Named after a scribe at Madrid’s royal chapel, the Guerra Manuscript is a vital source of the tono humano, a form of secular song characteristic of and exclusive to the Spanish Baroque, from a period when solo accompanied songs were at their most popular. Accompanied by double harp or harpsichord, these texts deal with subjects such as the pain of unrequited love and the balance between suffering and joy, also drawing on mythology and the natural world to symbolise the many facets of the human condition. This is the penultimate volume in a complete edition of these 17th-century gems. © Naxos