pennsicdance: Contrapasso Sheet music

[Tracie Brown]

The version from Julia Sutton's book certainly should "work"! It is a 
transcription into modern notation for the original lute tablature in 
Nobilita, onto two staffs, suitable for keyboard, harp, lute or modern 
guitar (though modern lute and guitar notation is more often on a single 
staff). There is one place where I believe there is a typo, but without both 
the transcription and the original in front of me, I can't tell whether it 
is a transcription error or an error in the original.

>At Northshield Dance Seminar, we used the Contrapasso music from Julia 
>Sutton's translation of Nobilta di Dame (having been tipped off by Tibicen 
>and the Waytes of Carolingia that it works) ...

They're not floating around the SCA yet, but I have done two arrangements of 
Contrapasso, which I can provide for floating.  To whom should I send them, 
and by when, in order to get them into this year's Pennsic dance music 
collection?

>If there is better sheet music for this floating around in the SCA, I'd be 
>interested in getting a copy.

The musical version of Contrapasso works for all dance versions of  
Contrapasso, although you need to alter the repeat structure for the 
different versions and for different reconstructions of those versions. The 
repeat signs in the original sources do not always indicate just one repeat 
(say, BB) as they do today -- they mean that the section is repeated, number 
of repeats to be determined by the choreography (in the case of dance 
music), the text (in the case of songs), or the musicians' preference.

I have transcribed Contrapasso for four parts and made an arrangement for 
melody instrument and lute/harp/keyboard accompaniment.  With the four part 
version, recorder players will really have to work at phrasing and 
intonation to keep from sounding too "tooty".  A broken consort, especially 
one with a strong bass, works better.

The melody/accompaniment version, which works better musically, is notated 
for keyboard or harp, so a lutenist or guitarist will need to be able to 
read the part on two staffs or transcribe it (physically or mentally) to a 
single staff.  An experienced lutenist, classical traditional guitarist 
could also probably fake it.

Just about anything intended in period for lute will can be transcribed 
without much pain (transcription is never completely painless) for period 
keyboards, harp (usually needs to be a chromatic harp or a modern one with 
levers), vihuela or even modern guitar. (Without much pain, that is, after 
you've figured out whether you're transcribing French or Italian style lute 
tablature, and remembered which is which. And provided the original is 
clearly printed, not hand-scrawled on the back of a 16c shopping list.)

See you at Pennsic!

-- Signy



>From: Emily Benwitz <emily at fief.org>
>To: pennsicdance at www.pbm.com
>Subject: pennsicdance: Re: Sheet music
>Date: Sat, 06 Jul 2002 23:18:17 -0500
>
>At 14:01 06 07 02, Adele wrote:
>
>>I WILL be teaching Contrapasso en Due -- does anyone have sheet music for
>>it?
>
  But it
>was hard to read, with all the parts on one staff (as for piano) instead of 
>multiple staves (as it usually is for wind instruments).

>
>>I WILL be teaching Ballo del Fiori, and I know Greg has that. :)
>>I COULD teach Villanella, but would probably need my memory refreshed on 
>>it
>>beforehand, especially if people would like possible local weirdnesses
>>pulled out.  I'm hideous at reconstruction.
>>I could also teach Gracca Amorosa, which I know some musicians were 
>>playing
>>last year
>
>Guilty.  I was playing it from memory last year, because I didn't have the 
>sheet music with me.  ;-)
>
>>-- don't know if anyone has the sheet music for that.
>
>I have an old copy of a 5-part arrangement of Gracca apparently by William 
>of Kingsbury, who no longer plays with the SCA in Jararvellir.  If no other 
>arrangements are available, I can send this one to someone -- you, or Greg, 
>or ...?
>
>Rochl
>
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