Rogero or Ruggiero is an Italian ground bass which was popular from at least the middle of the 16th century (and on into the 17th) as a basis for sets of variations and songs. There are several versions for solo lute in English manuscripts, of which two are presented here. A duet treble by John Johnson is in Dd.3.18 (f.1) and can be found in Jan Burgers’ John Johnson: Collected Lute Music (Tree edition, Lübeck, 2001) together with a reconstructed ground. Another duet treble is in the Marsh lute book on p.39, immediately following the solo – I have reconstructed a simple ground.
From the Marsh Lute Book, p.38: This version, though anonymous, has some features which I associate with John Johnson.
And from the Board Lute Book f.2: A very similar text is found in the Sampson Lute Book, f.3v.
Downloads
Marsh p.38: PDF Board f.2: PDF Marsh p.39 treble & reconstructed ground: PDF