Miguel de Fuenllana

Few professional vihuelists surpassed the abilities of this blind musician. He was able to play the instrument in a demanding and virtuostic manner even when the instrument was imparted with an unusual tuning. As a composer the "Orphenica lyra" was Fuenllana's contribution. It was a collection of numerous pieces, half of which were borrowed from Josquin, Morales, Verdelot and Guerrero, then arranged by Fuenllana for the vihuela. He did not, however, rearrange the music in any other fashion as that was considered a bastardization of the true text. If the pieces were songs, Fuenllana included the textual material. Of the works in this collection, 52 were his fantasias and can be characterized as demanding, polyphonic, dark, and rich. ~ Keith Johnson