Pour un plaisir

lntabulations by Antonio de Cabez6n and his contemporaries

for Renaissance double harp

Antonio de Cabez6n 1510-1566

Canci6n Francesca (Clemens non Papa)
Tiento Primo tono
Differencias sobre el canto llano de! Caballero
Tiento de! quarto tono sobre Maheur me bat
Differencias sobre la gallarda milanesa

2'06
1'28
2'56
2'40
2'19

Alonso Mudarra c.1510-1580

Tiento para harpa 6 organo

0'59

7
8

Anchor que col partire (Cipriano de Rore)

Pavana (con su glosa)

2'56
2'39

Juan de Cabez6n c.1510-1566

Quien Ilamo al partir partir

2'06

10

Francisco Fernandez Palero c.1533-1597

Mort m'a prive par sa cruelle envie

2'30

1
2
3
4

Antonio de Cabez6n

Antonio de Cabez6n
11 Tres 'Sobre el canto llano de la alta'

2'32

12 Tiento Cuarto tono

13 Pour un plaisir (Thomas Crecquillon)
14 Romance 'Para quien crie yo cabellos'

3'16
2'23
1'38

Anonymous
15 Tienco Secondo tono

1'35

Antonio de Cabez6n
16 Je suis ayme de la plus belle (Crecquillon)

2'47

17

Anonymous
Cinque differencias sobre Las Vacas

2'01

18

Hernando de Cabez6n 1541-1602

Doulce Memoire (Pierre Sandrin)

3'55

Veronique Musson-Gonneaud Renaissance double harp

Renaissance double harp: Eric Kleinmann, 2006 (after the double harp conserved in Bologne)
Harpe double de Eric Kleinmann, 2006 (d'apres la harpe double conservee a Bologne)
Sources
Obras de n1usica para tecla, arpa y vihuela de Antonio de Cabez6n
('Works of Music for Keyboard, Harp and Vihuela' by Antonio Cabez6n, Madrid,

1578)

Libra de Cifra Nueva para tecla, arpa y vihuela de Luys Venegas de Henestrosa ('Book of New Tablarure for
Keyboard, Harp and Vihuela' by Luys Venegas de Henestrosa, Alcala de Henares, 1557)

Tres /ibros de nuisica en cifras para vihuela - Alonso Mudarra

('Three Books of Music in Tablarure for Vihuela' by Alonso Mudarra, Seville,

1546)

The early harp, Cabez6n and his contemporaries

The most significant development in the pre-modern harp was the addition of chromatic strings, a
decisive step that enabled the transformation of the diatonic medieval harp into an instrument that
could serve the musical needs of the modern age. In 1555, the Spanish theorist Juan Bermudo
observed the need for such innovations and described various possible ways to adapt existing harps;
within 25 years it had become a fait accompli and every one of the. things he had described as a
limitation or imperfection of the harp in his Declaraci6n de instrumentos musicales had been
remedied. This was principally through the addition of a second rank of strings, effectively the black
keys of the clavichord.
We get some idea of how this may have happened by reading Bermudo in conjunction with
books by his contemporaries Alonso Mudarra and Luis Venegas de Henestrosa. In Tres libros de
musica para tafzer vihuela (1546), Mudarra gives us a taste of both the old and the new. The older
style is vividly portrayed in his Fantasia que contrahaze la harpa en la manera de Ludovico that
reproduces on the vihuela some of the early 16th-century techniques for which the Italian harpist
was legendary, especially the use of the thumb to raise the strings by a semitone to produce
cadential leading tones. As Bermudo recalls, these older harps had between 24 and 27 strings,
starting on C below Gamaut, but he also tells us that the harp was not widely played in Spain, and
that there were no notable players worth mentioning other than Ludovico.
Mudarra's second contribution, a tiento (track 6) 'for harp or organ', is the closest thing that we
have to genuine harp music from the 16th century. Although presented as an addendum to the Tres
libros de musica - a demonstration of Mudarra's newly invented tablature - the author also tells us
that it was the opening piece of an entire book for harp that he had composed but never published.
Despite the harmonic and contrapuntal simplicity of the brief tiento, it should not be considered an
exception or an experiment, but a real example of mid-16th-century harp music. By contrast, the
music of the later sources - both the Libra de cifra nueva para tee/a, harpa y vihuela (1557) by
Venegas de Henestrosa and the Libra de musica para tee/a, harpa y vihuela (1578) by Hernando de
Cabez6n - is more sophisticated and requires a harp of greater capabilities, an instrument that
Bermudo says he had 'envisaged, seen and heard' and that was 'as perfect as the clavichord', with
five extra chromatic strings in each octave. Such arpas de dos 6rdenes are listed in Spanish
inventories from 1580, and correspond chronologically with Vincenzo Galilei's references to the

Italian arpa doppia in 1581. By the mid-1?th century, distinct Spanish and Italian harps had
developed, the former with two ranks of crossed strings, while the Italian double harp had two or
three rows of parallel strings. It is likely that in the time of Cabez6n and Venegas these different
styles of instrument had not yet taken on a national identity.
Venegas's book was primarily for keyboard instruments, though also for harp and vihuela The
book's great novelty is its notation, a clear numerical tablarure that maintains the integrity of the
polyphonic voices. But Venegas had bigger dreams: he saw the potential for his new tablarure to
become a universal standard notation for all polyphonic solo instruments. To prove his point he
drew from a wide number of sources. None were specifically for harp: most were for keyboard, and
twenty pieces were adapted from lute and vihuela compositions. This point is highly significant as
Venegas was aware of the enormous number of lute and vihuela tablarures that had been printed
during the 1540s and 1550s and wished to place this music at the disposal of keyboard and harp
players - offering a simple system for converting lute tablarures into his new notation, to 'open the
door on this music' as he said. His idea was novel, and the idea of free interchange of repertoire
between those instruments was probably also new, rather than having been a common practice.
Hernando de Cabez6n, by contrast, does not appear to have been so ecumenically minded, despite
his appropriation of the epithet 'para tecla, harpa y vihuela'. In the extensive prologue of his Libra,
the harp and vihuela appear only to have been added as something of an afterthought to a collection
of keyboard music by Antonio de Cabez6n, the outstanding keyboard composer of his time.
Most of the music recorded here is by Antonio de Cabezon. Born in the province of Burgos
around 1510 and blind from childhood, Cabez6n spent most of his life in Royal service, initially
from 1526 in the household of Queen Isabella, wife of Charles V, then passing into the king's
service in 1538 and finally into chapel of Philip II, where he remained until his death in 1566. Two
other pieces are anonymous works gathered by Venegas, and there is one work each by Francisco
Fernandez Palero (c.1533-1597, organist in the Royal Chapel in Granada for over 40 years),
Alonso Mudarra (c.1510-1580) and Hernando de Cabez6n (1541-1602, Antonio's son and
successor as organist at the Spanish court).
The present selection from the Venegas and Cabez6n books fits the harp beautifully and also
gives a balanced representation of the principal genres of the repertoire: intabulations, dances,
variations and tientos. The intabulations are solo keyboard arrangements of chansons and madrigals
by some of the most renowned mid-century composers - Clemens, Cipriano, Sandrin and

Crecquillon - in which the original vocal music is embellished to varying degrees. The pieces derived
from dance music include a Pavana and Gagliarda whose harmonic schemes also serve as the basis
for variation writing, and a piece entitled 'Tres' that adds two new voices in the old style above a
cantus firmus drawn from a basse dance tenor. The use of variation technique in some of these
dances blurs the boundary between dance and variarion genres and their popular origins. On the
other hand, the tientos are instrumental compositions of a different order, freely composed
polyphonic fantasias or ricercars with a level of artifice and sophistication that is best compared
with the motets of the leading polyphonists of the age.
John Griffiths, 2012

' Para arpa ?

There are still many unanswered questions concerning the harp in the late-Renaissance period in
Spain. The little that is known is that the arpa de dos 6rdenes, with crossed strings, was already in
use by the end of the 16th century but did not become widespread until the following centuries,
while the arpa doppia, with parallel rows of strings, originated in Italy but enjoyed its greatest
success in the Spanish Kingdom of Naples.
Today, it is impossible to say whether or not the harp played here (based on the double harp
conserved in Bologne) would have been used in Spaiu at the time. But the aim is also to build a
repertoire for this relatively unknown instrument, and this cannot be achieved without
experimentation. Among the pieces, therefore, that first appeared to be unsuitable for the arpa
doppia, some brought out the musical and technical subtleties of the instrument, while others did
not. In early music, exploration of the music is just as important as the study of sources or the
experiments of instrument builders, and paradoxically makes full sense of art and creativity within
the confines of musicological knowledge.
Veronique Musson-Gonneaud, 2012

,!

La harpe, Cabez6n et ses contemporains

Le developpement le plus singulier que connut la harpe avant Jes pedales fut l'adjonction de cordes
chromatiques qui permit la transformation de la harpe medievale (diatonique) en un instrument
adapte aux exigences musicales des temps modernes. En 1555, le thforicien espagnol Juan Bermudo
temoignait de ce besoin d'innovation et decrivait Jes differents moyens d'adapter les harpes
existantes. En 35 ans la transformation etait accomplie : l'ajout d'une deuxieme rangee de cordes
correspondant aux

touches noires du clavicorde

avait permis de remfdier a tout ce que la

Declaraci6n de instrumentos musicales denonait comme erant Jes imperfections de la harpe.

Croiser la lecture de Bermudo avec les recueils musicaux de ses contemporains, Alonso Mudarra
et Luis Venegas de Henestrosa, donne une idee de cerre evolution. Dans ses Tres libros de musica
para taizer vihuela (1546), Mudarra, presente Jes deux etats de la harpe: L'ancien est illustre par la
Fantasia qui contrefait la harpe ii la manii!re de Ludovico, qui reproduit pour la vihuela quelques
unes des techniques qui firent la legende de ce harpiste iralien du debut du 16' siecle, notamment
!'usage du pouce pour produire les demi-tons et permettre ainsi les cadences. Comme ii le rappelle,
ces harpes avaient 24 ou 27 cordes commenanr au do grave sous Gammaut, mais e lles n'eraienr
pas repandues en Espagne et ii ne mentionne aucun autre harpiste notable.
La deuxieme contribution de Mudarra est un Tiento 'pour harpe ou orgue', temoignage le plus
important que nous ayons de la musique pour harpe au 16' siecle. Bien qu'il soit presente comme un
addendum aux Tres libros, !'auteur nous dit que c'est la premiere piece d'un livre entier consacre ii
la harpe qu'il a compose mais jamais publie. En depit de sa simplicite harmonique et
contrapuntique, ce bref Tiento ne doit pas erre considere comme une exception ou une simple
experimentation de la nouvelle tablature qu'il illustre, mais comme un exemple reel de la musique
pour harpe de l'epoque. En revanche, la musique plus complexe des sources posterieures (Libro de
cifra nueva para tee/a, harpa y vihuela de Henestrosa, 1557, Libro de musica para tee/a, harpa y
vihuela de H. de Cabez6n, 1578), requiere une harpe plus sophistiquee, telle celle que Bermudo dit
avoir considfrfe, vue et entendue
et qui, grice a l'ajout de cordes chromatiques ftait, selon Jui,
aussi parfaite que le clavicorde "De tels instruments sont inventories en Espagne a partir de 1580
sous le nom de arpa de dos ordones et correspondent chronologiquement a la arpa doppia
decrite par Galilei en 1581. Avant le milieu du 17 siecle, deux harpes distinctes se sont ainsi
developpees en Espagne et en ltalie, la premiere avec deux rangees de cordes croisees, la seconde

avec deux (puis trois) rangees de cordes paralleles. Au temps de Cabez6n et Venegas cependant, ces
instruments n'avaient pas encore d'identite nationale stricte.
Le Libra de cifra nueva de Henestrosa etait initialement destine aux instruments a clavier, mais
egalement a la harpe et a la vihuela. La grande nouveaute de ce livre en etait la notation : une
tablature numerique claire permettant de rendre compte de l'ensemble des voix polyphoniques.
Venegas avait un reve plus grand encore : ii voulait que cette tablarure devienne le standard d'une
notation universelle pour rous les instruments solistes. Pour montrer que c'etait possible, ii edita un
grand nombre de pieces tirees de diverses sources. Si aucune n'etait specifiquement pour harpe mais
la plupart pour clavier, vingt pieces etaient adaptees des ceuvres originales pour luth et vihuela. II est
significatif que Venegas ait souhaite mettre l'enorme corpus de tablatures pour luth imprime clans
les annees 1540-1550 a la disposition des clavifristes et des harpistes, en proposant un systeme
simple de transposition d'une notation a l'autre, afin, d' ouvrir la porte a cette musique
C'etait
nouveau, et l'idee d'interchanger les repertoires etait probablement rout aussi nouvelle.
S'il utilise la meme expression " para tecla, arpa y vihuela
Hernando de Cabez6n ne semble
pas avoir ete dispose au meme cecumenisme. La harpe et la vihuela apparaissent, clans son long

>,

prologue, comme ajoutees apres coup, aux compositions du plus remarquable des compositeurs
pour clavier du temps, Antonio de Cabez6n.
La plupart de la musique enregistree ici est d'Antonio de Cabez6n. Ne clans la province de
Burgos vers 1510, aveugle depuis l'enfance, Cabez6n passa la plus grande partie de sa vie au service
royal : depuis 1526 a la maison d'Isabelle la Portugaise, epouse de Charles Quint, ii entra au service
du roi en 1538 et enfin a la Chapelle de Philippe II ou ii resta jusqu'a sa mort en 1566. Sont
egalement representes : Francisco Fernandez Palero (+1597), l'un des plus grands pairs de Cabez6n
qui passa plus de quarante ans comme organiste a la chapelle royale de Grenade, Alonso Mudarra
(c.1510-1580), et Hernando (1541-1602), le fils et successeur d'Antonio a la cour espagnole.
Le programme, tire des livres d'Henestrosa et de Cabez6n, presente une selection qui convient
tres bien a la harpe et donne une representation equilibree des principaux genres du repertoire :
tablarures, danses variations et tientos. Les tablatures sont des arrangements pour clavier de
chansons et madrigaux des plus celebres compositeurs du temps (Clemens non Papa, de Rore,
Sandrin, Crecquillon) clans lesquels la musique vocale originale est ornementee a differents degres.
La pavane et la gaillarde (dont le schema harmonique sert ensuite de base pour des diminutions qui
Jes eloignent de leur origine populaire) derivent de la musique de danse, ainsi que Tres, ou deux
-

voix contrapuntiques se superposent, dans le style ancien, ii un cantus firmus issu d'un tenor de
basse-danse. Les tientos sont, quant ii eux, assimilables aux fantaisies et ricercare contemporains : ce
sont des compositions polyphoniques ex nihilo, elevees ii un degre de sophistication comparable aux
motets des plus grands polyphonistes du temps.
John Griffiths
Traduction : Veronique Musson-Gonneaud

( Para arpa ?
Que sait-on aujourd'hui de la pratique de la harpe ii la fin de la Renaissance en Espagne? Encore
peu de choses. La arpa de dos ordones, ii cordes croisees, est accescee ii la fin du siecle, mais ne fut
vraiment repandue qu'aux siecles suivants ; candis que la arpa doppia, ii cordes paralleles, nait en
Italie avant de connaitre son plus grand succes au royaume espagnol de Naples.
Aujourd'hui on ne sait pas si !'instrument utilise pour cet enregistrement (d'apres la harpe double
conservee ii Bologne) aurait pu erre ou non en usage en Espagne. Mais ii s'agit aussi de construire
un repertoire pour cet instrument meconnu et c'est par d'incessants allers-retours qu'on y parvient.
Ainsi parfois, des pieces que l'on pensait inadaptees, s'averent reveler couces les subtilites sonores et
techniques de l'instrument, er vice-versa.
En musique ancienne, la recherche musicale est aussi importance que le travail sur les sources et
le tii.tonnement des luthiers, donnant paradoxalement tout son sens ii la creation et ii !'art dans le
respect des connaissances musicologiques.
Veronique Musson-Gonneaud

Veronique Musson-Gonneaud
Since the late 1990s Veronique Musson
Gonneaud has devoted herself to the
study and performance of early harps,
dating from the Middle Ages to the
late-1Sth century and the advent of the
early pedal harp.
After completing her studies in modern
harp and performing on the Celtic harp, she
studied early music with lutenists Hopkinson
Smith and Eugene Ferre and harpist
Mara Galassi. She graduated from the
Conservatoire National Superieur de
Musique et de Danse de Lyon and then
furthered her studies at the Scuola Civica
of Milan.
She gives concerts in France and abroad, both as soloist and continua player, and also with
her ensemble Musica Humana, which was founded in 2007. She teaches the harp and early music
at Ivry-sur-Seine and Palaiseau Conservatories, and at the Center of Medieval Music in Paris.
She also founded Pop'Harpe (2010), an association designed to promote cardboard harps, as an
economical and musically interesting way to discover the instrument.
She is particularly interested in the repertoire, history and organology of harps, and has presented
papers on these subjects at various conferences. Most recently she presented her findings on Bray
Pins at the Conference on Interdisciplinary Musicology in Paris in October 2009.
Veronique Musson-Gonneaud se consacre depuis plus d'une dizaine d'annees ii la redecouverte des
harpes anciennes, du Moyen-Age au premieres harpes ii pedales.
Apres un prix d'excellence en harpe moderne, une pratique assidue de la harpe celtique et une
maitrise de philosophie, elle a etudie ces differents instruments et leurs repertoires avec Jes luthistes
Eugene Ferre et Hopkinson Smith, et la harpiste Mara Galassi. Dipl6mee du Conservatoire National
Supfrieur de Lyon, elle s'est ensuite perfectionnee ii la Scuola Civica de Milan.

10

En rant qu'artisre invitee, solisre, ou avec son ensemble, Musica Humana fonde en 2007,
elle donne regulieremenr des concerts en France er a l'erranger.
Professeur d'enseignemenr artistique, titulaire du Certificar d'Aptitude, elle enseigne aux
Conservatoires d'Jvry-sur-Seine et Palaiseau, ainsi qu'au Centre de Musique Medievale de Paris.
Elle est aussi a l'origine de !'association Pop'Harpe creee en 2010 pour la diffusion, !'invention
et le developpement de harpes en carton, a la fois economiques et musicalemenr inti'ressantes.
Particulieremenr inri'ressee par le repertoire, l'histoire, et l'organologie de ses instruments, elle
est regulieremenr appelee a participer a des conferences et a publier des travaux de recherche
(notamment une i'tude remarquee sur les harpions en usage au Moyen-Age).

http://www.harpes-anciennes.com

Acknowledgements
A big thank you to Andre and Arlette Andreini, Madame Franceschi, and Jean-Claude Galetti
from Pietracorbara (Corsica), as well as to Daniel Ungar, Chloe Beccaria and Susan King for their
precious help in English. I am also immensely grateful to Miguel Yisrael and John Griffiths for their
help, advice and wise counsel.
Remerciements
Un grand merci a Andre et Arlette Andreini, Madame Franceschi, et Jean-Claude Galetti maire de
Pietracorbara en Corse, ainsi qu'a Daniel Ungar, Chloe Beccaria er Susan King pour leur precieuse
aide en anglais. Un immense merci a Miguel Yisrael et a John Griffiths pour leur aide et leurs
conseils toujours chaleureux et pertinenrs.
Recording: Seprember 2010, Chapelle Saint-Ancoine, Pietracorbara, Corsica, France
Produced, engineered and edited by Philippe Gonneaud
Cover image: El Greco, 'El cabellero de la rnano en el pecho', detail

2010 & 2012 Brilliant Classics

11