James (Santa Fe) Galloway’s Alabado And The Musical Traditions Of The Penitentes

This dissertation explores the musical traditions of the Penitentes of New Mexico and how these traditions influenced James (Santa Fe) Galloway’s Alabado for soprano, alto flute, and piano. Due to geographical isolation and religious seclusion the music of the Penitential Brotherhood is not well known outside of these New Mexican communities. The focus of this study, as pertaining to the music of the Penitentes, is the alabado “Por el rastro de la cruz,” and the pito, a handmade wooden flute. Included in this paper are transcriptions of pito melodies performed by Vicente Padilla, Cleofes Vigil, Emilio Ortiz, and Reginald Fisher, which have been transcribed by John Donald Robb, William R. Fisher, Reginald Fisher, and Rebecca Weidman-Winter. Few resources are available on Galloway or Alabado, an unpublished work, yet the popularity of this piece is apparent from the regular performances at the National Flute Association Conventions and by flutists throughout the United States. This paper represents a significant contribution to the study of Alabado, the composer, and how this composition reflects the music, history, and people of New Mexico.