

the

fretboard,

and

secondly,

because t is

most

probable

hatthis

may

have been the

criterion

adopted

by

Milan

to define his

terminos. he

rubric

o Fantasia 8

provides

the evidence

that

supports

his

hypothesis:

This antasiahat

ollows

belongs

o the6th

mode

..

the8th

may

be

played

n

these

same

laces.

The

difference

s

that,

while

both inishn

thesame

ote

i.e.

fretboard

location]

t will be calledF if it is the6th,andG if it is the

8th32

The final

cadenceof this fantasia

s

reproduced

n Ex.

20,

which

shows

that

thefinalis

of the

superius

s foundat

the

third ret of the first

course?3

f

this fretboard

ocation

s

named

F,

the

open

string

must

produced

a

D,

and

the

tuning

will

therefore

be that

of

a

vihuela

n

D.

On

the

other

hand,

f the

same location

is

namedG

when

playing

n

the 8th

mode,

the

open string

will

produce

an

E,

corresponding

o the

tuning

of

an

E

vihuela.

This

reference

proves

thatMilan

may

have

very

well

followed the trendof the

vihuelists hat

'changed

he instrument'.

Bearing

he above

considerations

in

mind,

the correct ranslation

f terminoould be either

'assumed

tuning'

or

'transposition

f the

mode',

the

former

being

the most

appropriate

n

the

context

of the works of Milan.

EX. 20.

Fantasia38

D

-E

-3 B

.1,I

I

EF#

. ..

II

222-227

D vihuela

S----JI

I

II

3

'k

0

I o.._

--

J.

iO I

1

o

I I o I

'dl.

"

0 I .,-,

I 0 l

-1

I

I3]C3I

Coming

back o the

case

n

whichthere s

a

realneed

to move fret

IV,

it is

precisely

n the

pieces transposed

o

anE

tuning

hatthe

evidence

of

a new

function

or

thisfret

appears, amely

hatof a

flat

orfa

fret. In the courseof

these

pieces

a

semitonebetween

frets

IV

and

V,

or between fret IV and the

14


14/44

open

course

above,

never

occurs,

as

opposed

to the

pieces

in A

tuning

discussed

above. On the

contrary,

the

semitone

is

always

found

between

frets

III

and

IV;

the

case illustrated in Ex. 21 is

typical.

This

general

tendency

does

not

provide,

however,

conclusive evidence of the need

to

displace

the

fret

to a flat

position.

This evidence will

be found

among

the

chords used

in

these

pieces.

In the fantasias in

A

tuning already

examined

the chords that use fret IV can be reduced to the G majormentioned above,

E

major

and

D

major

(Ex. 22).

In

the context of the first

book of El

Maestro,

these

chord-shapes

are nowhere to be

found

among

the

chords

using

fret

IV

in the

E-tuning pieces,

while,

on

the

other

hand,

these latter

pieces

have

chords

using

fret

IV

which

are not to be found

among

the

pieces

in

A

tuning

(Ex.

23).

These

chords,

besides the

basic fact of their

difference,

show

clearly

the

new

function

of fret IV.

Among

the

A-tuning pieces already

considered,

whenever this

fret

was

involved

in

an

octave,

this

was formed

with the

aid of

a

note

on

fret

II,

which is

'sharp'

as well

(see

Ex.

7

and

Ex.

8),

while

in

the

new

chords

the

octave

is

formed above

a

note

on

fret

I,

that

is,

a

flat fret

(Ex.

24).

If fret IV

were to remain

in a

sharp position,

a

case of 'mi'

against

fa',

sharp against

flat,

would

ensue,

with an

inadmissible

result

in

actual sound since

these

notes are not

equivalent

in an

unequal

temperament?4

EX.

21. Fantasia 16

EX.

22.

31

EX.

23.

EX.

24.

Fantasia 16

.

1n 06 I

64

69

The relevance that Bermudo's writings might have in the context of

Milan's

music

may

be

disputable,

but

it

is

noteworthy

that this

theoretician

considered fret

IV

as

diatonic,

and

therefore

as

fixed.

The

only

case

in

which

he

considers it

necessary

to

move

it is for

the

vihuela tuned

in

B.35

f

the

E-tuning

fantasias

were

transcribed

assuming

instead the

B

tuning,

the

resultingfinalis

would be

C;

besides,

the

consistent use of B

gives

rise

to a

15


15/44

scale

structure

imilar o that of

a

modem

major

mode:

in

brief,

such

a

transcription

would

yield

as

a

result fantasias

in C

major

(using

anachronistically

he

modem

term).

This

transposition

was the most

usual

for the 5th

and 6th

modes

during

he

period

when the

vihuela

flourished?6

This

evidence could

be

considered

as an

indirect

confirmation

f

the

need

to

move

fret IV.

Inthe firstbook of ElMaestro,antasias f the 5thand6thmodesappear

both

in the

'transposed'

and

n

the

'normal'

A

tunings.

t

only

remains o

examine

how

fret IV

is

used

in

the

fantasias

f the

5th and

6th modes

that

share he

A

tuning

with those

for which

a

'sharp'

unction

or

the

fret

was

detected.

In Fantasia

5 fret

IV

is

not used

at

all,

but

in

Fantasia

9 and in

Pavan

3

the

chords

found

in the

other modal

groups

are,

again,

missing,

while those

found

n the

'transposed'

unings

are

present

Ex. 25).

The use

of

the fret

in melodic

sequences

also

shows it

as

having

a 'flat' function

(Ex. 26). These examplesprove that,in the firstbook of El Maestro,he

criterion

governing

the function

and

presumably

he location of

fret IV

seems to

be

dictated

by

the

mode

of

the

piece,

regardless

f

the

tuning

involved:

his

fret

hasto

be moved

only

for the

pieces

that

belong

to

the 5th

and6th

modes.

Furthermore,

hroughout

ll the works

n these

modes,

this

fret

is

used

only

for

course3

in the

pieces

nA

tuning,

and

for courses

2

and

3

in

those

in

the

'transposed'

E

tuning,

which

suggests

that the

sharp

function

t

could

have

had in

other courses

has been

consciously

avoided,

leaving the fret free to be placed in the flat position (comparewith

Bermudo's

diagrams

or the

A

and

E

vihuelas,

Ex.

2

and

Ex.

27,

shown

here

with

the

courses

reversed

for

clarity's

ake)?7

EX.

25.

a)

Fantasia

9

66

EX.

26.

Fantasia

19

56-69

b)

Pavan

74

EX.

27.

1

2 3 4

5 6

7

8

9

X

a d l

The

evidence

provided

by

the first

book

of El Maestro

llows

us to

draw

the

following preliminary

onclusions:

16


16/44

a)

Milan uses

different

terminos,

a

word

that

may

be

interpreted

as

a

synonym

of

'assumed

tuning'.

b)

Fret IV can be located in

either of two different

positions,

according

to

the

sharp

or

flat

function it

must

fulfil.

c)

There seems to exist

a

certain

inconsistency

between

the

rubric

to

Fantasia

14,

which states that

fret IV

must be moved when there

is

no

apparentneed, while the cases that effectively require such a displacement

lack

any

indication.

d)

The

position

of fret IV

seems to be dictated

by

the mode of the

piece,

regardless

of

the

tuning.

e)

The

consistent use

of

fret IV

fulfilling only

one

function,

either as

sharp

or

as

flat,

suggests

that Milan

used

a

fretting

scheme that

corresponds

to

an

unequal

temperament;

the most

likely

candidate seems

to

be

the

meantone

temperament.

Milan was, above all, a practicalmusician, and his advice should not be

disregarded

lightly. Up

to this

point

the

rubric that

indicates

fret

IV's

shift

of

position

seems to

be

located at an

inconvenient

place;

to

shed

more

light

on its

implications

it is

necessary

to

examine how

this fret

is

handled

in

the

works

for

solo

vihuela that

appear

in the

second book of El Maestro.

PART II

Some pieces for solo vihuela from the second book of El Maestrodisplay a

different use of fret

IV

as

compared

with the

use detected for

the

works

of

the first

book:

in

the latter

pieces

fret

IV

served

consistently

either

as

flat

or

sharp;

in

some of

the

following pieces

it will

retain

the

same

consistency

of

function,

but in

others

it

shall

be called for

to

provide

both

sharps

and

flats

in

the

course

of the same

piece.

This

inconsistency

will make

it

necessary

to

reconsider,

taking

into

account

the

new

evidence

from

the

second

book,

the

validity

of the

preliminary

conclusions

stated

above,

especially

those

that

refer to the use of the meantone temperament and to the relation between

the

mode

and

the

function of

fret IV.

Milan

declares,

in

the

preface

to the

second

book,

that it differs

from the

first

book in

that the

works

contained in the

second

present

a

greater

degree

of

difficulty,

adding

that

the

first book

'provided

beginning

and

midway',

while

the

second

'provides

the

conclusion'.38 The

first

indication of

a

different

usage,

a

difference

that will

cause

the

inconsistent

use of

fret

IV,

appears

in

the

rubric to

Fantasia

23,

placed

immediately

after

the

preface

to

the second book:

The

fantasia

hat

follows

belongs

to the

first

mode

through

a

different

part

from

that

shown in

the

first

book; thus,

you

shall

see

in

this

second

book the

modes

through

different

parts

n

the

vihuela

from

those

you

have seen in

the

past

book.39

'Through

different

parts'

means the

same

thing

as the

'change

of

terminos'

of the

first

book,

in

other

words,

that

the modes

will

appear

in

different

17


17/44

assumed

tunings

rom those used

in

the first

bookP.4

antasia

3

itself can

confirm

the

correctness

of

this

interpretation.

The

pieces

from the first

mode

in

book one are Fantasias

, 2,

3

and

13;

all

of

them

use the

A

tuning

and

present

as

the

locus

f

D,

thefinalis,

ourse

3

stopped

at

fret

III.

Fantasia

23

'through

different

parts',

on the

other

hand,

has

course

2,

fret

III as

the

locus f

the

finalis,

which

corresponds

o the

E

tuning

(Ex.

28).

A

parallel

may be drawn, besides,between the rubric to Fantasia17 and that of

Fantasia

8.

Fantasia 6's rubricwarns

that

a

change

of

terminos

as

taken

place,

while

Fantasia 7

'goes

through

he

same

terminos

s

the

preceding

fantasia'

see

Appendix

1).

In

a

similar

ashion,

Milan

ndicated hatFantasia

27

'is

of

the

3rd

mode,

which

I

have

changed hrough

other

parts',

ollowed

by

Fantasia

8 which

'goes through

the

same

parts

n

the vihuela

as the

preceding

fantasia'.41

EX.

28.

a n t a s i a s

1,

FantasiasFantasia 3

Fantasia23

1,

2

&

13B

'Terminos' as

been defined

previously

as

a structural

pattern

determined

by

the

use

of

specific

locations

of

the

fretboard,

considering

the term

as a

synonym of 'assumedtuning'. Bearing in mind the way in which Milan uses

this

word in an

instrumental

context the

proposed

definition

is

correct,

but

the consistent use of

accidental notes

-

such

as

B6

for

the

5th

and

6th

modes,

or

F#

for

the 7th and

8th

-

may

cause the

fretboard

patterns

to

vary

without

any

change

in the assumed

tuning.42

These

alterations

make

it

necessary

to

introduce

a new

concept

of

terminos,

ow as structural

patterns

defined

exclusively by

the fretboard locations used in

the

course

of

a

piece,

regardless

of

the assumed

tuning.

It

may

be considered that

the

tuning

corresponds to the terminosapplying the word in a strict sense, while an

isolated

structural

pattern

may

be

interpreted

as

terminos

in

a

wider

sense.

The difference between

the

two

concepts may

be

appreciated

in

Ex.

29;

without

any

elements that could

help

to

establish the

name

of

the notes of

each fretboard

location,

diagram

'a'

does

not illustrate

any

specific tuning.

An examination of the

places

where

semitones

occur

may

induce

one to

think that this

diagram corresponds

to

an E

tuning (diagram

b)

but it also

could be interpreted as an A tuning where Bk is used consistently, as it

would

happen

with the

5th

and

6th modes

(diagram

c),

or even to

a

B

tuning

with

consistent

F

sharps,

as

would be

the

case

for

the

7th

and 8th

modes

(diagram

d).

These variants

prevent

the identification of

the

absolute

terminos

f

a

work

using

the

assumed

tuning

as

the

sole basis:

the structural

pattern

must

also be

taken

into

account

and vice versa.

A

clear

example

of

18


18/44

EX.

29.

a)

1

2

3

4

5

b)

1

2

3

4 5

c)1234 5

d)1

2345

E

F

A nutk

B--4'

-

Ls

A,

LC

DI

w

C~ C~M%

this

ambiguity appears

in

Fantasia

38,

of

the

6th

mode,

whose rubric

points

out that 'the 8th may be played in these same places' (see p. 14), concluding

that the

only

difference will

reside in the names

assigned

to

thefinalis:

F

for

the 6th mode

and G for the

8th.

The

consistent use

of Bk

in

the sixth

mode

and

FO

in

the 8th

produces

similar

scales

in

both

modes,

whose

structure

corresponds

to that of an

Ionian

or modern

major;

if

the

only things

that

change

are the names of the notes on the

fretboard,

it is evident that

exactly

the same fretboard locations will be

used,

thus

shaping

a similar structural

pattern,

even

though

the

assumed

tuning

will be different since the

same

fretboard locations bear the names of different notes (see Ex. 30).

EX.

30.

1 2 3

4

5 1

2 3

4 5

f

AD

,B

A

LL_

E

F,,

:'

C

D

E.,"I.?

II

T

n

D

--

f-

,,,

'C"

'=

G

EI

. .

The

problem

of

fret IV's

function is

closely

related to the

use of

terminos

through

'other

parts';

it will

therefore be useful

to

classify

the

tunings

and

structural

patterns

that Milan

used

in

the

second book

of El

Maestro.The

tunings

can be

established

following

the

procedure

outlined

above: the

finalis

is determined

from the

mode,

as

mentioned

in

the

rubric;

thefinalis

is

then

located

in

the final

cadence in

order to find its

place

in

the

fretboard,

and,

finally,

all

the fretboard

locations

used

in

the course of

the

piece

are

drawn in a diagram.The tuning is deduced from the place of thefinalis, and

the

fretboard

locations are

examined

in

order to check if

they

correspond

to

the

'natural

notes' or

'key-signature'

accidentals

of the

mode,

and

that the

rest of

the

accidentals

are

congruent

with

those

generally

associated

with

the

mode in

question.3

Taking

into

account the

places

where

consecutive

numbers

appear,

this

analysis

also

allows one to

ascertain

between

which

19


19/44

frets the

semitones

occur,

and

therefore to establish if a

specific

fret

functions

as

sharp

or

flat,

as

well

as the

structural

pattern

of the

piece.

As a

result of this

analysis,

it

emerged

that Milan

used the

following tunings

(in

order

of

appearance):

E,

nine

pieces;

F#,

five

pieces;

D,

two

pieces;

A,

five

pieces;

and

B,

one

piece

(see

Appendix

1).

The

classification of

the

structural

patterns

requires

a

system

that

groups

in a logical and coherent manner all the different possibilities of using the

fretboard. The easiest

way

of

achieving

this is to

start from the most obvious

case: that the structural

pattern

of the

piece

coincides with

the

pattern

inherent to the

tuning.

A clear

case

may

be found

in

Fantasia

4,

of the 1st

mode

in A

tuning,

where the

use

of

accidentals does not alter

perceptively

the natural

pattern

of the

tuning

(see

Ex.

31;

note also the

inconsistent use

of fret I).

EX.

31.

1

2 3

4

5

E

Dww

#

b b

This

graphic diagram

may

be also

expressed numerically:

the

notes

on

the sixth course

are A and

C,

corresponding

to

the

open string

and

fret

III,

that is, 03; if the

missing

diatonic note is introduced

(in

this case B

),

the

result

will be 023.

In

order to

define

a

structural

pattern,

as

determined

by

the natural notes

of the

scale,

it is

necessary

to take into account

only

the

numbers

for four

notes

in

two courses: this

covers the

range

of

a

seventh.

The

structural

pattern

of

the A

tuning may

be thus

expressed

as

(6)0235/

(5)0235;

this

pattern

will

henceforward be

referred

to as

group

1.

Following

the

same

procedure,

the

following groups

were

established

(see

Ex.

32):

EX. 32. Group1: (6)0235/(5)0235, 1 2 3 4 5

corresponding

o

A

i

Group

2:

(6)0135/(5)0235,

A

corresponding

o

E

I

Group

3:

(6)-135/(5)0135,

__I

corresponding

o

F#

?

Group

4:

(6)0235/(5)0245,

G

I

-

correspondingo D

D

E- -

Group

5:

(6)0135/(5)0135,

E[ ]i

-

1

1

r

corresponding

o

B

-

-Se

All

these structural

patterns

were used

by

Milan,

although

in

some cases

they

do

not

correspond

to the

tuning

from which

they

were

drawn. For

20


20/44

example:

Fantasia

35 in

A

tuning belongs

to the 8th

mode,

whose

'key

signature'

requires consistently

F#;

this

accidental

is

found,

among

other

locations,

in

course

5,

fret

IV,

thus

presenting

the

pattern

(6)0235/(5)0245

which

corresponds

to the D

tuning,

or

group

4.

In this

case,

the

absolute

terminos f the

piece

are

A,

group

4,

hereafter referred

to as A4

(see

Ex.

33).

The

patterns

that follow

the

structure dictated

by

the natural

notes

of

its

tuning will receive the group number that corresponds to the tuning: Al,

E2,

F#3

and

D4;

the

B

tuning appears

only

in one

piece (Fantasia34),

with

the

group

2

structural

pattern

(B2).

The

use

of

accidentals

may

give

rise to

a

great

variety

of

tuning/pattern

combinations;

among

the

number

of

possibilities,

Milan

uses the

following

in

his

pieces

for solo

vihuela:

First

book:

Al,

without

accidentals

(sixteen

pieces)

A2,

with

B6

(three

pieces)

A4,

with

F#

(six pieces)

E5,

with

B6

(three

pieces)

Second book:

A4,

with

F#

(five

pieces)

E2,

without

accidentals

(five

pieces)

E5,

with

Bb

(four

pieces)

F#3,

without

accidentals

(five

pieces)

D1,

with

B6

(one

piece)

B2,

with

FO

(one

piece).

EX.

33.

1

2

3 4 5

A4

I

I

|

D

GD

IW

rI

,

l

EX. 34.

1 2 3 4

5

D6

,

"

1 2

3

45't

..

C

L

EiLi

Ti'

The piece that remains to make up the total of fifty works for solb

vihuela

in

El

Maestro,

Tiento 4 of

the 7th

and

8th

modes,

presents

the

D

tuning,

but the

FO

gives

rise

to a

new

structural

pattern

that

fits

the

G

tuning,

(6)0245/(5)0245,

which

corresponds

to

group

6

(see

Ex.

34).

Milan

uses

thus a

total

of

nine

tuning/pattern

combinations,

four

where

the

tuning

and

the

pattern

coincide,

and

five

that

could be

denominated as

'accidental'

(see

Appendix 1).

This

classification

of the

terminos

ccording

to the

tuning

and

structural

group

will

be

particularly helpful

for

the

study

of how

Milan

uses the patterns in relation to the modes, and the bearing that these

elements

can

have

upon

the

function

of

fret

IV.44

As

stated

above,

the

tablature

analysis

can

show,

among

other

things,

the

function

that a

particular

fret fulfils in

a

specific

piece.

This

analysis

was

carried

out for

all

the

solo

vihuela

pieces

in

El

Maestro

with a

particular

attention

to

fret

IV,

and

it

emerged

that

this fret

can

operate

in

three

21


21/44

different

ways:

as a

sharp,

as a

flat,

or

inconsistently,

providing sharps

for

some courses and flats

for

others.

Ex.

35 from

Fantasia23

shows

an

example

of the

last case.

The flat

function is

clearly

defined in

bars 131-132

by

means

of the Bk

of course

3,

which

forms

octaves with

the B flats of

frets

I

and

VI,

also flat

(Ex.

35a);

course 3 in

fret

IV

provides

B

flats

throughout

the

whole

piece.

This same

fret,

however,

also

provides

sharps

for

courses

1

and

4 (see Ex. 35b, bars150-152, where the G# of course 1 cadences to the A of

fret

V).

This kind

of inconsistent

behaviour that

appears

only

in

the

second

book,

combined with the wider

variety

of

terminos,

uggests

that the

more

complex

and

different use

of

fret

IV,

as well as of

the

terminos

hemselves,

could be due to

didactical reasons:

it

may

have

happened

that

Milan

considered

that when

the

pupil

had

finished with

the first

book

he

should be

familiar

enough

with its

straightforward

terminos,

and

increased the

difficulty by

including

the more

problematic

ones. This

hypothesis

is

consistent with Milan's meticulousness on indicating the mode of all of his

pieces

for solo vihuela and

by

which

'parts' they

can

be

played,

a

concern

that is

manifest

throughout

his

work and reiterated in

the

preface

to the

second

book,

when

he

states

that

in

it

'the modes will

be seen in

other

parts

of the vihuela'.45

EX.35.

Fantasia 3

Oa

b-

15-

31-132

150-152

The

use of

fret

IV

in

three different

ways

creates two

broad

groups

of

pieces:

those where the use

is

consistent

(whether

flat or

sharp),

and

those

where the use is inconsistent. The pieces of the second book may be

classified

following

this criterion as follows:

a)

Consistent

use: Flat: Fantasias

32,

33 and

Tiento 3

Sharp:

Fantasias

34-38,

40 and Tiento 4

b)

Inconsistent:

Fantasias

23-31,

39 and Tientos 1-2.

The

inconsistency

may vary

between

the

occasional

appearance

of a

sharp

when the fret functions

as flat and

vice-versa,

to the

recurrent

use of

the conflicting function. In order to distinguish these cases two further

categories

were

created:

minimal

inconsistency,

when the

conflicting

function

appears only

once or

twice in

the course of

the

piece,

and maximal

inconsistency

for a

more

extended

use.

The

pieces

with minimal

inconsistency

are Fantasias26-31 and

Tiento

2. Those that

present

maximal

inconsistency

are

Fantasias

23-25,

39 and Tiento 1.

Using

the

classification

22


22/44

established

above,

and

including

the modes

of the

pieces, they

form

the

following

groups:

a)

Consistent

use,

fret IV

flat:

E5,

5th

and 6th

modes: Fantasias

32,

33 and

Tiento 3

b)

Consistent

use,

fret

IV

sharp:

D1, 6th mode, Fantasia38

A4,

7th and

8th

modes,

Fantasias 34-37 and

40

D6,

7th

and

8th

modes,

Tiento 4

c)

Minimal

inconsistency:

E2,

3rd and

4th modes: Fantasia

26

F#3,

3rd and 4th

modes:

Fantasias 27-30 and

Tiento

2

E5,

6th

mode: Fantasia 31

d)

Maximal

inconsistency:

E2, 1st and 2nd modes: Fantasias23-25 and Tiento 1

B2,

7th

and 8th

modes: Fantasia

39.

The

presence

of

inconsistency,

even

though

it

may

be

minimal,

in

Fantasia

31 of the

6th

mode

in

E5 suggests

that Fantasias32 and

33,

as

well

as

Tiento

3,

of the

5th and 6th

modes in

E5

as

well,

pertain

to the

same

category

of terminoswhere

fret IV

is

open

to

an

inconsistent treatment.

On

the

other

hand,

the

pieces

from the first

book where fret IV

functions as flat

can

be

classified

thus:

A2,

5th and 6th

modes,

Fantasia

19 and Pavan 3

E5,

5th

and

6th

modes,

Fantasias

16-17 and

20.

It

can

be

appreciated

that

three

of

these

pieces

also

belong

to

the

5th and

6th

modal

group

with

E5

terminos,

and are therefore

subject

to the

considerations

expressed

above

regarding

their

potential inconsistency.

As

a

result

of this

brief

examination,

it

may

be

concluded that

fret

IV

has a

consistent

function

only

for the

A and D

tunings.

In

both of these

tunings

fret IV

is

sharpby

definition,

a

fact that

may help

to

explain

the

consistency

of this

function in

this

context.46

There

is

also the

possibility

of

usirig

fret

IV

as

a flat

in the

A2

terminos,

but

taking

care

of

avoiding

the

courses

where it

should

provide

sharps,

as

Milan does

when he uses

this fret

only

for

course

3

in

the

5th

and 6th

mode

pieces

included

in

the

first

book

(see

above,

pp.

16-17

and Ex.

36).

This

extraordinary

use

of

fret

IV,

which

could

almost be

considered as

artificial

in its

avoidance of five

courses,

makes it

plausible

that

Milan,

in

order

to be

consistent with

his

didactical

policies,

EX.

36.

1

2 3 4

E

(B)

D

23


23/44

and

to

show

'where' on the vihuela

the

5th

and 6th

modes

could

be

played

in

an

A

tuning

(the

one

he

preferred

to use

throughout

the first

book),

composed

these

pieces

with a

special

care,

fully

aware that these

terminos

might

not

have

been the most

adequate.

This

hypothesis

is

supported by

the

fact

that in the

second

book

no further

pieces

of

this

modal

group

appear

in

A

tuning,

and

specially,

that the

first fantasia

of the

5th and

6th

modes to

appear in El Maestro(No. 15) completely avoids the use of fret IV. If this

hypothesis

is

correct,

it

may

be

postulated

as a

conclusion

that

fret

IV

functions

consistently

only

in

the A

and

D

tunings,

and that its

function

in

these cases

is,

mainly,

that

of

providing sharps.

The rubric

to Fantasia

14 is

not the

only

one

to advise

shifting

fret IV.

As

already

mentioned,

similar

instructions

can

be

found

in

the rubric to the

Romance 'Con

pavor

recordol moro'which

appears

in

the

second

book;

it is

worthwhile

to

state them

again:

(When]playing hrough hesepartsnthevihuela,youshouldraise hefourth reta

little

towards he

pegs

of the

vihuela.7

The rubrics

of

the

pieces

for voice

and

vihuela

of

El Maestrodo not offer

any

information

concerning

the

mode of

the

piece

in

question;

the

identification of

the

tuning

must be therefore

accomplished

through

the

analysis

of the

music and

the

tablature itself. The

accompaniment

of Con

pavor

follows

definitely

instrumental

lines,

chords and

scales,

and

consequently

does not have

a

well-defined

superius:

hese circumstances

forced the choice of the vocal

part

as the basisto determine the modality of

this

work.8

In

the scale

of

the

voice

part

of

Con

pavor

he first third

is

minor,

occasionally

altered

ascendingly,

which

corresponds

to

a minor

mode,

while

the

range

fits

that of

an

authentic

mode;

thus the

options

are

restricted to the 1st

or

3rd

modes whose tonic notes

are D

and E

respectively.

The

organization

of the

intervals makes

it

clear

that

this

piece

must

be

in

the 1st

mode,dsince

using

E

as

the

tonic would

produce

an

unnatural amount of unusual

alterations

(it

would

begin

F

, F#, At,

B,

etc., see Appendix 3). The

tuning

assumed for this

piece

is therefore D, and

the

fingerboard

locations

correspond

to

the structural

pattern

4:

(6)0235/

(5)0245

(see

Ex.

37a).

In

the

D

tuning

fret

IV must

provide

sharps,

and this is

precisely

what

happens

in this

piece;

in

fact,

it

may

be

confirmed

with the

chord

in Ex.

38,

where an

octave

appears

between

a

note

in fret IV

and

another

in fret

II,

also

sharp.

It

has

already

been

mentioned

that in the

context

of the first

book

the

chords that use

fret

IV form two

different,

mutually

exclusive

groups,

according

to the function of flat

or

sharp

they

must fulfil. This rule still operates in most of the second book, with a few

exceptions

that

will

be discussed

presently

(see

Appendix

4).

Fantasia

14

with

Al

terminos,

on

the other

hand,

also uses

the

chords from

the

sharp

group,

and

presents

a similar structure of terminos o that of Con

pavor;

the

difference

in

course 5

Documents

You Will Raise a Little Your 4th Fret