Montero vs. Cobo in López
- Cochuchi
- Sep 10
- 7 min read
Organ Piece II by Félix Máximo López (1742-1821)
(From the National Library document "Organ Pieces")
A Piece for organ, since the manuscript doesn't specify any other form. It doesn't say "Sonata" even though it might seem like it could be a Sonata. It repeats part A but not part B.
I haven't found any published edition yet, and I've seen a version on YouTube by organist and professor Ángel Montero, who plays it with a score on a tablet, which I imagine he may have composed himself. This piece doesn't pose a major editing challenge; it's quite clear and obvious in the manuscript. However, there are two or three details I'd like to point out.
First, I would like to say that I think the organ (the Gospel organ of Segovia Cathedral, built between 1769 and 1772 by José de Echevarría and restored between 2018 and 2020 by Joaquín Lois) is wonderful. It has a very rich and pleasant sound in the registers. Montero's version, with the ornaments he incorporates, makes sense and is tasteful; they are well done without being pretentious. I would only like to point out the initial trill that ends in a mordent in anticipation of the C with the B (bar 4). Montero plays it by breaking the trill with the 2-3 fingering and then taking the position with the 5th finger on the A without subsequently performing the mordent. This seems to me to be an arrangement to facilitate the greater technical complexity of the piece. I do it with three beats, the 3-5 twice, then the 4-5, the last reaching A with the 5 and thus easily falling into the C-B (2-1) in time with the bass, thus letting that mordent sound, written in the score, and which is repeated again in the piece five times.
The last sixteenth note of measure 60 is not a C as Ángel Montero plays, but a D, as it appears in the manuscript. It's not that it's sonically very relevant, but it's worth pointing out. Just like in measure 86, López writes (in handwriting) two Cs in eighth notes at the end in his left hand. It seems strange that the first one isn't a D, but that's López, in my experience. He always suggests a couple of details that are out of the ordinary. As in bars 95 and 96, the left hand repeats the G-B-D-G pattern in the left hand and does not change it in the second half of the bars to G-C-E-G, which would be the most obvious, thus leaving that tonic chord as the base while the right hand moves to the fourth degree of G major, subdominant. This, played with a bit of haste—although slower it would sound somewhat dissonant—enriches with those few notes what would otherwise be more simplistic.
It does not contain the tempo/tempo/movement indication in the heading. Only the stop between the two staves: Full (Lleno).
The "Lleno" stop on the Spanish Baroque organ is one of the pillars of Iberian sound. Its main features:
1. What is the "Lleno"?
It is not a single stop, but a set of mixed stops (called dozens, fifteenths, nineteenths, twenty-twoths, etc.) that are added to the fluted or main 8' (the fundamental base).
It constitutes the Spanish equivalent of the Pleno on the North European organ, but with its own unique character.
2. Sound
The Lleno produces a brilliant, penetrating, and very resplendent sound, especially suitable for polyphony and tientos de pleno.
It tends to emphasize the high harmonics, producing a metallic, incisive, and radiant color, sharper than the Germanic or French Pleno.
By adding several mixtures in different arrangements, the sound gains density and brilliance, but not as much depth in the bass notes as on other European organs.
3. Distinctive Characteristics of the Iberian Lleno
Construction in "bodies": The Lleno's registers are usually spread over several bodies of mixtures that are progressively added (called corps de pleno). The organist can adjust the fullness by adding or removing bodies.
Predominance of high intervals: The composition includes many stops in twelfths, fifteenths, nineteenths, etc., which provides a sharp brilliance.
Brilliancy in the high notes, lightness in the low notes: as the scale rises, the mixtures are doubled, reinforcing the scintillating effect.
Typically Iberian color: the result is less "rounded" than in Flemish or German organs and more "flaming," almost like a metallic-lipped trumpet, but not quite.
Liturgical and stylistic use: The Pleno was linked to the severe, polyphonic repertoire and to the tientos de pleno, while the solo registers (trumpet, split flutes, etc.) served as contrasts and glosses.
👉 In summary: The Pleno of the Spanish Baroque organ sounds radiant, metallic, sharp, and penetrating, with a solemn and brilliant character, very different from the denser and deeper Germanic Pleno. It is the paradigmatic color of Iberian polyphony and the repertoire of Cabezón, Correa de Arauxo, or Aguilera de Heredia.
1. What happens when you play the "Lleno"?
Exactly: in addition to the actual note (the fundamental, for example, a C), the Pleno causes other notes located in higher intervals (octaves, fifths, nineteenths, etc.) to sound simultaneously.
Simplified example: you press a C, and in addition to that C, you also hear the C an octave higher (15th), the fifth higher (12th), the third octave (19th), etc., depending on how the "full body" is composed on that particular organ.
2. Are they harmonics?
They are not natural harmonics in the acoustic sense (like those generated by a vibrating string with overtones).
They are additional, real pipes that reproduce certain frequencies that coincide with some harmonics of the natural series.
This is why we talk about mixtures: combinations of pipes tuned at intervals that reinforce and color the sound spectrum of the fundamental.
3. Relative intensity
These pipes do not usually sound as loud as the fundamental flute, but they are not "ornamental" either: they have a clear and penetrating intensity, enough to give the effect of sparkling brilliance.
In general, the builders sought a balance: to keep the fundamental note recognizable, but surrounded by a metallic halo of "artificial" harmonics.
In the Iberian Lleno, the proportion tends to favor the high notes more than in other European organs → hence its sharp and resplendent character.
4. Auditory Result
When you press a key with the Lleno, you don't hear "several separate notes," but rather a new color, as if the timbre were transforming:
The fundamental sounds firm.
The other pipes add sparkle and luminosity, with a texture reminiscent of a high-pitched choir.
It's similar to equalizing a sound by raising the treble, but here it happens by adding real pipes.
👉 In short: The intervals of the Lleno are not natural harmonics, but real pipes that imitate certain harmonics in the series. They sound intense enough to transform the color of the basic flute into a bright, metallic timbre, without completely overshadowing the fundamental note.
The full note on a Spanish Baroque organ is not a single set of pipes, but rather a set of stops (mixtures) that are op
How it works:
· On the organ console, you'll see a lever or drawbar labeled Full I, II, III, etc. (depending on how many "body parts" there are).
· Pulling that stop automatically connects several sets of pipes (12th, 15th, 19th, etc.), so that each key you press will activate several pipes at the same time.
· So, if you play a C, the following sounds: C (root 8') + C (15th) + G (12th) + E (19th) + other intervals depending on the body.
Important:
· Each full body usually has its own drawbar → the organist can add them progressively (e.g., first Full I, then Full II...).
· When we talk about “playing with a full note,” it's usually understood that all the corresponding mixture notes have been played.
· That's why it's used in full notes: it's the solemn and brilliant sound, the "Iberian full note."
In short: yes, the full note is a composite stop, actuated with a lever or trigger, which simultaneously sounds a group of pipes tuned at intervals above the fundamental.
1. General idea
The full note is made up of several mixture notes that are added one after the other. Each note introduces a set of pipes that sound at intervals above the fundamental.
· Base: always the 8' flute (or principal).
· Then: registers called dozen, fifteen, nineteenth, twenty-two, etc. are added.
2. Typical distribution of Llenó bodies
(There are variations depending on the builder and period, but the classic layout would be something like this)
Body 1 (base): Dozen (12th, 2 2/3’)Body 2: Nineteenth (19th, 1 1/3’)
Twenty-second (22nd, 1’)
Body 3: Twenty-sixth (26th, 2/3’)
Twenty-ninth (29th, 1/2’)
Body 4 (sometimes): Thirty-third (33rd, 1/3')
3. Simplified graphic diagram
Imagine you press a C on the keyboard (C3 as an example):
C3 (root, flute 8')
C4 (15th → 15th, 2')
G3 (12th → 12th, 2 2/3')
C5 (22nd → 22nd, 1')
E5 (19th → 19th, 1 1/3')
G5 (26th, 2/3')
A#5 (29th, 1/2')
C6 (33rd, 1/3')
4. Sound Effect
· Volume 1 → the basic full sound, already quite bright.
· Volume 2 → greatly increases the brilliance, adding sparkle.
· Volumes 3 and 4 → very penetrating high notes, which in a reverberant space create the "Iberian glow."
👉 In summary: The Iberian full note is built in layers (volumes), from octaves and fifths relatively close to the fundamental to very high intervals. The sum creates the characteristic color: clear fundamental + high, bright artificial harmonics.
Diagram of the full notes (typical Iberian organ)
C6 (33rd, 1/3')
A#5 (29th, 1/2')
G5 (26th, 2/3')
E5 (19th, 1 1/3')
C5 (22nd, 1')
G3 (12th, 2 2/3')
C4 (15th, 2')
--------------------------------------------
C3 (root, 8')
How to read it:
The bottom line is the fundamental (the 8' flute).
The sounds generated by the different mixture notes are stacked above it.
The result is not perceived as separate chords, but as a brilliant color: the fundamental note enveloped in a metallic halo of artificial harmonics.
Important: Each Iberian organ can vary in the exact composition of its full notes, but this is the most common pattern in the 17th and 18th centuries.
· The full register (also called "Mixtura", "Plenum", "Plein Jeu", "Ripieno") is a type of composite register made up of several rows of pipes, mainly octaves and high fifths, and is designed to crown the set of fundamental registers called "flutes" or "principals".
· When an organist "plays the Full register," they activate this mixed register, which alone adds brilliance and character to the organ's sound. However, the Iberian pleno involves not only this register but also the sum of all the available principal registers and mixed registers, achieving maximum sonic splendor.
· The Full register is often part of the Pleno, but a Pleno usually also includes all the possible principal registers and mixed registers, not just the mixed register.
· The Pleno in the Iberian organ usually uses the split keyboard to combine the Full register and other registers in each half of the keyboard, allowing for greater timbral variety than the Full register alone.
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