Gonzalo Martínez de Bizcargui

Gonzalo Martínez de Bizcargui was a Spanish music theorist of the early sixteenth century, associated with Burgos Cathedral, where he served as maestro de capilla. His name is linked to one of the most widely circulated didactic works on plainchant of his century, which explains why he continues to be cited in studies of Hispanic music theory. He is known to have been born in Azcoitia, although the date of his death is not recorded with certainty and can only be placed after 1538.

His principal treatise, Arte de canto llano et de contrapunto et canto de órgano con proporciones et modos, was published in Zaragoza in 1508 and went through numerous reprints over the course of the century, up to 1550. Martínez took Guillermo de Podio as a point of reference, although he differed from him on several points. He shared with Ramis de Pareia the view that the diatonic semitone was larger than the chromatic semitone, a position contrary to the Pythagorean tradition transmitted by Boethius. This stance brought him into conflict with Juan de Espinosa, who accused him of teaching formal heresies in music. In other respects his thought was conservative, and his work stands out for its complete and clear explanations accompanied by numerous examples.

He also edited the Intonationes in Burgos in 1515 and, according to Donostia, composed a Salve for four voices. His legacy lies above all in the practical value of his treatise as a teaching manual for plainchant and counterpoint in Renaissance Spain.