LUIS MILÁN (1547)

Composer, courtier and player of the vihuela, the Spanish variety of the lute.

In Valencia he lived at the brilliant and cultivated court of the vicereine Germaine de Foix which he described in a manual of courtly behaviour (1561).

His most noted work is El Maestro (The Teacher) a collection of vihuela pieces and solo songs with vihuela accompaniment. This was the first of a series of vihuela books that became one of Sapin´s most distinguished contributions to 16th-century music.

The pieces in Milán´s book are arranged in order of dfficulty. The songs -Spanish and Portuguese villancicos, romances and Italian sonnets- are often of great beauty and the instrumental writing is varied and resourceful.