Pedro Ruimonte facts for kids

Pedro Ruimonte (sometimes spelled Rimonte or Ruymonte) was a Spanish composer and musician. He was born in 1565 and passed away on November 30, 1627. Pedro Ruimonte spent a big part of his life working in the Low Countries, which are areas like modern-day Belgium and the Netherlands.

Early Life in Spain

Pedro Ruimonte was born in a city called Zaragoza in Spain in 1565. His parents were Pedro Ruimonte and Gracia de Bolea y Latas. He had three sisters named Justa, Gracia, and Catalina.

It is thought that Pedro learned music from Melchor Robledo. Robledo taught music classes in a church called La Seo. Pedro might have also learned from other famous musicians in Zaragoza during the 1500s. We don't know much more about his early life until he moved to Brussels.

Working in Flanders

Pedro Ruimonte likely moved to Brussels in 1599. He joined the group of musicians who worked for Archduke Albert of Austria and Princess Isabel Clara Eugenia. They were the new rulers of the Low Countries at that time.

By 1601, Pedro Ruimonte was the "master of music" for their royal chapel. In 1604, he was called the "Master of the Chapel and Chamber" for the rulers. This meant he was in charge of the music for both church services and private concerts.

Another music master, Géry de Ghersem, arrived in 1605. He took over the main chapel duties. However, records show that Pedro Ruimonte was paid more than Ghersem. This shows how much the Archduke valued Ruimonte's musical talent.

As the head of the court musicians, Pedro Ruimonte was in charge of many talented people. He oversaw the boy singers and worked with famous organists and composers. These included English musicians like Peter Philips and John Bull. He also worked with Flemish musicians such as Peeter Cornet.

Pedro Ruimonte's Music

While living in Flanders, Pedro Ruimonte published several important music collections. He worked with a publisher named Petrus Phalesius the Elder.

Masses and Sacred Music

In 1604, he published a collection called Missae Sex. This book contained six masses, which are musical settings for church services. These pieces showed many different musical styles of his time. Some of them were based on works by other famous composers like Palestrina.

In 1607, he released Cantiones sex vocum. This collection included several motets, which are short pieces of sacred music. It also had an antiphon called Salve Regina and a psalm called De profundis. Most of these pieces are now lost, except for some "Lamentations" for Holy Week.

Madrigals and Villancicos

Pedro Ruimonte's most famous work is Parnaso español de Madrigales y Villancicos. This was published in 1614. It contains nine madrigals in Spanish. Madrigals are songs for several voices, usually without instruments.

The collection also includes twelve villancicos. Villancicos are a type of Spanish song that was popular at the time. These pieces were written for four, five, or six voices.

Return to Zaragoza

Pedro Ruimonte returned to his hometown of Zaragoza in 1614. There, he worked as a music teacher. One of his students was Diego Pontac. He was also friends with another composer, Sebastián Aguilera de Heredia.

Pedro Ruimonte lived in Zaragoza until he passed away. He lived with his wife, who was a wealthy widow.

See also

In Spanish: Pedro Ruimonte para niños