March 23, 2011

Course 

THE CATHEDRAL OF PAMPLONA. A VIEW FROM THE 21ST CENTURY

Music and musicians in the Cathedral

D. Aurelio Sagaseta.
Master of the Music Chapel of the Cathedral of Pamplona.

The presence of music in the Cathedral of Pamplona is documented since the end of the 12th century (pontificate of Pedro de Paris), although it was in 1206 when the chantry and the School of Children were definitively established with the founding decree of Bishop Juan de Tarazona. The document is dated September 29, St. Michael's Day, and from then on the chantry and the Music Chapel were linked to the small monastery of Zamarce and the sanctuary of San Miguel de Aralar. 

The list of chantres and chapel masters of all the later centuries is published, as well as the history of the musical institution of the Cathedral (Leocadio Hernández Ascunce, José Goñi Gaztambide, Aurelio Sagaseta Aríztegui). The doctoral thesis of María Gembero Ustárroz "La Música en la Catedral de Pamplona durante el s. XVIII" (Government of Navarra, 1995), award "Rafael Mitjana" of the University of Málaga and award Extraordinary of doctorate of the University of Granada deserve a separate chapter. Dr. Gembero's work of research covers the entire 18th century and part of the 19th century. 

Aurelio Sagaseta's discussion paper , after summarizing the first steps of music in the Seo iruñense (XII and XIII centuries), omits for reasons of space the later centuries from XIV to XIX and focuses on the XX century, ending with an outline of the file of Music, the main historical musical file of Navarre. 

Tomorrow we will know the history and incidents of the chapel masters, organists and musicians of the Cathedral in the XVI-XIX centuries, centuries in which the amanuenses offer us a multitude of data, but hardly anything will be known of the hidden "benefited" musicians of the XX century, nor of the internal struggles, for example, to implant in the Seo the directives of the Motu Proprio of S, Pío X. On the other hand, the current chapel master, with his half-century long teaching, is a direct witness of the musical life of the Cathedral. 

Therefore, the contribution of musicians such as Remigio Múgica (this one seen from the Cabildo, not from the Orfeón Pamplonés). Daniel Piudo, Joaquín Maya, Félix Hernández, Jesús Rotellar, Estanislao Luna (these through indirect testimonies), and clerical beneficiaries, all of them already deceased, such as Félix Pérez de Zabalza, Martín Lipuzcoa, Pío Iraizoz, José Mª Áriz, Jesús Urdín, Carlos Bengoechea, Segundo Egaña, Javier Redín, Bernardino Elizondo, José Mª Herrero, Carmelo Díaz de Cerio, Jesús Irisarri, Heradio Villanueva (the last sochantre), etc., all of whom he treated or directed during his magisterium. All of them acceded to the benefit by civil service examination. 

Finally, he provides a description of the file de Música, or rather, of the three existing archives.
1.- The historical file , the main one, is mainly made up of compositions by the chapel masters. It is made up of 2,500 works, collected in as many files with their musical "incipit" and other descriptive data ), plus 65 large choir books, generally well preserved (Signatura E-PAMc I).

2.- Donations from the Cathedral's organ masters and organists in the 20th century. This bequest contains a section of file (with unpublished compositions) and another of Library Services particular to the donor.
(Signatura E-PAMc II). It is digitized.

3.- The musical background employee by the current Music Chapel. This last section is the result of the activity of the Music Chapel and its chapelmaster over the last 50 years. The file has acquired as much volume (in terms of physical space) as the whole of the previous historical file . It is the most changing section, in continuous evolution and increase. One day it will also become part of the historical file , reflecting a period in the life of the musical institution of the Seo (Signatura E-PAMc III). It is collected in the Web page www.capillademusicapamplona.com 

Finally, a consideration of subject general: if there is music in the Cathedral and a file is because there has been an express will of the Cabildo to exist. From nothing, nothing is born. Since 1206 and throughout the centuries, huge sums of money were allocated to maintain a choir, a chamber orchestra, a School of Infants (now defunct) and a file of Music.