Go From My Window by Anonymous (16th century) Variations on popular dances and ballads make up a large part of the English lute repertoire. In the case of this charming composition, the ballad tune “Go From My Window” is presented in measures 1-8, and is followed by four eight measure variations. With the 3rd (G) …
Toy 3 by Anonymous (16th century) One of hundreds of anonymous lute pieces of 16th century England, this piece is from the Jane Pickering Lute Book, a manuscript collection of a dedicated amateur. A toy is a simple piece for the lute or keyboard based either on dances such as a jig or alman, or …
Allemande by Anonymous (16th century) Though one of the most popular dances of the Baroque era (1600-1750), the allemande originated around the early or mid-16th century. The first known use of the title “allemande” was in 1521, but in Germany earlier examples of this type of dance appear as “Teutscertanz” or “Dantz”.
Study No 1 (Estudio Sencillos) by Leo Brouwer (1939) Juan Leovigildo Brouwer Mezquida is a Cuban composer, conductor and guitarist. He is the grandson of Cuban composer Ernestina Lecuona Casado. Brouwer is best known for his performances and guitar compositions of modern music.
Se Io m’accorgo by Anonymous (16th century) The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the 13th century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe.
La Volta by Anonymous (16th century) The volta is an anglicised name for a Renaissance dance for couples from the later Renaissance. This dance was associated with the galliard and done to the same kind of music. Its main figure consisted of a turn and lift in a sort of closed position, which could be …
Packingtons Pound by Anonymous (16th century) Instrumental version of a ballad that tells of a Sir Francis Packington. Mr. Packington a foolish 3000 pound mistake of a wager that he had the athletic prowess to swim the Thames underwater. This was prevented wager was stopped by Queen Elizabeth, apparently worried for Packington’s safety.
Menuett by Johann Krieger (1651-1735) Krieger’s keyboard music places him among the most important German composers of his time. The two published collections, Sechs musicalische Partien (1697) and Anmuthige Clavier-Übung (1698), contain harpsichord suites, organ toccatas, fugues, ricercars, and other works. Krieger’s contemporaries praised his contrapuntal skill, evident in the extant fugues and ricercars. Johann …
Toy 2 by Anonymous (18th century) The popularity and success of the Baroque style was encouraged by the Roman Catholic Church, which had decided at the time of the Council of Trent, in response to the Protestant Reformation, that the arts should communicate religious themes in direct and emotional involvement. The aristocracy also saw the …
Pezzo Tedesco by Anonymous (16th century) (Where are those fiery eyes that hurt my heart) Renaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance. Defining the beginning of the musical era is difficult, given the gradually adopted “Renaissance” characteristics: musicologists have placed its beginnings from as early as 1300 to as late as the 1470s.
