Who's Who Guitar Composers

Home , Federico Moreno Torroba, Ferdinando Carulli, Fernando Sor, Francisco Tarrega, Miguel Llobet

Who's Who Wednesday Year Four

Date of Birth: 1500 Place of Birth: Valencia, Spain Year of death: 1561 in Valencia, Spain Musical period: Renaissance Resident of which countries: Spain Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: published the first book of music for vihuela Number of works for guitar: Method books?:

Luis de Milán (also known as Lluís del Milà) (c. 1500 – 1561 or possibly later) was a Spanish Renaissance composer, vihuelist , and composer. He was the first composer in history to publish music for the vihuela de mano, an instrument employed primarily in the Iberian peninsula (Spain) and some of the Italian states during the fifteenth and six- teenth centuries, and he was also one of the first musicians to specify verbal tempo indications in his music. He probably lived all his life in Valencia, though details are sketchy at best. He seems to have been employed by the ducal court until around 1538. In 1535 he published his first book, a parlor game with music, entitled El juego de mandar; in the next year he published what was to be his most important book, Li- bro de música de vihuela de mano intitulado El maestro. This book was dedicated to King John III of Portugal; this dedication, and the existence of six villancicos which Milán wrote in Portuguese, suggest that he may have traveled to that country and spent some time there. The book is the first collection of vihuela music in history. It may have been intended as a book for students of the vihuela. The music is presented in grades from simple to complex, so that a beginning vihuelist can proceed from ele- mentary to gradually more complicated pieces as he learns. It contains more than forty fantasias, six pavans, twelve villancicos, as well as sonetos (settings of Italian son- nets), and other pieces; some of the pieces are for solo vihuela, and others for voice accompanied by vihuela. Many are of considerable virtuosity, though not all the orna- mentation is provided in detail. The style of the compositions varies from simple ho- mophony to polyphony and virtuoso passage-work; unusual chromaticism also occurs, including strange double-inflections which were quite rare in music from other parts of Europe at the same time. It appears that the book was prepared with great care; alter- nate passages are given for players who wish to avoid more virtuosic parts, sections of pieces are indicated as optional, and he provided verbal tempo indications, for exam- ple ni muy apriessa ni muy a espacio sino con un compás bien mesurado ("neither too quickly nor too slowly, but with a moderate measure"). Half of the villancicos are in Castilian Spanish, and half are in Portuguese.

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John Dowland

Date of Birth: 1563 Place of Birth: London, England Year of death: February 20, 1626 Musical period: Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?:

Very little is known of Dowland's early life, but it is generally thought he was born in London. In 1580 Dowland went to Paris, where he was in service to Sir Henry Cob- ham, the ambassador to the French court, and his successor, Sir Edward Stafford. He became a Roman Catholic at this time. In 1594 a vacancy for a lutenist came up at the English court, but Dowland's application was unsuccessful - he claimed his religion led to his not being offered a post at Elizabeth I's Protestant court. However, his conver- sion was not publicized, and being Catholic did not prevent some other important musicians (such as William Byrd) from having a court career in England. In 1597 Dowland published his "First Book of Songs" in London. This collection of lute-songs was set out in a way that allows performance by a soloist with lute accompaniment or various com- binations of singers and instrumentalists. From 1598, Dowland worked at the court of Christian IV of Denmark, but he continued to publish in London. He returned to Eng- land in 1606 and in early 1612 secured a post as one of James I's lutenists. There are no compositions dating from the time of his royal appointment until his death in London in 1626. While the date of his burial is recorded, the exact date of his death is not known. Most of Dowland's music is for his own instrument, the lute. It includes several books of solo lute works, lute songs (for one voice and lute), part-songs with lute accompaniment, and several pieces for viol consort with lute. Dowland's music often dis- plays the melancholia that was so fashionable in music at that time. He wrote a consort piece with the punning title "Semper Dowland, semper dolens" (always Dowland, always doleful), which may be said to sum up much of his work.

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Gasper Sanz

Date of Birth: April 4, 1640 Place of Birth: Calanda, Spain Year of death: 1710 Madrid, Spain Musical period: Baroque Resident of which countries: Spain, Italy Schools Attended: University of Salamanca Teachers: Caresana, Colista, Benevoli and Ziani Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 90 Method books?: 3 Volumes of Instruction

It is generally accepted that composer Gaspar Sanz was born on April 4, 1640, in Calanda in the region of Aragon, Spain. As a young man, he received a bachelor of theology degree and subsequently took the vows of Holy Orders from the University of Salamanca. But the spirituality of music would become a second vocation for Sanz and he journeyed to Italy to study music with Cristofaro Caresana and Lelio Colista, as well as Orazio Benevoli and Pietro Andrea Ziani. Upon his return to Spain, he pursued literature, religion, and music in equal measure. His musical prowess soon came to loom over his other achievements, becoming widely regarded as the foremost guitar theorist of his day. A complete musician, Sanz was also organist to the viceroy of Napoles. By the time Sanz began his work, the guitar in its evolution had acquired a fifth course (string pair) and settled into the fourths- oriented tuning that led to the modern six-string guitar as is known today, the octave pairing of the lower strings surviving in the modern 12-string guitar. Sanz took ad- vantage of these developments in the 90 pieces that comprise the three volumes of Instruccion. The result is of two-fold musical importance. First, the capabilities of the guitar, by this time achieving a status comparable to the lute as a serious instrument, were extended, moving away from the single-line melodic stretches punctu- ated by chords; although the said idiom may be found in the first volume, geared toward the novice, the subsequent volumes find writing for more active right-hand technique, independence of the thumb and fingers, and more varied and at times contrapuntal texture. All this is prefaced in the first volume by a tutorial, a manual for care of the instrument, and an essay on figured bass for the guitar. The music in the three volumes is written in tablature, although later arrangements for standard notation have since been made. The second great significance of the Sanz set is that it contains many examples of Spanish folk songs and dances, exposing these to the world at large. Some, like the Zarabanda, feature an alternation of meters that pres- age the flamenco guitar idiom. A well-rounded and cosmopolitan musician for his time, as well as a prophet for an instrument that would one day rival the keyboard in popularity.

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Robert de Visee

Date of Birth: 1660 Place of Birth: Portuguese Year of death: 1725 Musical period: Renaissance/Baroque Resident of which countries: France Schools Attended: Teachers: Francesco Corbetta Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?: 2 guitar methods each with 12 suites

Robert de Visée was a lutenist, guitarist, theorbist and viol player at the court of Louis XIV, as well as a singer, and composer for lute, theorbo and guitar. Robert de Visée's origin is unknown, although a Portuguese origin of his surname had been suggested. He was likely to have studied with Francesco Corbetta. About 1680 he became a chamber musician to Louis XIV, in which capacity he often performed at court. He is also mentioned in 1709 as a singer in the royal chamber, and in 1719 he was named "Guitar Master of the King.” This meant he was the guitar teacher of the king, who at the time, was only nine years of age. It was reported that de Visee also played the viol at court. De Visée wrote two books of guitar music which con- tained twelve suites between them: Livre de guitare dédié au roy (Paris, 1682) and Livre de piéces pour la guitare (Paris 1686). He composed many suites of pieces for theorbo and Baroque lute as well as a collection of ensemble pieces. Our earliest knowledge of de Visee is that he was called to entertain the Dauphin in 1682, as the Préface to his first published book (1682) confirms. He enjoyed a considerable reputation as a player of the guitar, the lute, the theorbo and the viola da gamba. The theorbo bad been 'imported' by Italian musicians and was used in Lully's ballets; together with the guitar it gained in popularity as an accompanying instrument and in reinforcing the bass line of the continuo in chamber music, which the lute, then already in decline, could not do. De Visée thus played an important part in establishing both the guitar and the theorbo. His publications comprise a number of suites, each a fairly informal collection of dances grouped around the same key, to be played by the performer in an appropriate sequence. The revival of interest began with Emilio Pujol’s transcription of Robert de Visée’s Suite in D minor (Eschig 1928), continuing with a popular arrangement by Karl Scheit (Universal Edition, 1944). Per- formance of de Visée’s music on the modern classical guitar involves a number of modifications sounding very different from ‘authentic’ interpretations on the Baroque five-course guitar.

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Sylvius Leopold Weiss

Date of Birth: October 12, 1687 Place of Birth: Grottkau, Germany Year of death: October 16, 1750 Musical period: Baroque Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 600+ for lute Method books?:

Sylvius Leopold Weiss was a lutenist. He served at courts in Breslau, Rome, and Dresden, where he died. Weiss was one of the most important and most prolific composers of lute music in history and one of the best-known and most technically accomplished lutenists of his day. He wrote around 600 pieces for lute, most of them grouped into 'sonatas' (not to be confused with the later classical sonata, based on sonata form) or suites, which consist mostly of baroque dance pieces. Weiss also wrote chamber pieces and concertos, but only the solo parts have survived. In later life, Weiss became a friend of Wilhelm Friedemann Bach and met J.S. Bach through him. J.S.Bach and Weiss were said to have competed in improvisation as described in the following account: "Anyone who knows how difficult it is to play harmonic modulations and good counterpoint on the lute will be surprised and full of disbelief to hear from eyewitnesses that Weiss, the great lutenist, challenged J. S. Bach, the great harpsichordist and organist, at playing fantasies and fugues." Weiss spent his last years of life working as a royal lutenist for the court of Dresden where it is reported Weiss was the highest paid musician of his time. Upon his death, Weiss’s son replaced him as the lutenist at the Dresden Court.

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Ferdinando Carulli

Date of Birth: February, 1770 Place of Birth: Naples, Italy Year of death: 1841 Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: Italy & France Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 400 Method books?: Method, Op 27 25 Melodi- ous Studies for the Guitar

Classical guitarists owe a debt of gratitude to this Italian-turned-Parisian guitar master. Ferdinando Carulli, born to an affluent, upper-class family. Carulli first learned music on the cello. It was not until he was about 20 years of age that he took up the guitar, which at that time, more resembled a lute and might have five or six pairs of strings. From that time forward, Carulli devoted his life to developing the guitar as a classical instrument and to popularizing guitar music. Guitarists were few in Naples in Carulli's time; he, therefore, had to study on his own and consequently, he developed his own unique style as a composer and a guitarist. A significant part of his legacy was born from that experience and published as Method, Op. 27. This collection of guitar pieces was composed for novice guitarists and, as such, became very popular. Today, these pieces are still used for guitar instruction. Carulli's early career focused on performing. His popularity in his native Naples soon led to performances across Europe, where he gained equal prominence. His composing did not begin in earnest until the early nineteenth century. Some of his earliest published works were from Milan around 1807. Af- ter Milan, he apparently spent some time in Venice, as evidenced by published manu- scripts from there in the 1807-1808 time period. By April 1808, however, Carulli had taken up residence in Paris. He enjoyed considerable success composing, performing, and teaching guitar. Over his lifetime, Carulli composed at least 400 pieces for the guitar, making him one of the most prolific composers of the century. He wrote for guitar and piano, guitar and voice, guitar solo, and with his Concerto, Op. 8, guitar and orchestra. Being a pioneer in his field, Carulli often had difficulty in getting some of his work published. Publishers were interested in works that were more simplistic, not will- ing to risk publishing works believed to be too difficult to perform for the average performer. Consequently, it is believed that many of what would have been Carulli's mas- terpieces were lost. Carulli counted nobility and upper class Parisians as his students. His popularity was only surpassed when Fernando Sor arrived in Paris in 1823.

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Francois de Fossa

Date of Birth: August 31, 1775 Place of Birth: Perpignan, France Year of death: 1849 Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?: translated Aguado’s book into French

François de Fossa, born in Perpignan in 1775, fought as a soldier in Spain against the French invaders and subsequently served in Mexico. After the invasion of Napoleon in Spain, he ended up in prison, but returned to France in 1814. He later saw service in France. His work as a composer, generally neglected until recently, includes instrumental music that shows a clear understanding of the possibilities of the guitar. De Fossa's three Trios concertants for guitar, violin and cello, show something of the influence of Boccherini, a resident of Madrid for 37 years, until his death in 1805. This is heard particularly in the handling of the cello in the Trios, while his own knowledge of the guitar is clear from his writing for the instrument. He also wrote a set of quartets with guitar. De Fossa translated Dionisio Aguado’s method into French and arranged for its publication in Paris. De Fossa was a contemporary of Carcassi, Carulli, Sor, Guiliani and Aguado, but was not as prolific of a composer. However, his music is now being recognized as a major contribution to the guitar literature of the classical period.

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Fernando Sor

Date of Birth: February 13, 1778 Place of Birth: Barcelona, Spain Year of death: July 10, 1839 in Paris Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: Spain, Eng- land, Russia & France Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 100+ Method books?: Yes

Spanish composer Fernando Sor is remembered today as a virtuoso guitarist whose hundred-plus compositions for that instrument constitute a vital part of its concert repertory. Sor attended the choir school at Montserrat monastery and later enrolled in Barcelona's military academy. After the production of his opera Telemaco nell'isola de Calipso in 1797 he moved to Madrid, where he served in a number of minor adminis- trative positions and continued to compose privately. During the French invasion of 1808, Sor's military background and patriotism roused him to fight against the invaders, though by 1810 he had resigned himself to the presence of the new regime; when the French withdrew three years later Sor opted, along with countless other Spanish artists and intellectuals, to return to Paris with them. After two years of teaching guitar and performing in various Parisian venues, Sor moved to London and remained there for eight years (1815-1823). Many of his works were published there, and his thirty-three Italian vocal ariettas made a particularly strong impact. Sor also gained fame after directing his energies toward the ballet; Cendrillon (1822) achieved the most favorable critical and public response and was successfully transplanted to Paris in 1822. When the Bolshoi theater in Moscow showed an interest in the work for the 1823 season, Sor accompanied the lead dancers to Moscow. He limited his com- positional activities to music for the guitar while staying in Russia, and by the time he returned to Paris in 1826 he had several works for the instrument ready for publication and had completed much of the work on a Méthode pour la guitare, eventually published in Paris in 1830. Sor remained in Paris, composing and teaching guitar, until his death in 1839. Much of Sor's music that has survived (two symphonies, three string quartets and any number of smaller pieces have been lost since his death) has been abandoned by performers, but his music for the guitar lives on. Much of his reputation is based on the continued use of his Méthode by teachers and students of classical guitar. Sor's musical style derives largely from an awareness of the late eighteenth century German masters (in particular Haydn); his guitar music, with its independent voices and occasionally contrapuntal textures, shows a tendency to move away from the largely chordal textures that had been common up to that point.

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Mauro Guiliani

Date of Birth: July 27, 1781 Place of Birth: Bisceglie, Italy Year of death: May 8, 1829 Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: Italy, Austria, England & France Schools Attended: Teachers: self-taught Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 200 Method books?: 120 Right-Hand Studies

An acclaimed Italian guitar virtuoso and composer, Mauro Giuliani, was one of the last great classical proponents of his instrument until its revival in the early twentieth century. He studied counterpoint and the cello, but on the six-string guitar he was entirely self-taught, and that became his principal instrument early on. Italy abounded with fine guitarists at the beginning of the nineteenth century, but few of them could make a living because of the public's preoccupation with opera. So Giuliani embarked on a successful tour of Europe when he was 19, and in 1806 he settled in Vienna, where he entered the musical circle of Diabelli, Moscheles, and Hummel. He solidified his reputation with the 1808 premiere of his Guitar Concerto in A major, Op. 30, and was soon heralded as the greatest living guitar virtuoso. Even Beethoven noticed Giuliani, and wrote a few guitar pieces especially for him. Perhaps to return the favor, Giuliani played cello in the 1813 premiere of Beetho- ven's Symphony No. 7. Around 1814, Giuliani was named virtuoso onorario di cam- era to Napoleon's second wife, Empress Marie-Louise. But, deeply in debt, he returned to Italy in 1819. An 1823 trip to London brought him acclaim in the English- speaking world, and resulted in a short-lived fan publication called The Giulianiad. After this visit, the guitarist settled in Naples, enjoying the patronage of the court of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies. He became adept on an obscure instrument called the lyre-guitar (which was marketed mainly to female amateurs), and perfected the de- sign of the "ghitarra di terza," an instrument with a shorter fingerboard than that of the regular "Spanish" guitar. Giuliani published more than 200 works; his most dura- ble pieces include three lyrical concertos in a late Classical/early Romantic style, and, for solo guitar, the Grand Overture, Op. 61, and a series of six sometimes long- winded suites, Le Rossiniane, based on tunes by Gioacchino Rossini. As a special help to other players, Giuliani notated his works on the treble clef in an innovative manner, with the rests and note-stem directions distinguishing the melody from the bass line and inner voices.

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Niccolo Paganini

Date of Birth: October 27, 1782 Place of Birth: Genoa, Italy Year of death: May 27, 1840 Nice, Italy Musical period: Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?: no

Paganini's father was an unsuccessful trader, but he managed to supplement his income through playing music on the mandolin. At the age of five, Paganini started learn- ing the mandolin from his father, and moved to the violin by the age of seven. His musical talents were quickly recognized, earning him numerous scholarships for violin lessons. The young Paganini studied under various local violinists, but his progress quickly outpaced their abilities. Paganini and his father then traveled to Parma to seek further guidance. But upon listening to Paganini's playing, Allesandro Rolla immediately referred him to his own teacher. The French invaded northern Italy in March 1796, and Genoa was not spared. The Paganinis sought refuge in their country prop- erty in Ramairone. By 1800, Paganini and his father traveled to Livorno, where Pagan- ini played in concerts and his father resumed his maritime work. In 1801, Paganini, aged 18 at the time, was appointed first violin of the Republic of Lucca, but a substantial portion of his income came from freelancing. His fame as a violinist was matched only by his reputation as a gambler and womanizer. In 1805, Lucca was annexed by Napoleonic France, and the region was ceded to Napoleon's sister, Elisa Baciocchi. Paganini became a violinist for the Baciocchi court, while giving private lessons for her husband, Félix. In 1807, Baciocchi became the Grand Duchess of Tuscany and her court was transferred to Florence. Paganini was part of the entourage, but, towards the end of 1809, he left Baciocchi to resume his freelance career. For the next few years, Paganini returned to touring in the areas surrounding Parma and Genoa. Though he was very popular with the local audience, he was still not very well known in Europe. His first break came from an 1813 concert which took place at La Scala in Milan. The concert was a great success, and as a result Paganini began to attract the attention of other prominent musicians across Europe. His fame spread across Europe with a concert tour that started in Vienna in August, 1828, stopping in every major European city in Germany, Poland, and Bohemia until February, 1831 in Strasburg. This was followed by tours in Paris and the British Isles. His technical ability and his willingness to display it received much critical acclaim.

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Dionisio Aguado

Date of Birth: 1784 Place of Birth: Madrid, Spain Year of death: 1849 in Madrid, Spain Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: Spain & France Schools Attended: Teachers: Miguel Garcia Outstanding Achievements: invented a guitar stand to use while performing Number of works for guitar: Method books?: Studies for Guitar

Born in 1784 into a religious family, Aguado showed an early aptitude for music and the guitar. But true to his modest nature, it took him forty years of playing the instrument to become "famous". This was when he went to live in Paris in 1824 and became friends with and for a while lived with Fernando Sor. Sor's duo "Les Deux Amis" ("The Two Friends") commemorated the friendship: one part is marked "Sor" and the other "Aguado." Aguado's major work Escuela de Guitarra was a guitar tutor published in 1825. It is still reprinted today (Tecla editions). In the "Escuela" Aguado describes his use of fingernails on the right hand as well as his invention of a "tripodion": a device that held the guitar and thus minimized the damping effect of the player's body on the guitar's back and sides. Aguado's other works include "Trois Rondos Brillants" (Opus 2), "Le Menuet Affandangado" (Opus 15), "Le Fan- dango Varie" (Opus 16), as well as numerous waltzes, minuets, and other light pieces. Aguado had inherited his father's estate some years earlier and had spent the majority of his time there mastering the guitar and music. This stood him in good stead for the rest of his life, as he was both a master player and a very talented composer. This is despite the fact that he is mainly remembered today for his "Method" book. The more extended works require a virtuoso technique and left- hand stretches that are almost impossible on the longer string lengths of modern guitar.

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Luigi Legnani

Date of Birth: November 7, 1790 Place of Birth: Ferrara, Italy Year of death: August 5, 1877 Musical period: Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 250 Method books?: no

Luigi Rinaldo Legnani was one of the greatest Italian guitarists of the romantic period. His predecessors had established the audiences for the guitar and made possible his career as a touring performer; on the other hand, they had also raised the technical standards and the expectations of these audiences. Legnani’s virtuosity was often compared with that of his friend Paganini, who was himself a competent guitarist and who once stated that he considered Legnani "first" among guitarists. Legnani was trained as a string player while very young but dedicated himself to guitar and voice. His debut was in Ravenna in 1807; in the 1820s he performed as a tenor in operas by Rossini, Pacini, and Donizetti. His career as a guitarist began with a concert in Milan in 1819; his 1822 concerts in Vienna were a great success, and he was hailed as a star when he returned there in 1833 and 1839. He is perhaps best known for his 36 Ca- prices for the guitar, which cover all the major and minor keys, and which were probably inspired by Paganini's 24 Caprices for the violin. He and Paganini were friends from the 1830s; while it was once thought that he and Paganini performed together in public, this is no longer accepted. After the 1850s Legnani retired from active performance and became an instrument maker, concentrating on guitars and violins. The "Legnani model" guitar was popular in Central Europe through the middle of the nineteenth century. Legnani composed some 250 works, which were published in his lifetime throughout many of the major publishing houses in Europe. He died in Ravenna.

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Matteo Carcassi

Date of Birth: 1792 Place of Birth:Florence, Italy Year of death: January 16, 1853-Paris, France Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: Italy, Germany, France and England Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 100+ Method books?: Method for Guitar, Op. 59 and 25 Etudes Op. 60

Matteo Carcassi began with the piano, but learned guitar when still a child. He quickly gained a reputation as a virtuoso concert guitarist. He moved to Germany in 1810, gaining almost immediate success. In 1815, he was living in Paris, earning his living as a teacher of both the piano and the guitar. On a concert tour in Germany in 1819, he met his friend Antoine Meissonnier for the first time. Also a famous guitarist, Meissonnier published many of Carcassi's works in his Paris publishing house. From 1820 on, Carcassi spent the majority of his time in Paris. In 1822, he performed an extremely successful series of concerts in London that earned him great fame, both as a performing artist and as a teacher. However, in Paris, a long time passed before his talents were truly recognized, partly because of the presence of Fernando Carulli, 'adored' by his audience. Carcassi return to Germany in the fall of 1824. Afterwards he performed in London, where his reputation now gave him ac- cess to more prestigious concert halls. Finally he returned to Paris. For several years, he made concert trips from here to the most important cultural towns of Europe, including London. After a short return to performing in 1836, he quit his concert practice around 1840 and died in the French capital in 1853. Carcassi wrote a method for guitar (op. 59) that remains valuable, relevant and interesting. His most famous works are collected in his 25 Etudes op. 60.

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Napoleon Coste

Date of Birth: June 8, 1805 Place of Birth: Doubs, France Year of death: February 17, 1883 Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: France Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?: yes

Napoléon Coste was first taught the guitar by his mother, an accomplished player. As a teenager he became a teacher of the instrument and appeared in many concerts in the Franche Comté. In 1829, at the age of 24, he moved to Paris where he studied under Fernando Sor and quickly established himself as the leading French virtuoso guitarist. However, the demand for guitarists was in decline and, though his brilliance provided financial stability, he failed to find a publisher for his music. As such, he had to fund its publication himself. Coste broke his arm in 1863 as a result of an accident, which brought his performing career to a premature end. He hired an assistant and continued to teach guitar and compose. Unfortunately, after Sor’s death, Coste did a disservice to his friend’s memory by editing and republishing Sor's original method for guitar as "Méthode complète pour la Guitare par Ferdinand Sor, rédigée et augmentée [refingered and expanded] de nombreux exemples et leçons par N. Coste". Coste is considered a member of the first generation of guitarist to follow Fernando Sor and others associated with the Golden Age of Guitar. Napoléon Coste had a special fondness for playing on a seven-string guitar. He is known as one of the first composers to tran- scribe guitar music of the 17th century into modern musical notation. He died at age 77 leaving a significant catalogue of original compositions.

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Francesco Tarraga

Date of Birth: November 21, 1852 Place of Birth: Villarreal, Castellon, Spain Year of death: December 15, 1909 Barcelona, Spain Musical period: Romantic Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Madrid Conservatory Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 78 originals and 120 transciptions Method books?: No

Tárrega began to study guitar at the age of ten, at a time when the instrument's popularity was over shadowed by the piano. He was fortunate to obtain a louder and more resonant guitar from the famous luthier, Antonio Torres. With this instrument Torres prepared the way for the renewal in interest for the guitar in the 20th century. Tárrega studied theory, harmony and piano at the Madrid Conservatory and later made a living teaching music and performing on the guitar. He played throughout Europe and included in his repertoire works of Spanish nationalist composers such as Albénez as well as his own compositions. Many of the Spanish works were transcribed for the first time for guitar by Tárrega himself. He suffered paralysis of his right side in 1906, effectively ending his performing career at it's peak. In addition to his role in the renaissance of the classical guitar, Tárrega holds a place in music history through the achievements of his students. Tárrega is considered to have laid the foundations for 20th century classical guitar and for increasing interest in the guitar as a recital instrument. Tárrega preferred small intimate performances over the concert stage. Some believe this was because he played without the nails needed for volume. Others say this was related to his blindness. Francisco Tár- rega's music and style of guitar playing became strongly influential in the twentieth century. He was central to reviving the guitar as a solo instrument in recital and concerts. His output was modest, having composed only 78 original scores and 120 transcriptions - mostly for his own use. Among his most popular works for the guitar are Recuerdos de la Alhambra, Capricho Árabe and Danza Mora.

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Isaac Albeniz

Date of Birth: May 29, 1860 Place of Birth: Camprodon, Spain Year of death: May 18, 1909 Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Spain, United States, England, Germany, France Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?:

Albéniz was a child prodigy who first performed at the age of four. At age seven he passed the entrance examination for piano at the Paris Conservatoire, but he was re- fused admission because he was believed to be too young. By the time he had reached 12, he had made many attempts to run away from home. At the age of 12 he stowed away in a ship bound for Buenos Aires. He then made his way via Cuba to the United States, giving concerts in New York and San Francisco and then travelled to Liverpool, London and Leipzig.[1] By age 15, he had already given concerts worldwide. After a short stay at the Leipzig Conservatory, in 1876 he went to study in Brussels. In 1880, he went to Budapest to study with Franz Liszt, only to find out that Liszt was in Weimar, Germany. In 1883, he met the teacher and composer Felipe Pedrell, who inspired him to write Spanish music such as the Suite Española, Op. 47. The fifth movement of that suite, called Asturias (Leyenda), is probably most famous these days as part of the classical guitar repertoire, even though it was originally composed for piano and only later transcribed to guitar. Many of his other compositions were also transcribed to guitar, notably by Francisco Tárrega — Albéniz once declared that he preferred Tárrega's guitar transcriptions to his original piano works. During the 1890s Al- béniz lived in London and Paris and wrote mainly theatrical works. In 1900 he started to suffer from Bright's disease and returned to writing piano music. Between 1905 and 1909 he composed his most famous work, Iberia (1908), a suite of twelve piano "impressions". His orchestral works include Spanish Rhapsody (1887) and Catalonia (1899).

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Enrique Granados

Date of Birth: July 27, 1867 Place of Birth: Lleida, Spain Year of death: March 24, 1916 English Chan- nel Musical period: Romantic Resident of which countries: Spain, France Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: none-all of his known works have been transcribed for guitar Method books?: no

As a young man he studied piano in Barcelona, where his teachers included Francisco Jurnet and Joan Baptista Pujol. In 1887 he went to Paris to study with Charles-Wilfrid de Bériot and, most importantly, Felipe Pedrell. He returned to Barcelona in 1889. His first successes were at the end of the 1890s, with the zarzuela Maria del Carmen, which earned the attention of King Alfonso XIII. In 1911 Granados premiered his suite for piano Goyescas, which became his most famous work. It is a set of six pieces based on paintings of Goya. Such was the success of this work that he was encouraged to expand it; he wrote an opera based on the subject in 1914, but the outbreak of World War I forced the European premiere to be canceled. It was performed for the first time in New York City on January 28, 1916, and was very well received. Shortly afterwards, he was invited to perform a piano recital for President Woodrow Wilson. Prior to leaving New York, Granados also made live-recorded player piano music rolls for the New-York-based Aeolian Company's "Duo-Art" system all of which survive today and can be heard - his very last recordings. The delay incurred by accepting the recital invitation caused him to miss his boat back to Spain. Instead, he took a ship to England, where he boarded the passenger ferry Sussex for Dieppe, France. On the way across the English Channel, the Sussex was torpedoed by a German U-boat, as part of the German unrestricted submarine warfare policy during World War I. In a failed attempt to save his wife Amparo, whom he saw flailing about in the water some distance away, Granados jumped out of his lifeboat, and drowned. Ironically, he had a morbid fear of water for his entire life, and he was returning from his first-ever series of ocean voyages. Ironically too, the ship broke in two parts and only one sank (along with 80 passengers); the other part of the ship where his cabin was did not sink and was towed to port, with most of the passengers. Many of his piano compositions have been transcribed for the classical guitar and are generally considered as some of the most beautiful music in the guitar repertoire: examples include Dedicatoria, Danza No. 5, Goyescas. Granados was an important influence on Manuel de Falla.

Page 17 Who's Who Wednesday Year Four

Manuel de Falla

Date of Birth: November 23, 1876 Place of Birth: Cadiz, Spain Year of death: November 14, 1946 Argentina Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Spain, France, Argentina Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: his image was used on a Spanish currency note Number of works for guitar: None-his music has been transcribed for guitar Method books?: No

Manuel de Falla’s early teacher in music was his mother; at the age of 9 he was introduced to his first piano professor. From the late 1890s he studied music in Madrid, piano with José Tragó and composition with Felipe Pedrell. In 1899 by unanimous vote he was awarded the first prize at the piano competition at his school of music, and around that year he started to use de with his first surname, making de Falla the name he became known as from that time on. It was from Felipe Pedrell, during Madrid period, that de Falla became interested in native Spanish music, particularly Andalusian flamenco, the influence of which can be strongly felt in many of his works. Among his early pieces are a number of zarzuelas, but his first important work was the one-act opera La vida breve (Life is Short, or The Brief Life, written in 1905, though revised before its premiere in 1913). De Falla spent the years 1907 to 1914 in Paris, where he met a number of composers who had an influence on his style, including the impres- sionist Claude Debussy. He wrote little more music, however, until his return to Madrid at the beginning of World War I. While at no stage was he a prolific composer, it was then that he entered into his mature creative period. In Madrid he composed several of his best known pieces. From 1921 to 1939 Manuel de Falla lived in Granada, where he organized the Concurso de Cante Jondo in 1922. In Granada he wrote the puppet opera El retablo de maese Pedro (Master Peter's Puppet Show, 1923) and a concerto for harpsichord and chamber ensemble (1926). The puppet opera marked the first time the harpsichord had entered the modern orchestra; and the concerto was the first for harpsichord written in the 20th Century. Both of these works were written with Wanda Landowska in mind. In these works, the Spanish folk influence is somewhat less ap- parent than a kind of Stravinskian neo-classicism. His best known piece played by many guitarists is Pour le tombeau de Claude Debussy.

Page 18 Who's Who Wednesday Year Four

Miguel Llobet

Date of Birth: October 18, 1878 Place of Birth: Barcelona, Spain Year of death: February 22, 1938 Barcelona Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Spain, France Schools Attended: Conservatory of Music in Barcelona Teachers: Francisco Tarrega Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?:

Llobet first met, and played for, the great guitar pedagogue Francisco Tárrega in Octo- ber 1892 at the age 14. Two years later he began to study with him at the Municipal Conservatory of Music in Barcelona. By his own account, his studies with Tárrega do not seem to have been based on any particular methodology, rather Llobet would ob- serve Tárrega play and then experiment with his techniques at home. He began giving private concerts for intimate gatherings in 1898. His first public concert took place in 1901 at the Conservatory of València. During that same year, he also performed at conservatories in Seville and Malaga, where he was awarded the honorary title of Pro- fessor. In 1904 in Paris Llobet's first concert outside Spain. Paris was kind to Llobet, as he returned to live there in 1905. In 1912, Llobet gave his first concerts in the United States, performing in Boston, Philadelphia and New York. He then returned to Paris. In the following years, he continued to perform throughout Europe. Llobet was in Spain about 1915, where he taught his most important pupil, Andrés Segovia. At the age of 22, Segovia pursued what he considered the only direct contact to Tárrega, Llobet, for refinement of his technique and especially for the music that both he and Tárrega had written and transcribed for the guitar. Between 1912 and 1917, Llobet is reported to have made at least one attempt at recording. In 1920-1921, Llobet played in Spain and toured throughout Germany, performing in Munich, Leipzig, Dresden, Cologne and Stuttgart. In 1922 he was in Vienna for the first time. In 1924, he again toured throughout Germany and Austria, and he concertized in the Americas in 1925. He returned again to the Americas in 1930 to perform for the Spanish Arts Festival, under the aus- pices of the Library of Congress. In 1923, he began to teach María Luisa Anido in Bue- nos Aires. By 1925, the two were performing duets and in 1930 recorded some of Llobet's duet arrangements on the Odeon-Parlophone label distributed by Decca. These recordings followed a solo series recorded by Llobet. Llobet toured Europe again in 1930-1931, performing in London, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Vienna, Buda- pest and Bologna among others.

Page 19 Who's Who Wednesday Year Four

Joaquin Turina

Date of Birth: December 9, 1882 Place of Birth: Seville, Spain Year of death: January 14, 1949 Madrid, Spain Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Spain, France Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?: no

Born into a comfortable middle class family, Joaquin Turina was surrounded by an artistic environment that was a good influence on the future musician. At the age of four he was given as a gift an accordion and surprised everyone with the speed and facility he learned to play. In 1894 he began his formal studies of harmony theory and counterpoint. Almost immediately he began to compose small pieces. His debut was on March 14 1897 where he performed the Thalberg's Fantasy on a theme from Rossini's Moses that set him on the road to become a full fledged performer. In 1902 he moved to Madrid where he quickly became involved in the musical scene there and saw the premier of his Zarzuela La sulamita. In 1905 he, as most other Spanish composers of the time, went to Paris. He studied piano with Moszkowsky and theory under Vicent d'Indy in the Schola Cantorum. He became good friends with Albeniz and Falla, and it was Albeniz who encouraged him to find inspiration in the popular music of Spain and Andalucía. His quintet that was premiered in Paris was given the Op. 1 as the beginning of a new way of looking at music and he rarely looked back on the many works published before this time. In 1914, he returned to Madrid. His life in Madrid was divided between composing, teaching and performing. Turina wrote music for guitar that is an important part of the repertoire of this essentially Spanish instrument. These works include Sevillana, Fandanguillo, Ráfaga, Sonata and Homenaje a Tárrega

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Manuel Ponce

Date of Birth: December 8, 1882 Place of Birth: Fresnillo, Zacatecas, Mexico Year of death: April 24, 1948 Mexico City, Mexico Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Mexico, Italy, Germany, Cuba Schools Attended: National Conservatory of Music Outstanding Achievements: received the Na- tional Science and Arts Prize in 1947 Number of works for guitar: Method books?: No

Born in Fresnillo, Zacatecas, Ponce moved with his family to the city of Aguascali- entes only a few weeks after his birth and lived there until he was 15 years old. He was famous for being a "musical prodigy"; according to his biographers, he was barely four years of age when, after having listened to the piano classes received by his sister, Josefina, he sat in front of the instrument and interpreted one of the pieces that he had heard. Immediately, his parents had him receive classes in piano and musical notation. In 1901 Ponce entered the National Conservatory of Music, already with a certain prestige as a pianist and composer. There he remained until 1903, the year in which he returned to the city of Aguascalientes. This was only the beginning of his travels. In 1904 he traveled to Italy for advanced musical studies at the School of Bologna. He studied in Germany as a pupil of Martin Krause at the Stern conservatory in Berlin between 1906 and 1908. After his years abroad, Ponce returned to Mexico to teach piano and music history at the National Conservatory of Music from 1909 to 1915 and from 1917 to 1922. He spent the intervening years of 1915 to 1917 in Havana, Cuba. Ponce's guitar music is a core part of the instrument's repertory, the best-known works being Variations and Fugue on 'La Folia' (1929) and Sonatina meridional (1939). He also wrote a guitar concerto Conci- erto del sur, which is dedicated to his long-time friend and guitar virtuoso Andrés Segovia. His last known work, Variations on a Theme of Cabezón, was written in 1948, a few months before his death. It was Ponce who anonymously created the striking arrangement for guitar of J. S. Bach's Prelude from the first cello suite as performed and recorded by Segovia. Ponce also composed the prelude for lute as- cribed by Segovia on record and program notes to lutenist/Bach contemporary S. L. Weiss.

Page 21 Who's Who Wednesday Year Four

Agustin Barrios (Mangore)

Date of Birth: May 5, 1885 Place of Birth: Paraguay, South America Year of death: August 7, 1944 San Salvador Musical period: Romantic/Modern Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Coggio Nacional de Asuncion Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Credited for making the first commercial recording Number of works for guitar: 300+ Method books?: No

When he was a child, Barrios began to develop a love for music and literature, two areas that were very important to his family. Barrios would eventually speak two lan- guages (Spanish and Guarani), and read three more (English, French and German). Barrios began to show an interest in musical instruments, particularly the guitar, before he reached his teens. He went to Asunción in 1901, at the age of fifteen, to at- tend a university (Colegio Nacional de Asunción) with a scholarship in music, thus becoming one of the youngest university students in Paraguayan history. After leaving college, Barrios dedicated his life to music and writing poems. He composed more than 300 songs for which he would first write the lyrics and then the guitar accompaniment. Barrios was famed for his phenomenal performances, both live and on gramophone recordings — although Barrios is usually credited as the first classical guitarist to make recordings in 1909/10, a myth perpetuated by the guitarist John Williams, the first guitarist to record was the Mexican guitarist Octaviano Yanes performing his "Mexican Dance" (Habanera). The record, Victor 05662, is dated August 25, 1908. Another version of this piece exists on Edison Foreign Series cylinder (catalogue number 20204)[1][2]. For some years, it was Barrios's habit to perform in concert in traditional Paraguayan dress, assuming the persona of Nitsuga Mangoré ('Nitsuga' being Agustín spelled backwards, and 'Mangoré' being the name of a ca- cique of the South American indigenous group Timbú). The Bach-inspired La Cat- edral (1921) is often considered to be his most impressive work, even winning the approval of Andrés Segovia. Barrios is still revered in Paraguay, where he is seen as one of the greatest musicians of all time. Many guitarists have recorded music by Barrios.

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Emilio Pujol

Date of Birth: April 7, 1886 Place of Birth: Granadella, Lerida, Spain Year of death: November 15, 1980 Spain Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Spain, Eng- land, France Schools Attended: Conservatory of Barce- lona Teachers: Francisco Tarrega Outstanding Achievements: possibly first to teach guitar at the college level in 1946 Number of works for guitar: Method books?: Yes-Four Volumes

Emilio Pujol was born in the little village of Granadella just outside Lleida, Spain. He began his studies with Francisco Tárrega at the Conservatory of Barcelona in 1901, when he was fifteen years of age. Pujol fondly remembered his first encounter with Tárrega and in his biography of his teacher, he described his mestre in very endearing, romantic terms. During World War I,1914-1918, he did not travel much and mainly remained in Catalonia. In 1918 he undertook his first tour of South America, starting in Buenos Aires. The only major interruptions in his concert travels were his marriage to Matilda Cuervas in Paris and the period of time he devoted to historical research in Paris into the instrumental predecessors of the guitar. The beginning signs of World War II, also prevented him from continuing his concert career. From 1935 through 1940, Pujol continued giving a few concerts and lectures as well as pursuing his research in Spain, London and Paris. By 1941, he was back in Spain until 1946, prepar- ing the volume covering the composer for vihuela Luis de Narváez for the series Monu- mentos de la Musica Española (Vol. III). The volume was eventually followed by volumes covering Alonso Mudarra (1949) and Valderrábano (1963) in the series. Prior to his death, Pujol had begun work on the largest of vihuela music books, the Orphenica Lyra by Miguel Fuenllana, published in 1554. He considered this book to be the pinna- cle of the vihuela school and regarded Fuenllana as the final spokesman for this brief courtly instrumental period in Spanish music. In 1946, Pujol began his guitar classes at the Lisbon Conservatory of Music which continued through to 1969, perhaps the first instance of guitar instruction being included in an academic institution. During this period he was involved in giving master classes (in 1953 he was personally invited by Andrés Segovia to give classes at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana) and adjudicating guitar competitions. Beginning in the summer of 1965, Pujol launched his International Courses of Guitar, Lute and Vihuela in the city of Lleida, Spain. This event became quite popular and was attended by students and teachers from throughout the world. It was repeated every summer over a ten year period, and in 1972 it was moved to the thirteenth-century village of Cervera.

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Heitor Villa-Lobos

Date of Birth: March 5, 1887, 1910 Place of Birth: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Year of death: November 17, 1959 Brazil Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Brazil, France Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: Method books?: No

The music of Heitor Villa-Lobos is known for its characteristic nationalism, driving rhythms, and original instrumentation. He was self-taught and opposed to academic instruction, his music grew in a completely independent and individual fashion. Villa- Lobos began studying music at an early age, when his father, a worker at the Na- tional Library and an amateur musician, taught him to play cello, viola, and guitar. These early influences later became evident in the orchestration of some of his more prominent works. Among other skills, he learned to improvise guitar melodies over the "choro," a popular instrumental genre of the time, which lent Villa-Lobos the effortless Latin nationality so strongly present in his music. From the ages of 18 to 25 he traveled extensively throughout Brazil and the Caribbean nation. It was also during this time that Villa-Lobos composed his first major compositions, most notably his Piano Trio No. 1. When he returned to Rio de Janeiro in 1912, Villa-Lobos briefly attempted to receive a more formalized education, but his personality and musical practice proved ill-matched with the academic establishment and soon left classes. He spent the next ten years composing and playing freelance cello in cafes and cinemas to earn a living. He eventually gained national recognition and a fair sum of government funding with the premiere of his Third Symphony, "A guerra," the first part of a symphonic trilogy commissioned by the Brazilian government to commemorate World War I. From 1923 to 1930, Villa-Lobos found himself centered in Paris, where he was a huge success, his music being widely published and fre- quently performed. He eventually returned to Brazil, however, becoming one of the most esteemed artists of the new Nationalist regime, which lasted until 1945. During the 1930s, Villa-Lobos involved himself deeply and enthusiastically with public music education, once again traveling throughout Brazil to offer his services as a teacher and school coordinator. In 1945, his passion reached the ultimate fruition when he founded the Brazilian Academy of Music. He spent the last ten years of his life traveling and conducting, primarily in New York and Paris.

Page 24 Who's Who Wednesday Year Four

Federico Moreno Torroba

Date of Birth: March 3, 1891 Place of Birth: Madrid, Spain Year of death: September 12, 1982 Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 80+ Method books?: No

The son of a well-known organist and pupil of the ubiquitous father-figure of musical nationalism Felipe Pedrell, Torroba divided his talents between composing, conducting and impresario work, writing a great deal of symphonic and instrumental music. The compositions for the concert hall have become neglected with the exception of the long series of works for guitar made popular by Andrés Segovia, notably the Sonatina, Con- cierto ibérico and Concierto flamenco. He was prolific as an opera and ballet composer. In 1918, the year when Moreno Torroba’s tone poem, La ajorca de oro (The Gold Bracelet) had its première at the conservatoire, he met the great guitarist, Andrés Segovia. The two became friends and Segovia encouraged Torroba to write for the guitar. Torroba’s first work for guitar was Dance in E Major. The composer continued to write for guitar during the rest of his life, producing some eighty works including dances, impressionistic pieces, sonatas and sonatinas and suites as well as concertos and compositions for four guitars. The close association with Segovia in due course established Moreno Torroba’s international reputation as one of the foremost composers involved in the remarkable twentieth century renaissance of the classical guitar. His guitar music has remained one of the most popular elements of the modern repertoire ever since Segovia recorded the first movement (Allegretto) of Sonatina in May, 1927. Moreno Torroba, however, was not only a prolific guitar composer but one of the leading advocates in the late flowering of the zarzuela, the light Spanish opera form characterized by a blend of sung and spoken dialect. As conductor and impresario, he travelled widely throughout the 1930s and 1940s with several stage companies, visiting the United States and Latin America. At one time he was the manager of no less than three opera companies.

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Andres Segovia

Date of Birth: February 21, 1893 Place of Birth: Linares, Spain Year of death: June 2, 1987 Musical period: Classical Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: raised the guitar to new peaks of acceptance Number of works for guitar: Method books?: yes

The father of the modern classical guitar movement, Andres Segovia raised his cho- sen instrument to new peaks of popularity and respectability; it is widely held that without his efforts, the classical guitar would still remain in the eyes of purists a lowly bar instrument. Born in Linares, Spain on February 21, 1893, Segovia began playing at the early age of four; although discouraged by his family, who felt he should adopt a "real" instrument instead, he continued studying and made his concert debut in Granada at the age of 16. His professional debut came four years later in Madrid, and was met by many with disbelief -- the guitar was widely believed to be incapable of proper classical expression, but Segovia astounded naysayers with his skill. The central problem facing him, however, remained that the guitar's sound could not properly fill a concert hall; in the years to follow, Segovia solved the dilemma by ex- perimenting with new woods and designs, all to increase the instrument's natural amplification. The advent of nylon strings also enabled the guitar to produce more consistent tones, while projecting the sound much farther. In 1928, Segovia made his American debut in New York City, where he again wowed audiences with his prowess; before long, composers like Heitor Villa-Lobos even began to compose original pieces specifically for the guitar. Segovia himself began transposing the classical canon for the guitar as well, most notably his notoriously difficult translation of Bach's Chaconne, as well as many transcriptions of lute and harpsichord music. In addition to recording and performing, Segovia spent the remainder of his life and career successfully influencing the authorities at conservatories, academies, and universities to include the guitar in their instruction programs with the same empha- sis given the violin, cello and piano; his early struggles were recounted in his 1983 memoir Andres Segovia: An Autobiography of the Years 1893-1920. He died in 1987.

Page 26 Who's Who Wednesday Year Four

Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco

Date of Birth: April 3, 1895 Place of Birth: Tuscany, Italy Year of death: March 16, 1968 Beverly Hills, California Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Teachers: Ildebrando Pizzetti, Alfredo Casella Outstanding Achievements: Number of works for guitar: 90+ Method books?: no

Castelnuovo-Tedesco was first introduced to the piano by his mother, and he composed his first pieces when he was just nine years old. After completing a degree in piano in 1914, he began studying composition under renowned Italian composer Ildebrando Pizzetti, and receiving a diploma in composition in 1918. He soon came to the attention of composer and pianist Alfredo Casella, who included the young Castel- nuovo-Tedesco's work in his repertoire. Casella also ensured that Castelnuovo's works would be included in the repertoires of the Societa Nazionale di Musica, granting him exposure throughout Europe as one of Italy's up-and-coming young composers. Works by him were included in the first festival of the International Society of Contemporary Music, held in Salzburg, Austria, in 1922. In 1926, Castelnuovo-Tedesco premiered his opera, La Mandragora. It was the first of his many works inspired by great literature. Another major source of inspiration for him was his Jewish heritage, most notably the Bible and Jewish liturgy. His Violin Concerto no. 2 (1931) was also an expression of his pride in his Jewish origins, or as he described it, the "splendor of past days," in the face of rising anti-Semitism that was sweeping across much of Europe. At the 1932 festival of the International Society of Contemporary Music, Castelnuovo-Tedesco first met the Spanish guitarist Andrés Segovia. The meeting inspired Castelnuovo-Tedesco to write his Guitar Concerto no. 1, one of the first of almost one hundred compositions for that instrument, which earned him the reputation as one of the foremost composers for the guitar in the twentieth century. The following year the Italian fascist government developed a program toward the arts, which were viewed as a tool for propaganda and promotion of racial ideas. Even before Mussolini officially adopted the Manifesto of Race in 1938, Castelnuovo-Tedesco was banned from the radio and performances of his work were cancelled. The new racial laws, however, convinced him that he should leave Italy. Like many artists who fled fascism, Castelnuovo-Tedesco ended up in Hol- lywood, where he landed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer as a film composer. He worked on scores for some 200 films there and at the other major film studios.

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Joaquin Rodrigo

Date of Birth: November 22, 1901 Place of Birth: Sagunto, Valencia, Spain Year of death: July 06, 1999 in Madrid, Spain Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Spain, France, Germany Schools Attended: Paris Conservatoire Teachers: Franciso Antich, Paul Dukas Outstanding Achievements: received 6 honorary doctorates, deemed nobility of Spain Number of works for guitar: Method books?: no

Joaquín Rodrigo was one of the most honored of twentieth century Spanish composers. Several of his compositions, in particular the Concierto de Aranjuez for guitar and orchestra, have attained worldwide fame. Blind from the age of three due to diphtheria, Rodrigo undertook early musical studies under Francisco Antich in Valencia (1920- 1923) and Paul Dukas at the École Normale de Musique in Paris (1927-1932). While in Paris, Rodrigo befriended many of the great composers of the time, and received particular encouragement from his fellow Spaniard Manuel de Falla. After returning to Spain in 1934, Rodrigo quickly won the Conde de Cartagena scholarship that allowed him to return to Paris to study musicology. Some of the most difficult years in Rodrigo's life were in the late 1930s during the Spanish Civil War: his scholarship was cancelled, and he and his wife lived in France and Germany, virtually penniless. They made a meager living giving Spanish and music lessons at the Institute for the Blind in Freiburg. But by 1939, they were able to return to Spain. Rodrigo started composing in 1923, and won a National Prize in 1925 for his Cinco Piezas Infantiles for orchestra. (Due to his blindness, Rodrigo always composed in Braille, and later painstakingly dic- tated the music to a copyist.) But his real breakthrough as a composer was with the Concierto de Aranjuez (1940, for guitar and orchestra), which was acclaimed from its first performance in Barcelona. Rodrigo was quickly recognized as one of Spain's great composers, and the awards and commissions started to roll in. In 1947, the Manuel de Falla Chair was created for him at the University of Madrid, where he taught music history for many years. He was much in demand as a pianist and lecturer, traveling to Europe, Central America, the U.S., Israel, and Japan. Many of the world's great instrumentalists commissioned concertos of him, and he eventually wrote works for, among others, guitarist Andrés Segovia, flutist James Galway, harpist Nicanor Zabaleta, and cellist Julian Lloyd Webber. In 1953, he was awarded the Cross of Alfonso X the Wise by the Spanish government, and as part of the celebration of his ninetieth birthday in 1991, Rodrigo was raised to the nobility by King Juan Carlos I with the title "Marqués de los jardines de Aranjuez." He had also received six honorary doctorates from universities worldwide.

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Antonio Lauro

Date of Birth: August 3, 1917 Place of Birth: Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela Year of death: April 18, 1986 Venezuela Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Academia de Musica Teachers: Vicente Emilio Sojo Outstanding Achievements: presented with the Premio Nacional de Musica-Venezuela’s highest artistic award Number of works for guitar: Method books?:

Antonio Lauro’s father was a barber who could sing and play the guitar so he taught his son what he could, but died when Antonio was still a child. After the family moved to Caracas, Lauro pursued formal musical study (piano, composition) at the Academia de Música y Declamación, where the distinguished composer Vicente Emilio Sojo was one of his teachers. A 1932 concert performed in Caracas by Agustín Barrios, the leg- endary Paraguayan guitarist and composer, so much impressed the young Lauro that he was persuaded to abandon piano and violin in favor of the guitar. From 1933, Lauro studied with Raúl Borges and was introduced to the traditional classical guitar repertoire. Lauro’s classmates and colleagues were later responsible for unveiling Lauro's works to an astonished international audience, introducing these unheard-of works to the likes of Andrés Segovia and John Williams. Like many South Americans of his generation, Lauro was a fervent cultural nationalist, determined to rescue and celebrate his nation's musical heritage. Lauro was particularly attracted to the myriad colonial par- lour valses (waltzes) created the previous century by accomplished national composers such as Ramón Delgado Palacios. Unfailingly melodic, alternately wistful and bril- liant, and characterized by a distinctive syncopation created by a hemiola. A concert whose program was entirely comprised of such valses (waltzes) by the distinguished Venezuelan pianist Evencio Castellanos convinced Lauro that the guitar, too, should have comparable pieces in its repertory. Among his first efforts in this genre were the pieces later known as Tatiana, Andreina, and Natalia, composed sometime between 1938 and 1940; their instant popularity inspired still others. In addition to his guitar pieces, Lauro composed dozens of works for orchestra, choir, piano and voice; many of which remain unpublished. He occasionally experimented with modern composi- tional techniques, but most of his guitar music remains essentially on the Calle Real or "main street," an expression used by musicians of Lauro's generation to refer to a straight and direct route, without distracting harmonic detours. Lauro's compositions were published, recorded, and performed throughout the world, and his contributions to his nation's musical life were recognized and acknowledged everywhere. Lauro was appointed professor of guitar at several distinguished schools.

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John Duarte

Date of Birth: October 2, 1919 Place of Birth: Sheffield, England Year of death: December 23, 2004 Musical period: Modern Resident of which countries: Schools Attended: Manchester University Teachers: Outstanding Achievements: Lifetime Achievement Award from the GFA Number of works for guitar: 200+ Method books?: no

Duarte published more than 200 original works and arrangements, and his music was recorded by such recitalists as Andrés Segovia and John Williams. From the 1940s, he became a powerful and uncompromising writer on the classical guitar, establishing a new and vital critique of the instrument and its players in articles and correspondence columns. Greatly in demand as a teacher of the guitar both privately and at international summer schools, Duarte always acknowledged that in the pedagogic field he was something of an anomaly, never having undertaken a formal academic training in music nor possessing any aspirations of becoming a concert player. John Duarte was born in Sheffield, but lived in Manchester from the age of 6. After hearing a banjo and becoming fascinated by fretted instruments, he acquired his first guitar in 1934. Initially he studied jazz guitar. Instead, Duarte graduated in chemistry at Manchester Univer- sity. During the war he was employed as chief chemist in a Ministry of Supply factory. When the war ended, Duarte, a founder member of the Manchester Guitar Circle, was first introduced to Andrés Segovia, who became a lifelong friend. From the 1950s Duarte concentrated on the classical guitar, moving to London (though still working as an industrial chemist) to teach at the Spanish Guitar Centre. There, he increased his composing activities and establish creative links with a number of great players. He steadily built up a formidable international reputation and in 1973 he became a full-time composer, critic and teacher. In 1977 Duarte was appointed director of the Cannington Summer School, which attracted students from all over the world, and he continued there until the 1990s. From 1978 until his death, he wrote regularly for Gramophone magazine, where his brief soon developed to cover not only the guitar but also the harpsichord, Baroque music and interviews with distinguished performers. Over the years his musical output proliferated until his works had been recorded by some 60 artists in more than 20 countries. His critical writing, a substantial contribution to British musical life, included about 250 compact disc liner notes, with a Grammy Award for his annotation to the reissue of Segovia’s early recordings. He became a familiar figure on international juries for guitar competitions and taught in more than 30 countries.

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