About Juan del Encina
Lived 1468 – 1529 (aged 60–61). Juan del Encina was a Spanish poet, playwright, composer and writer.
Juan del Encina (12 July 1468 – 1529/1530) was a Spanish composer, poet, priest, and playwright, often credited as the joint-father (even "founder" or "patriarch") of Spanish drama, alongside Gil Vicente. His birth name was Juan de Fermoselle. After leaving Salamanca University sometime in 1492
Fermoselle was a chaplain at Salamanca Cathedral in the early 1490s. It was here that he changed his name from Juan de Fermoselle to Juan del Enzina, or Encina (meaning holm oak). He was later forced to resign as chaplain because he was not ordained. in his pastoral eclogues. He was from Salamanca, a Leonese-speaking region, and eventually arrived at the capital of the long-vanished Kingdom of León, where he died.
He was also a songwriter for the church.
Selected works Una sañosa porfía (1486) Triunfo de la fama (1492) Cancionero (1496) Tan buen ganadico (1496) Más vale trocar (1496) Triste España sin ventura (1504) Plácida y Victoriano (1513) Églogas Oy comamos y bebamos (late 15th century) Tribagia o Via Sacra de Hierusalem (1521)
Ensemble performances of his work Date unknown - Mayrat - El Viaje del Agua. Grupo Odres. 1960 - Victoria de los Angeles - Spanish Songs of the Renaissance. Ars Musicae de Barcelona and Victoria de los Ángeles. Conducted by José Maria Lamaña. 1968 - Music from the Time of Christopher Columbus. Musica Reservata. Directed by John Beckett. 1970 - Pleasures of the Royal Courts. Early Music Consort of London and David Munrow. 1971 - El Camino de Santiago. Escolanía and Capilla Musical de la Abadía del Valle de los Caídos and Cuarteto y Grupo de Instrumentos Antiguos Renacimiento. Directed by Leoncio Diéguez, Laurentino Saenz de Buruaga, and Ramón Perales de la Cal. 1973 - Music from the court of Ferdinand and Isabella. Early Music Consort of London and David Munrow. 1974 - Old Spanish Songs. Teresa Berganza and Narciso Yepes. 1974 - Antik Musik på Wik - Early Music at Wik. Joculatores Upsaliensis. 1976 - Jewish & Christian Spain. Hespèrion XX and Jordi Savall. 1977 - Ars Antiqua de Paris à la Sainte Chapelle. Ars Antiqua de Paris. 1979 - Villancios. Atrium Musicae de Madrid. Directed by Gregorio Paniagua. 1980 - La Spagna. Atrium Musicae de Madrid. Directed by Gregorio Paniagua. 1981 - Obra Musical Completa de Juan del Enzina. Miguel Á. Tallante and Pro Mvsica Antiqva de Madrid y solistas. 1984 - Romeros y Peregrinos. Grupo Universitario de Cámara de Compostela. Directed by Carlos Villanueva. 1986 - L'homme armé: 1450-1650. Boston Camerata. Directed by Joel Cohen. 1987 - Music from the Spanish Kingdoms. Circa 1500. 1988 - Music from the time of Richard III. The Yorks Waits. 1988 - Musica dell'epoca di Cristoforo Colombo. I Madrigalisti di Genova. Directed by L. Gamberini. 1989 - El Cancionero Musical de Palacio. Ensemble Danserye. 1991 - Segovia Songbook. Ensemble Daedalus. Directed by Roberto Festa. 1991 - del Encina. Jordi Savall and Hespèrion XX. 1991 - Cancionero de Palacio 1475-1516. Jordi Savall and Hespèrion XX. 1991 - From a Spanish Palace Songbook. Margaret Philpot, Shirley Rumsey, and Christopher Wilson. 1991 - Chansons - Danses - Musiques. Ensemble Jehan de Channey. 1992 - Spain 1479-1555. La Nef and Sylvain Bergeron. 1992 - Music from the age of discovery. Waverly Consort and Michael Jaffee. 1993 - In Gottes Namen fahren wir. Cologne Ensemble for Old Music. 1993 - Spanish songs & motets. Gothic Voices and Christopher Page. 1993 - Amando e Desiando. Alice Musik Produktion. 1994 - Sephardic Songs. Sarband. Directed by Vladimir Ivanoff. 1995 - Canciones, Romances, Sonetos. La Colombina. 1995 - Al alva venid. La Romanesca and José Miguel Moreno. 1995 - Songs and dances from the Spanish Renaissance. Camerata Iberia. 1995 - A Royal Songbook. Musica Antiqua of London. Directed by Philip Thorby. 1995 - Landscapes. Bellugi Ensemble and David Bellugi. 1995 - A Song of David. La Rondinella. 1995 - Odyssey. New World Renaissance Band. 1995 - Music from the Mediterranean Basin (12th-16th centuries). Ensemble vocal et instrumental Arabesque. Directed by Domitille de Bienassis. 1996 - Cancionero Musical de Palacio. Ensemble Accentus. Directed by Thomas Wimmer. 1996 - Sola m'ire. Ensemble Gilles Binchois and Dominique Vellard. 1996 - All the King's Men. I Fagiolini, Robert Hollingworth, Concordia, Mark Levy. 1996 - Los Ministriles. Piffaro, The Renaissance Band, directed by Joan Kimball and Robert Wiemken. 1996 - Resonanzen '96. Musik aus den Habsburgerlanden. 1997 - A Ricolta Bubu. Bob, Frank en Zussen. 1998 - The two worlds of Francisco de Peñalosa. Concentus Musicus Minnesota, directed by Arthur Maud. 1998 - Sephardic Journey. La Rondinella. 1998 - De Antequara sale un moro. Ensemble Música Ficta. Directed by Carlos Serrano. 1998 - Cartas al Rey Moro. Begoña Olavide. 1998 - Música no tempo das Caravelas. Música Antiga da UFF. 1999 - La Música en la Corte de los Reyes Católicos y Carlos I. Capella Virelai and Jordi Reguant 1999 - La Folia, 1490-1701. Corelli, Marais, Martín y Coll, Ortiz, & Anónimos; Jordi Savall; Rolf Lislevand; Michael Behringer; Arianna Savall; Bruno Cocset; Pedro Estevan; and Adela Gonzalez-Campa. 1999 - Renaissance Spain in the Age of Empire. Ex Umbris. 2000 - Renaissance Song of Italy and Spain. Live Oak. 2000 - Diferencias. Codex Huelgas, Villancicos, Ensemble Differencias, and Conrad Steinmann. 2000 - Plaser y gasajo. Capella de Ministrers. Directed by Carles Magraner. 2000 - La Canción del Emperado. La Capella Reial de Catalunya, Hespèrion XXI, and Jordi Savall. 2000 - Pilgerwege. Freiburger Spielleyt. 2000 - Nunca fue pena mayor. Capella de Ministrers and Cor de la Generalitat Valenciana. Directed by Carles Magraner. 2001 - Constantinople. Kiya Tabassian and Ensemble Constantinople. 2001 - Cançoner del duc de Calàbria. Duos i Exercicis sobre els vuit tons and In Canto. 2001 - Music of Renaissance Spain. The Terra Nova Consort. 2001 - Bread, Wine & Song. Orlando Consort. 2002 - A las puertas de Granada. Begoña Olavide and Mudéjar. 2002 - Cancionero. The Dufay Collective. 2002 - Misteris de Dolor. Accentus Austria. Directed by Thomas Wimmer. 2002 - Hoy comamos y bebamos. Coro Justicia de Aragón and Susana Sarfson. 2003 - La Conquista de Granada. Música Antigua. Directed by Eduardo Paniagua. 2003 - El Fuego. Eduardo Notrica. 2004 - Isabel I, Reina de Castilla. La Capella Reial de Catalunya, Hespèrion XXI, and Jordi Savall. 2004 - Cancionero de Palacio. Capella de Ministrers. Directed by Carles Magraner. 2005 - Juana I de Castilla. Musica Antigua. Directed by Eduardo Paniagua. 2005 - Wine in music from the 15th and 16th Centuries. La Rossignol. 2006 - Christophorus Columbus. Hespèrion XXI, La Capella Reial de Catalunya, and Jordi Savall. 2006 - Borgia. Capella de Ministrers. Directed by Carles Magraner. 2006 - La Spagna. Camerata Iberia. Juan Carlos de Mulder.
Recordings 2021: Todos los bienes del mundo: Juan del Encina and Musical Traits in Spanish Renaissance — ContrArco Consort (Da Vinci C00526)
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Important facts
People in Juan del Encina's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Juan del Encina's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Juan del Encina?
Spanish composer, and theater artist
When was Juan del Encina born?
Juan del Encina was born on 12 July 1468 in Province of Salamanca.
When did Juan del Encina die?
Juan del Encina died in 1529 in Chinchón.
What was Juan del Encina's occupation?
Juan del Encina was a poet, playwright, composer and writer.
What nationality was Juan del Encina?
Juan del Encina was Spanish.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Juan del Encina. https://biography.guide/juan-del-encina/
MLA: "Juan del Encina." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/juan-del-encina/.
Chicago: "Juan del Encina." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/juan-del-encina/.
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