''Tiento'' (, pt, Tento ) is a musical genre originating in Spain in the mid-15th century. It is formally analogous to the
fantasia (fantasy), found in England, Germany, and the Low Countries, and also the
ricercare
A ricercar ( , ) or ricercare ( , ) is a type of late Renaissance and mostly early Baroque instrumental composition. The term ''ricercar'' derives from the Italian verb which means 'to search out; to seek'; many ricercars serve a preludial functi ...
, first found in Italy. By the end of the 16th century the tiento was exclusively a keyboard form, especially of
organ music. It continued to be the predominant form in the Spanish organ tradition through the time of
Cabanilles, and developed many variants. Additionally, many 20th-century composers have written works entitled "''tiento''".
Name
The word derives from the Spanish verb ''tentar'' (meaning either to touch, to tempt or to attempt), and was originally applied to music for various instruments. In the early eighteenth century, some composers also used the term ''obra'', originally a more general term meaning "work", to refer to this genre.
Formal aspects
The tiento is formally extraordinarily diverse, more a set of guidelines than a rigid structural model such as
fugue
In music, a fugue () is a contrapuntal compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and which recurs frequently in the co ...
or
rondo
The rondo is an instrumental musical form introduced in the Classical period.
Etymology
The English word ''rondo'' comes from the Italian form of the French ''rondeau'', which means "a little round".
Despite the common etymological root, rondo ...
. Nearly all tientos are imitative to some degree, though not as complex or developed as the fugue. This has led to their being associated with the other embryonic imitative forms cited above. Similarly, it is difficult to assign a single texture to the form, since it underwent a considerable amount of evolution from its inception to its decline in the late 18th century. The earliest tientos (such as those of
Cabezón) were stylistically quite close to the ricercare in their extended use of the strict, motet-style counterpoint. Later (especially in the works of Cabanilles), tientos would frequently alternate between the older style of strict counterpoint, and virtuosic, affective figuration typical of the
toccata
Toccata (from Italian ''toccare'', literally, "to touch", with "toccata" being the action of touching) is a virtuoso piece of music typically for a keyboard or plucked string instrument featuring fast-moving, lightly fingered or otherwise virtuo ...
and some fantasias. The evolution of the form was in part conditioned by the evolution of the Spanish organ, and it eventually came to include several variants or sub-forms, several of which are listed below:
* Tiento de medio registro: A tiento making use of the split keyboard, frequently found on Spanish organs from the mid-16th century on. The split keyboard refers to an organ manual where ranks of pipes may be engaged for half the keyboard, as opposed to the entire compass, which is the norm. This enables the player to utilize different sounds on the same keyboard, generally a solo sound and an accompaniment sound, though occasionally two sounds of equal strength. The tiento de medio registro figures prominently in the oeuvres of
Correa de Arauxo,
Aguilera de Heredia, and
Bruna.
* Tiento de lleno: The opposite of the tiento de medio registro; a tiento played on one sound (full register).
* Tiento de falsas: A tiento making frequent use of dissonance, so as to achieve particularly dramatic effect. "Falsas" refers to "false notes," or dissonant tones not part of the current mode or key. It is similar to the Italian idea of
Durezze e ligature (consonance and dissonance).
* Tiento pleno: an irregular tiento consisting of three sections: a prelude, fugue, and postlude. It has more in common with the German
praeludium
A prelude (german: Präludium or '; la, praeludium; french: prélude; it, preludio) is a short piece of music, the form of which may vary from piece to piece. While, during the Baroque era, for example, it may have served as an introduction ...
than with other tientos.
Composers
*
Antonio de Cabezón
Antonio de Cabezón (30 March 1510 – 26 March 1566) was a Spanish Renaissance composer and organist. Blind from childhood, he quickly rose to prominence as a performer and was eventually employed by the royal family. He was among the most impo ...
(1510–1566)
*
António Carreira (ca. 1520/30– fl. 1587/97)
*
Bernardo Clavijo de Castillo (1545–1626)
*
Manuel Rodrigues Coelho (1555–1635)
*
Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia (1561–1627)
*
Francisco de Peraza (1564–1598)
*
Gaspar Fernandes Gaspar Fernandes (sometimes written ''Gaspar Fernández'', the Spanish version of his name) (1566–1629) was a Portuguese- Mexican composer and organist active in the cathedrals of Santiago de Guatemala (present-day Antigua Guatemala) and Puebla d ...
(1566–1629)
*
Estacio de Lacerna (ca. 1570–after 1616)
*
Francisco Correa de Arauxo (1584–1654)
*
José Ximénez (1601–1672)
*
José Perandreu (fl. mid–17th century)
*
Pablo Bruna
Pablo Bruna (22 June 1611 – 27 June 1679) was a Spanish composer and organist notable for his blindness (caused by a childhood bout of smallpox), which resulted in his being known as "El ciego de Daroca
Daroca is a city and municipality in the ...
(1611–1679)
*
Juan Cabanilles (1644–1712)
Contemporary composers
*
Jean Langlais
Jean François-Hyacinthe Langlais III (15 February 1907 – 8 May 1991) was a French composer of modern classical music, organist, and improviser. He described himself as "" ("Breton, of Catholic faith").
Biography
Langlais was born in La ...
(1907–1991): includes a tiento as movement 2 of his ''Suite Médiévale'' (1947)
*
Maurice Ohana
Maurice Ohana (12 June 1913 – 13 November 1992) was a French composer. Ohana's output includes choral works, string quartets, suites for ten-string guitar, a ''Tiento'' for six-string guitar, and operas.
Life and career
Ohana was born in Casab ...
(1913–1992): composed a ''Tiento'' for
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six string instrument, strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or Plucked string instrument, plucking the strings with the dominant hand, w ...
(1957)
* Benet Casablancas (1956) has recently (2012) written a ''Tiento'' for organ based on the
Lutheran chorale
A Lutheran chorale is a musical setting of a Lutheran hymn, intended to be sung by a congregation in a German Protestant Church service. The typical four-part setting of a chorale, in which the sopranos (and the congregation) sing the melody ...
''Frisch auf, mein' Seel', verzage nichte'' a part of the ''Orgelbüchlein Project''.
* Carlotta Ferrari (1975) has published three Tientos for Organ: Tiento de lleno, Tiento de falsas and Tiento de batalla (IMSLP 2015).
Notes
References
*
* Willi Apel. ''The History of Keyboard Music to 1700''. Translated by Hans Tischler. Indiana University Press, 1972. . Originally published as ''Geschichte der Orgel- und Klaviermusik bis 1700'' by Bärenreiter-Verlag, Kassel.
{{Music of Spain
Renaissance music
Spanish dances
Spanish music