Juan Bermudo. La Declaración de Instrumentos Musicales

Juan Bermudo is one of the most relevant musical theorists of the Spanish Renaissance. Born in Ecija, in 1560 he was elected as a member of the Franciscan governing body in Andalusia. He discovered the importance of music not so much during his years of university studies but during his convalescence from an illness. It was at that time that he became very interested in compiling all that knowledge about the laws and fundamental rules of music and the instruments of his time, being, to a great extent, a self-taught musician. Thus emerged three treatises of which this transcribed edition of the first of them is provided. This is the foundation of Bermudo's ambitious work plan. The first printing of this book was to constitute the initial part of a set of books on instruments and was dedicated to John III of Portugal, a monarch known for his appreciation of music and to whom some important teacher had already dedicated a printed work. According to his approach, the true musician will be the one who has knowledge of the reasons for music. The performer who does not know them, even if he plays or sings well, does not deserve to be called a musician. That is to say, mere expertise or virtuosity in instrumental performance does not make a true musician. The ultimate success of Bermudo's writings is not only to combine theory and practice in a novel way and to become a theoretical-practical reference in later centuries, but also to promote and make the art of music accessible to all. This work aims to disseminate the enormous contribution of this crucial figure of Spanish music.