Arte de tañer fantasia

A shining witness to the Spanish Golden Age, Tomás de Santa María’s treatise covers all the techniques of composition and keyboard improvisation. From the rudiments of music (reading notes and rhythms, modal theory, fingerings) to the development of complex pieces (polyphonic playing in imitations), the author details all the stages by means of a profusion of examples (more than 800).

Approved by Antonio de Cabezón, the greatest composer of organ pieces of his time, this treatise is the first to thoroughly examine all facets of keyboard playing. Together with the treatises of Ortiz, Bermudo and Salinas, it sheds light on instrumental interpretation in the 16th century and, as such, it occupies a fundamental place for musicians today.