Day 2

Joan Ambrosio Dalza was an Italian lutenist and composer active around 1508. His complete known works are preserved in the fourth volume of Ottaviano Petrucci's seminal lute music collection, "Intabolatura de lauto libro quarto," published in Venice. While his precise origins are uncertain, the preface's reference to him as "milanese" suggests he was born or worked in Milan.

Dalza's compositions represent a significant contribution to early Renaissance lute music, alongside contemporaries Francesco Spinacino and Vincenzo Capirola. His surviving repertoire encompasses 42 dances, nine ricercares, five tastar de corde (preludes for testing the strings), four intabulations, and a unique piece titled "Caldibi castigliano." The dances are innovatively structured in mini-suites, with each pavane (either alla venetiana or alla ferrarese) followed by a thematically linked saltarello and piva. His work shows Spanish influences, evident in pieces like "Caldibi castigliano" and the "Calate ala spagnola," likely reflecting the vihuela's popularity in 16th-century Italy.

Dalza's compositions are notable for their accessibility and straightforward style, a characteristic he acknowledged in Petrucci's preface, where he promised future publications of more complex works—though whether these materialized remains unknown. Despite their relative simplicity compared to contemporaries like Spinacino and Capirola, Dalza's works are historically significant as largely original compositions rather than vocal arrangements. His collection contains the earliest known pavanes and variations, with two distinct forms: the pavane alla venetiana featuring harmonic variations around a loose tonic, and the pavane alla ferrarese structured as open-ended phrases with varied repeats (AA'–BB'–CC'–…).

The collection is also remarkable for including five tastar de corde, rare preliminary pieces arranged symmetrically by key (G, C, D with F, C with E, G). These "string-testing" preludes range from 16 to 42 bars and alternate between sustained chords and quick passages, offering a glimpse into early Renaissance performance practice.

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