Tom Poore © 2018. All rights reserved. Classical guitar lessons in Avon, Beachwood, Solon, South Euclid. Contact me at augustineregal@yahoo.com
Composed by 16th century Spanish vihuelist Luis de Narváez, Guárdame las vacas is popular among guitarists today. And justly so. Published in 1538, it stands as the earliest example of a theme and variation form. In its day, this theme was popular among Spanish composers—Antonio de Cabezón, Alonso de Mudarra, and Enríquez de Valderrábano also published variations on it. Intriguingly, it also bears a striking resemblance to the old English song Greensleeves. Best of all, it’s a delight to play and hear. So this is a work that combines historical importance with high musical quality.
This excellent piece, however, does present interesting problems for the serious player. In his 1538 publication, Narváez offers two different sets of variations, each in different keys. Both sets are obviously related to the same theme, and thus would work nicely together. But because they’re in different keys, putting them together makes for a jarring tonality change. Some modern players resolved this problem by transposing one set into the key of the other. This allows us to play all the variations as one seamless work. Purists who object should note that renaissance players routinely reworked music to suit their own needs.
Another problem is that of meter. The 1538 edition notated the tablature for this piece in a way that implies 3/2 time. Influenced by this, many modern editions are written in 3/2. But renaissance tablature was often cavalier in its fidelity to meter. Looking closely at the piece, it clearly varies between two beats per measure and three beats per measure. (The bass line often lets us know which is the correct beat pattern.) Discerning modern editions correctly notate a dual time signature of 6/4 and 3/2. I’ve elected to be more explicit, changing the time signature within the piece as needed. A caveat: In some places, the correct meter isn’t obvious. In mm. 47-50 of my edition, for example, the music can convincingly played either in two or three. I prefer two beats per bar, and have notated it thus. But let me be clear: I believe the correct meter in Guárdame las vacas is often fluid. The solutions offered in this edition are my opinions. My goal is to alert perceptive players to this issue. Others may disagree with my preferences, and they’re free to change them. It’s my hope that alternative solutions based on knowing what one is doing are better than changes based on blithe ignorance.
I offer here my own edition of this fine work. The fingerings are merely suggestions. And if the order of variations doesn’t suit you, then use your own judgment. (The audio you’re hearing is a computer generated file.)
Los seys libros del Delphin (1538)
