MILAN, LUIS

born c. 1500, Valencia, Aragon died after 1561, , Valencia, Spain composer, courtier, and player of the vihuela, the Spanish variety of the lute. In Valencia he lived at the brilliant and cultivated court of the vicereine Germaine de Foix, which he described in a manual of courtly behaviour (1561). His most noted work is El Maestro (The Teacher), a collection of vihuela pieces and solo songs with vihuela accompaniment. This was the first of a series of vihuela books that became one of Spain's most distinguished contributions to 16th-century music. The pieces in Miln's book are arranged in order of difficulty. The songsSpanish and Portuguese villancicos and romances and Italian sonnetsare often of great beauty, and the instrumental writing is varied and resourceful.