Figure 10. Versos

Interspersed into the Matins and Vespers services were often short “versos” or Psalm verses. By the mid-eighteenth century these versos were usually played by the cathedral orchestra. The stacks of uncatalogued orchestral versos in the Mexico City and Puebla Cathedrals suggests that this was an important orchestral genre and their abundant presence debunks the assertion that Mexico had no orchestral literature worthy of mention. Mexico and Guatemala did have elegant instrumental works but they were called versos—not overtures or symphonies.