Day 8 of The 13 Days of Zappaness, 2017 Edition

Music of Mystery – the story goes that there was an unaccompanied choral setting of a penitential Psalm, a setting of such exquisite beauty that the Pope (apparently) wished to keep the piece solely as the musical property of the Sistine Chapel Choir, and transcriptions of the piece were forbidden.  The music was composed in the early 16^th century, and only three copies of the work were authorized prior to 1770 – two of these, to royalty.  The secrecy of the piece was at last exploded when a musically precocious youth, who was in the Vatican for the proper liturgical performance of this Psalm, wrote it down entirely from his ear’s memory later that same day.

The piece is the Miserere of Gregorio Allegri;  and the precocious youth was, of course, Mozart.

What does this have to do with the Carlos Santana Secret Chord Progression?  Who knows?  Who cares? . . .

Day 8, “Variations on the Carlos Santana Secret Chord Progression” (from Shut Up ’n’ Play Your Guitar)