The death was announced recently of the musicologist, Bruno Turner (9 June 2026). Many members of NWEMF will have sung from editions of Spanish Renaissance music prepared by Bruno. He established his music publishing firm, Mapa Mundi, back in 1977 (running this alongside a family wallpaper business) with the aim of producing reputable, practical, inexpensive scores of Spanish Renaissance music in particular.
I first encountered Bruno in 1984 when I spent a day at his home in London where he introduced me to composers I had never heard of at that time. At the end of the day he sent me away with half a dozen microfilms of music by Guerrero, Lobo, and Esquivel among others, inviting me to choose a composer to work on and, in the years that followed, he gave me much advice, generously giving his time in conversations and correspondence. Mapa Mundi published several of my editions and I collaborated with Bruno on an edition of some of Esquivel’s hymn settings: Bruno provided the relevant plainsong and I edited the polyphony.
Bruno will be sadly missed by all who have delved into the many treasures of Iberian music he unearthed. He possessed an incredible in-depth knowledge of Spanish Renaissance music and generously shared this knowledge with anyone interested. He died at the age of 95 after a rich and fruitful life and all of us who have explored the music of the Spanish Golden Age are grateful for what he gave to the world.
Clive Walkley
Published in September 2026 Newsletter
