Shannon Canavin & Eunsun
Song, soprano
Thea Lobo & Martin Near, alto
Jason
McStoots & Eric Rice, tenor
Aaron Engebreth & Sumner Thompson, bass
Program Notes
During the “Golden Age” of Spanish polyphony,
three composers stood at the helm of the country’s
musical heritage: Tomas Luis de Victoria, Cristobal
de Morales, and Francisco Guerrero. Although Victoria
and Morales were better-known in 16 th century Spain,
Guerrero exceeded them both in widespread and lasting
popularity in the New World. Further speaking to his
popularity, Guerrero’s motets served as the basis
for all but one of Alonso Lobo’s masses published
in his 1602 collection. Guerrero was also the only
one of the triumvite to have been fully educated and
to work entirely in Spain.
Born in Seville in 1528, Guerrero was first taught
by his elder brother Pedro, also a musician, and later
studied with Morales. He served a cathedral singer
at Seville from 1542 until 1546 when, on the recommendation
of Morales, he was appointed maestro de capilla at
Jaén. He was to be dismissed in 1548 for neglecting
his duties, but after a swift reformation and ingratiating
himself to his superiors, he was appointed as his own
successor. The next year, however, while on a trip
to Seville, he was offered a prebend as a singer in
the cathedral and did not return to Jaén. He
was made maestro de capilla in Málaga
and associate to the aging Pedro Fernández in
Seville. Upon Fernandez’s death in 1574, Guerrero
was at last named maestro de capilla of Seville
Cathedral, where he remained until his death in 1599.
Guerrero was a deeply religious man, as reflected
in his music and numerous writings. He explains in
the preface to his 1584 Liber vesperarum that
he “always endeavored not to caress the ears
of pious persons with my songs, but on the contrary
to excite their souls to devout contemplation of the
sacred mysteries.” He was part of the Andalusian
school of composers, and in 1588 visited Palestine
to see Bethlehem and “perform my songs together
with the angels and shepherds who first taught us to
celebrate the coming of the messiah,” as written
in his 1590 Viage de Hierusalem.
Guerrero’s Missa Saeculorum Amen was
his last mass, and one of the least performed in modern
times. Written in Seville in 1595, it was published
in Venice in 1597 by Vincenti. Described by R.M. Stevenson
as “the perfect coda to a career such as no other
composer was able to achieve solely on Spanish soil
during his century,” it is a magnificent combination
of symbolism and learned devices. The motto is derived
from the close of the Tone VIII ascription of praise,
described by contemporary theorists as the “stellar
mode.” In the Kyrie, the plainsong “euouae” serves
as the treble initium, moving to the other voices during
the rest of the mass, and appearing most prominently
as the tenor cantus firmus in the Agnus Dei.
Guerrero’s motets also display his mastery of
learned devices, while reflecting the devout and serene
nature of the Andalusian tradition that served to enrich
the artistic patrimony of the Catholic liturgy in Spain.
The 16 th century practice of imitative counterpoint
is the prevailing device in Guerrero’s compositions,
but he seldom keeps it perfect, resulting in pieces
that are at once cohesive yet constantly hold one’s
attention. Alma redemptoris mater is
a wonderful example – the first three voices
enter with a peaceful rising fifth, but each with its
own variation. The bass then announces itself with
falling fifth. The motives then return at the second
point of imitation, “porta manes”, but
it is now the tenor that drops the fifth. Guerrero
also makes special use of homophony, as in In illo
tempore on the phrase “Extollens vocem” [he
spake] and in Alma redemptoris mater on “surgere
qui curat populo” [raises up the fallen people],
with the lower voices in perfect homophony and the
soprano soaring above just off kilter. Guerrero’s
setting of the Pater noster is one of the
most sensitive settings of this oft-used text, with
a bare opening of an open fifth, followed by an impassioned
plea for forgiveness, and ending with two statements
of the final appeal for mercy.
It is little wonder that Guerrero became a favorite
composer of cathedrals both in Spain and abroad with
his eminently singable lines woven into the fabric
of beautiful harmonies. It is a joy to sing and we
hope a joy to hear.
© 2003 Shannon Canavin |
