The dance called Villano whose name means “man who lives in towns or villages” is widely cited in Spain throughout the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. Danced by a single gentleman, he shows an amazing virtuosity through the use of turns, jumps, kicks, stomps and other technical displays.
In theatrical sources, there are many references that clarify the concept of this danza or baile according to the popular or courtly way of performing it.
On the other hand, the musical compilations collect a significant number of pieces called villano, many of them with texts that sometimes can be replaced by versions a lo divino (that is, intended for religious contexts).
Likewise, there is also enough data on how to perform this dance in the main choreographic sources, information that alludes to types of steps, bows, characteristic movements, and even complete choreographies, which shows the repercussion of this dance in the different social classes of Spanish society at that time.
Nowadays the villano endures in the traditional music and dance that are still in use in the Iberian Peninsula, constituting a paradigmatic example of a live repertoire transmitted by oral tradition. What does it keep of that villano from previous centuries?
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Pilar Montoya trained at the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Aragón (Prof. J. L. González Uriol) and at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (Prof. Jesper Christensen), Pilar Montoya is one of the most relevant historical harpsichordists, organists and historical dancers on the current scene.
First Prize for harpsichord in Paris (Prof. Ilton Wjuniski), graduated in Orchestra Conducting at Royal School of Music in London, her concert activity takes place in Europe, America and Japan. Regularly invited to participate in conferences and give master classes on baroque music and dance both in Spain and abroad.
Her work as a professor for more than 25 years at Conservatorio Superior de Música de Salamanca is backed by the foundation of a harpsichord school in Castilla y León, in addition to the creation and coordination of major projects such as the Orquesta Barroca or the Jornadas de Música Antigua del COSCYL.
Director of the early dance company “Los Comediantes del Arte”, Master’s professor at the Universidad de Salamanca and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, author of articles on Spanish baroque dance published in specialized magazines, she is currently working on her Doctoral Thesis on theatrical dance under the reign of Felipe V directed by Begoña Lolo.