There are actually a few (tentative) references
to the cittern in Iberia on my site, though they may have been overlooked.
First, there is one MS (little known) of Mexican
provenance. It is entitled "Método de cítara,"
and was owned (copied?) by one Sebastían de
Aguirre. Very little is known about the MSS with
the few existing articles about it having been
published in Spanish. I list here what I have posted on my page:
"The MS is mentioned briefly in Stevenson,
Robert, Music in Mexico: A Historical Survey,
1952. More complete details are provided in
Gabriel Saldívar's work, Bibliografía Mexicana de
Musicología y Musicografía, 1991. From the few
facsimiles in the latter volume, it appears that
the music is for an Italian-tuned, but diatonically fretted cittern. "
"According to the liner notes from the recording
Aguirre, the illustrations in the MS call for a
4-course, triple(!)-strung cittern with a tuning
in Aa fourth higher than the standard tuning in E.
MS is not listed in the 2001 edition of Grove."
The Aguirre recording by Los Otros, for those who
have not heard it, is a real treat! I have
corresponded briefly with Lee Santana (the player
from Los Otros) about his instrument and the MS,
but have not learned much more than what I've
listed here. A few images of his cittern
("Hacha") are found in the CD booklet, but there
is no really good close-up view. I am still
trying to see if Lee can take some photos for
inclusion in the site. As for the MS itself, it
appears to be under lock and key; apparently,
views of the MS are reserved for those with connections in high places...
Second, there is a MS from the early 18th c. I
have listed on my site the following description:
"Spanish tablature with playing instructions,
sold at Sotheby's, London, 1973. Listed in the
2001 edition of Grove as being item no.592 in
catalogue 956, Maggs Bros. Ltd, London, 1974."
Whether this makes it Spanish or not, I can't
say; I don't have any further information.
Third, in the treatise "Reglas, y advertencias"
(c.1745) by Pablo Minguet y Yrol, there is no
music but the old edition of Grove cites it as
being the last known mention of diatonic fretting
for cittern. Peter Forrester also notes that
"Minguet y Yrol [pair] cittern chords with guitar
alfabeto, opening up a very large potential valid
field for accompaniment." I think there is also
mention that the tuning was either a step or a 4th higher -- I can't recall.
It's not a lot to go on, but at least it's
something.... I welcome any more evidence that anyone can find.
-A:
At 02:53 AM 10/16/2006, you wrote:
>Someone mentioned the Iberian cittern recently; meaning the cittern in
>Spain and Portugal.
>
>I was just refreshing my memory by looking at Andrew's site. There
>seems to be remarkably little evidence of cittern activity there: not in
>the iconography, nor music, nor surviving instruments. (I'm talking
>about the 16th-18th centuries)
>
>Actually, I couldn't find any references to Spain (despite links with
>Italy) or Portugal at all.
>
>But presumably there must be something? A Spanish woodcut with a cittern
>lurking in the background?
>
>
>
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