Francesco Spinacino

Francesco Spinacino
(b Fossombrone, fl 1507). Italian lutenist and composer. A dedicatory poem by Cristoforo Pierio Gigante in Spinacino’s Libro primo describes him as an emulator of Orpheus, and Philippo Oriolo da Bassano’s poem Monte Parnaso (c1520) includes Spinacino in a list of eminent late 15th-century lutenists.

His two publications, Intabulatura de lauto libro primo (Venice, 1507/R) and Intabulatura de lauto libro secondo (Venice, 1507/R) are the very first printed books dedicated to the lute. Both volumes begin with a rudimentary introduction to tablature notation in Latin and Italian, which was reprinted in all Petrucci’s publications for lute and (with some modification) as late as 1546. A few pieces were copied from these prints into manuscripts as far away as the British Isles. Like those of his compatriots Dalza and Capirola, his 81 compositions were primarily intabulations (46) for solo lute and ricercares (27). There are also two bassadans and six pieces for two lutes. These duets are among the most interesting of his output as they give us a glimpse of a performance practice of the 15th century, notably the style of Pietrobono and his ‘tenorista’ (see LockwoodMRF). For the most part the tenor plays an intabulation of the original tenor and bassus of the chanson. The other lute plays a freely invented counterpoint in improvisatory style, not based on the original cantus, traversing the entire range of the instrument.

Spinacino’s ricercares are among the most elaborate of the period. Intended to serve as preludes to other pieces, they are free in form and often change direction and style abruptly, from virtuosic running passages to imitative sections. The Ricercare De tous biens and Recercare a Juli amours seem to have parody fragments from the original chansons. These were perhaps meant to be preludes to the duets of the same name in the Libro primo. Another, Recercare de tutti li toni, rambles through all of the modes. The intabulations run the gamut from fairly direct intabulations (like Malor me bat) to very elaborately ornamented ones, such as the almost fantasia-like setting of Josquin’s Ave Maria. Judging from the virtuosic nature of many of these compositions, Spinacino must have been among the finest lute players of his time.