Obra Vocal 1

This Collection offers, in three books, the meticulously revised scores of the voice pieces of Albéniz. The first volume includes his songs for voice and piano in Spanish, Italian and French. The second volume is dedicated to songs in English and the third to operas and zarzuelas.

In the present edition, we have attempted to correct, modify, and clarify Albéniz’s scores based on experience gained from having performed these songs numerous times in concert, from having recorded them with tenor Antonio Comas for Columna Música (Albéniz integral, 1CM 0025), and from having studied the existing sources closely. It is not uncommon to find errors in the editions of Albéniz’s music, errors that may be the result of misinterpretation of the composer’s handwriting or the result of simple carelessness on the part of the engraver.

Since no autographs exist for the songs included in this volume, the readings, with the exception of the Chanson de Barberine, which is based on a surviving manuscript copy, are founded on the first published edition of the work.

With no manuscript in Albéniz’s hand to reveal any conscious deviations from the text (as happens in the English-language songs), the texts of these works have been modified to agree with published texts. For example, the capitalizations used by Bécquer in his Rimas to denote line beginnings is followed as opposed to the lower case found in the first edition of the published music. Where no published text has been found, the text as it appears in the musical source becomes the model. Where necessary, the syllabification of words has been modified to improve the flow of the melodic line.

Markings within brackets are editorial additions. None of the sources for the present edition bear Albéniz’s fingerings; all suggested fingerings are therefore added to this edition. Spelling errors are corrected without notice.