Francisco de la Torre facts for kids
Francisco de la Torre was a Spanish composer who lived from about 1460 to 1504. He mostly worked in the Kingdom of Naples, which was a powerful area in southern Italy. He might have been born in Seville, a city in Spain. His music is still studied today and can be found in old collections.
About Francisco de la Torre
Francisco de la Torre started his career as a singer. From at least 1464 to 1467, he sang at the Seville Cathedral. He likely stayed connected to Seville until 1485.
In 1483, he joined the royal chapel of the Kingdom of Aragon. This was a group of musicians who performed for the king. He earned a good salary of 25,000 maravedís each year. He worked there for seventeen years.
In 1488, King Ferdinand II gave him a special position called a "half-prebend". This meant he would receive a regular income from the church. There was a small disagreement about this position at first. The church leaders in Seville wanted to give it to someone else. However, Francisco de la Torre had a letter from the king. So, he finally received the position in 1491.
In 1500, Francisco de la Torre left the royal court in Naples. He returned to Seville and became a curate at the Cathedral of Seville. A curate is a priest who helps with church duties. In 1503, he was put in charge of the choirboys at the cathedral. His salary was also increased. He had previously helped with the choirboys from 1497 to 1503 when the main master was away.
Francisco de la Torre kept his half-prebend until he passed away in early 1507.
His Music and Compositions
Francisco de la Torre wrote many different kinds of music. His surviving works include:
- An instrumental dance for the royal court.
- A funeral responsory called Ne recorderis. A responsory is a piece of music sung during church services.
- Music for an office of the dead, which is a special prayer service.
- Ten villancicos. These were popular Spanish songs. Three of them were about religious topics, and seven were about everyday life.
Music experts like Robert Stevenson have said that his funeral songs, especially a piece called Libera me, are very beautiful and full of feeling.
Some of his secular villancicos are like romances. These are songs that tell a story. They are similar to the music of Juan de Urrede, another composer from the Netherlands who worked in Spain earlier.
One of his songs, Pascua d'Espíritu Sancto, was written for the feast of Corpus Christi. This was the day after the city of Ronda was taken back by the Spanish in 1485. The song is based on a poem about the Granada War.
Ten of his musical pieces are found in a famous collection called the Palace Songbook. This collection includes his instrumental dance called Alta danza. This dance uses a well-known melody called La Spagna. We even know how this dance was performed in other situations!
See also
In Spanish: Francisco de la Torre (compositor) para niños
