Jose Antonio Escobar

 Jose Antonio Escobar
 



“...The mastery, intelligence and sound of José Antonio on such diverse pieces undoubtedly position him among the outstanding guitarists of our time.“ (Le Cahiers de la Guitare, Paris, 2002)

“Finally José Antonio Escobar gave us Villa-Lobos’ 12 Etudes, demonstrating that he is one of the finest young players to have emerged from South America in recent years” (Robert Matthew-Walker, Musical Opinion, London,  May 2007).

“Escobar is an expressive, mature artist who has transcended the nitty-gritty of technique and gets to the essence of the music.” (Jeffrey Rossman, Classical Voice of North Carolina, 2008).

“Guitar aficionados need to hear Escobar’s absolutely stunning playing.” (Göran Forsling, MusicWeb International, 2008)

José Antonio Escobar (b. 1973) is one of the most distinguished and versatile classical guitar soloists of his generation worldwide, drawing attention through a perfect balance between his intense musical expression and his vast knowledge of the various musical styles and periods. He was born in Santiago de Chile where he studied at the Conservatory of Music-University of Chile under Ernesto Quezada, graduating with Top Honors (Summa cum Laude). He later received his graduate degree (Meisterklassendiplom), after obtaining a scholarship from the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Chile to study under Franz Halasz, at the Hochschule für Musik in Augsburg, Germany, where he also worked as an assistant professor. In order to complement his studies he took courses and master classes in ancient music with renowned lutenists such as Hopkinson Smith, Eduardo Egüez and Juan Carlos Rivera.
He has performed in more than 30 countries in almost all of Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Asia. He has also performed as a soloist with notable orchestras in Europe and South America, as well as at major concert venues. He has recorded several times for the well-known Naxos label, and also for RTVE (Spanish Radio and Television), and he has produced several independent recordings as well. Currently, he is frequently invited to perform and give master classes at major festivals, music seminars and at prestigious universities worldwide.
Prizes & Awards
1st Prize at the Heitor Villa-Lobos International Competition in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1997.
1st Prize at the Alirio Diaz International Guitar Competition in Caracas, Venezuela, 1998.
1st Prize and Special Audience Prize at the prestigious Francisco Tárrega International Guitar Competition in Benicàssim, Spain, 2000
1st Prize at the Stotsenberg International Guitar Competition (currently Parkening International Guitar Competition) in Malibu, California, USA, 2001
1st Prize (2^nd no awarded) at the Julian Arcas International Guitar Competition in Almería, Spain, 2003
1st Prize at the Norba Caesarina International Guitar Competition, Cáceres, Spain, 2005.
2nd Prize – ALHAMBRA International Guitar Competition, Alcoy, Spain, 2002.
2nd Prize – FORUM GUITAR WIEN International Guitar Competition, Vienna, Austria, 2002.
2nd Prize – Concorso Internazionale di Chitarra Classica RUGGERO CHIESA, Camogli, Italy, 2004.
3th Prize –  GFA International Guitar Competition, La Jolla, California, USA, 1997.
3th Prize – KARL SCHEIT International Guitar Competition,  Vienna, Austria, 1998.
3th Prize – Concorso  Internazionale de Chitarra Classica MICHELE PITTALUGA, Alessandria, Italy, 2003.

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Jorge Santos

Jorge Santos Turíbio Santos (Turibio Soares Santos) is considered one of the best Brazilian guitar players alive. His father, Turíbio Soares da Silva Santos Filho, and his mother, Neide Lobato Soares Santos, also from Maranhão, were joyful persons, fond of music and serenades. The family moved to Rio de Janeiro in 1946, bringon also Turíbio’s newly born sister, Giselda. The siblings Ronaldo and Cláudio were born in Rio de Janeiro in 1948 and 1955, respectively. Upon their arrival to Rio, the whole family lived together with Turíbio’s grandparents, Dona Martiniana and Isaac Lobato, in the Tijuca district. Later, in 1948, they moved to one of the earliest buildings set up in Copacabana, at Avenida Nossa Senhora de Copacabana, 109, (Our Lady of Copacabana Avenue, 109), near the beach, in front of the lifesaving station of “Posto 2”. In 1950, and in that address, the family lodged Turíbio’s oldest sisters, from his father’s first wife, Lilah and Conceição, coming also from the state of Maranhão. Like their father, they also were seresteiras (fond of serenades) and enjoyed to play the guitar. At the age of 12, young Turíbio, accustomed to listen to the songs of his father and sisters, asked her mother to be taught how to play the guitar. His first lessons were ministered by Molina and Francisco Amaral, the same musicians who teached his sisters. His progress was very fast and amazed his family. In 1955, at the U.S. Embassy in Rio, in his father’s company, Turíbio Santos watched a movie in which figured the Spanish master Andrés Segovia. On that evening, he met three people that would become very influential to his life: Antonio Rebello, (that would be one of his teachers), Hermínio Bello de Carvalho (poet, producer, and one of Antônio Rebellos’s pupil), and Jodacil Damasceno, (assistant guitarist to Antônio Rebello). Rebello would give him a solid professional base, Jodacil would open to him the whole universe of classic guitar, and Hermínio, the universe of popular music, together with friends such as Jacó do Bandolim, Ismael Silva, Paulinho da Viola, Clementina de Jesus, Araci de Almeida, Dino 7 Cordas, César Farias, Nicanor Teixeira, Elizeth Cardoso, Radamés Gnattali, and Pixinguinha. Studying with Antônio Rebello, in 1958 Turíbio Santos met Heitor Villa-Lobos, in a lecture given by this composer at Escola de Canto Orfeônico (Choral Singing School), in the Urca district. At the request of Hermínio Bello de Carvalho, he writes meticulously down all details of the lecture. This will result in the book “Villa-Lobos and the Guitar”, published years later for the Museu Villa-Lobos. He continued his music studies with private teachers, until coming to Edino Krieger’s hands. They would eventually become great friends. In 1961, during a lecture given by Hermínio Bello de Carvalho covering the work done by Turíbio about Heitor Villa-Lobos, Turíbio played before Arminda Villa-Lobos and would eventually be invited by her to record the first integral version of Villa’s “12 Studies” (dedicated to Andrés Segovia), for the recently founded Museu Villa-Lobos. Between reading stories (translated into Portuguese) in pocket books and attending guitar classes, young Turíbio Santos tried to keep himself loyal to his instrument. However, on those years, music was not favorably regarded as decent means of making a living, and so he decides to study at the Universidade Nacional de Arquitetura (Architecture National University), in 1962. On July 27 of that same year he presents his first concert, in his native city, São Luís, at Teatro Artur Azevedo. His second one would be in at the ABI (Brazilian Press Association), in Rio de Janeiro, on August 17, and the third one in November, during the Villa-Lobos Festival, executing Mystic Sextet, in first world audition. In 1963, Turíbio Santos recorded in duet with Oscar Cáceres, his Uruguayan friend and teacher since 1959, for the label Caravelle. From then on, he will inevitably embrace a career as professional musician. In the 1963 Villa-Lobos Festival, he presents the “12 Studies” in the first audition of the whole series.In 1965, he was awarded the 1st Prize at the International ORTF Contest, in Paris, and his international career gains momentum. Thanks to his victory in the VII Concours International of Guitare of ORTF (Office of Radiodiffusion et Television Française), he has the opportunity to settle in France. He receives an invitation to teach at the Conservatory of the Xème arrondissement in Paris. During the months of July and August he studied with Julian Bream and Andrés Segovia, respectively. The impact of those two masters marks Turíbio profoundly. He issued his first records in Europe through RCA in 1967 and 1968: a 45 rpm with works by Barrios (The Cathedral), and Heitor Villa-Lobos (Cries n°1), and a LP in which he accompanied the Brazilian singer living in Paris, Apparecida Maria (with songs by Waldemar Henrique, Heckel Tavares, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Jayme Ovalle). On December 30, 1966, Turíbio Santos married Sandra Assunção with whom he will have two children, Ricardo (on December 8, 1970), and Manuela (on December 30, 1972), both born in Paris. In January 1968, Turíbio Santos was invited to issue a record containing the Concierto de Aranjuez, with Paris’ Colegium Musicum, for Musidisc Europe, in addition to a Spanish repertoire of his free choice. This record, sold at popular prices, reached the 300.000 copies mark, easing his way into the European phonographic market. From 1965 to 1970, Turíbio Santos had a close professional relationship with the French producer Robert Vidal, although dotted with constant misunderstandigs that eventually led to a radical rupture. During that period he performed countless tours on behalf of Jeunesses Musicales of France and radio programs, displaying a huge repertoire often recorded at first sight by ORTF. He started his career in England, in 1967, with the help of Raquel Braune, of the Brazilian Embassy, and of the entrepreneur Helen Jennings. Turíbio begins to present himself constantly in that country. After his first two records issued by Erato (Heitor Villa-Lobos’ 12 Studies, Concert for Guitar and Orchestra, Mystic Sextet, and Preludes) he was invited by the above recording company to become their exclusive artist and to make 14 albums more during the next 14 years. Living in Paris, Turíbio Santos adopted the routine of presenting himself in Brazil during the European summer. Conductor Eleazar de Carvalho invites him constantly to the Campos de Jordão Festival. During the first 10 years of his residence in Paris, Turíbio travels trhough countless countries, continuously dedicated to recording for Bureau Yves Dandelot. One of his most important activities was the compilation of compositions for guitar, for the editor Max Eschig. In it, appear originals by Cláudio Santoro, Edino Krieger, Ricardo Tacuchian, Francisco Mignone, José Antônio Rezende de Almeida Prado, Radamés Gnattali, Nicanor Teixeira, all of them dedicated to him. But he also included works by French composers, like Andre Jolivet, Henri Sauguet, and Darius Milhaud. At the same time, he edited in São Paulo’s Ricordi a collectiom rescuing the work of João Pernambuco, part of which was recorded by him in Paris. Boy (Aníbal Sardinha) and Dilermando Reis also appeared in European records, pioneering thus the diffusion of Brazilian music. In 1948 Turibio wrote the song Pagu when, together with Roberto Gnattali, composed the soundtrack for the namesake movie. That soundtrack was awarded the “Kikito”, at the Gramado Festival. Among the most important concerts in his international career, must bepointed out the following: the one for the creation of Unesco’s Entreaide Fonds Musicale, in the company of M. Rostropovitch and Yehudi Menuhin (1974); accompanying the soprano Victöria de Los Ángeles (in New York, NY); the recital with Yehudi Menuhin in Gstaad (1977); a tour in the Renaissance ( a ship dedicated to Renaissance musical cruises, in 1972); recital at Marie Antoinnette’s Petit Palais (Versailles); and, as soloist with the orchestras Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, English Chamber Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, Orchestre J.F. Paillard, Orchestre National de l’Opéra de Monte-Carlo (Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo), Concerts Pasdeloup, Concerts Colonne, Orquestra Simfônica Brasileira (Brazilian Symphonic Orchestra), Orquestra do Teatro Nacional de Brasília (Brasilia’s National Theater Orchestra), Orquestra do Teatro Municipal do Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro’s Municipal Theater Orchestra), Orquestra Petrobrás Pró-Música ( Petrobrás’ Pro-Música Orchestra), having had the honor of being appointed as Godfather to the latter one. In 1974, Turíbio Santos settled himself again in Rio de Janeiro despite his constant travels. In 1980, he decided to put a halt to extensive international tours. In 1980, he was invited by the writer and friend Guilherme Figueiredo to manage the Sala Cecília Meireles, assignment carried out by him until the resignation of Guilherme as President of FUNARJ (Fundação Artística do Rio de Janeiro) six months later. At the same time, by suggestion of composer Ricardo Tacuchian, he was invited to establish the guitar course at Escola de Música da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ’s School of Music), formerly Escola Nacional de Música (National School of Music). In 1981 he assumes the responsibility of doing the same at the UNIRIO University. As a result of those activities, in 1982 Turíbio Santos created the Orquestra de Guitarras do Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro’s Guitar Orchestra), composed by students from both universities. That Orchestra issued a record (Kuarup) and performed renditions at the Municipal Theatre of Rio de Janeiro, and in several other important cities of Brazil. Several composers write (or transcribe originals) expressly for this orchestra, like Radamés Gnattali, Francisco Mignone, Edino Krieger, Roberto Gnattali. Some years later, another orchestra was created, the Brazilian Guitar Orchestra, which issued several records through VISON Records. In 1985 Turíbio Santos’ Godmother and great friend, Arminda Villa Lobos, passes away. The guitarist was invited to run the Museu Villa-Lobos, but he would rather orient the career of pianist Sônia Maria Sttrut, Arminda’s niece. In 1986, Joaquim Falcão, president of the Pró-Memória National Foundation, invited him to take over as Director. After accepting the invitation, his first mission was to transfer the Museum from the 9th floor of the building where it was located (nowadays, the Palace of Culture), to the beautiful house that Arminda had chosen: Sorocaba Street, 200, Botafogo District, Rio de Janeiro. In 1987 the Villa-Lobos Museum led the celebration in the whole country of that composer’s centennial birth anniversary, with the presentation of more than 700 concerts. Sandra and Turíbio got divorced in 1988, ending a marriage that lasted 22 years. In the following year, he marries Marta Clemente, and adopts his stepsons, Julio and Alberto. At the beginning of 1990, Turíbio Santos launched new works by Brazilian composers. His friendship with Guinga and Sérgio Barbosa characterized his repertory during that decade. Until 2002, he was recording albums in Brazil through Vison, Ritornello, Sony, Kuarup, and Digital ROB, in addition to his recordings by Erato, constantly reissued by Warner (WEA) in compilations. Since Turíbio Santos took over the direction of the Villa-Lobos Museum, he had the objective of giving a social scope to it, in addition to being the institutional guardian of the maestro’s works. That prompted him to give support to a musical movement in Comunidade Santa Marta (a nearby poor district) and to present Didactic Concerts in the premises of the Museum for students of public and private schools. He founded the Association of Friends of the Villa-Lobos Museum (AAMVL, 1987), that has been paragon to other institutions. In 2000, by invitation of movie director João Salles, he accepted to coordinate the “Projeto Villa-Lobinhos” with a view to provide a professional opportunity for poor children who wished to become musicians. Together with the former students (today, many of them have become teachers at academies) of the first project in Comunidade Santa Marta, a regular course has been set up and has received the support of large sections of the society. Turíbio Santos recorded in 2003 his 55th record, accompanied by Brasília’s Quartet, and runs an excellent a publication about music, Violão Amigo, issued by editor Jorge Zahar. On July 2, 2002, he launched the book Lies…or not?, also through Zahar, at the premises of the Brazilian Academy of Music, of which he is the official holder of chair n° 38, since 1992. In 2006 he has recently recorded five concertos for guitar and orchestra, which are: Brazilian Pictures, and The World is Big, by Sérgio Barboza, Danças Concertantes, by Edino Krieger, Concerto and Introdução para Choros, by Heitor Villa-Lobos. The first three concerts were dedicated to Turíbio Santos. The CD was released in 2007 in Digital Vison. The CD “Violão Amigo” (Friendly Guitar) was released during the first half of 2007, as well as the CD “Um Violão de São Luís” ( A São Luís Guitar), with melody by Turíbio Santos and Ricardo Santos for Erases Music. Turíbio Santos was decorated with the commendam of “Chevalier de la Legion D’Honneur” by the French Government, and as “Oficial da Ordem do Cruzeiro do Sul” by the Brazilian Government in 1985 and 1989, respectively.

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John Williams

 John Christopher Williams
 John Christopher Williams was born in Melbourne, Australia on 24th April 1941. His father, Leonard Williams, had emigrated to Australia from London in the late 1930s, where he met his wife, Malaan, through a common love of jazz music and political activism. Len was a respected jazz guitarist whose interests had slowly turned towards the classical repertoire, and when John was four years old, he received his first guitar from his father, although John insists that proper tuition did not start for another two or three years. Because of his new-found love for classical technique, Len refused to allow John to dabble in more free-form styles of playing, a fact often regretted by the virtuoso in later life.

In 1952, the family returned to England. Len wanted to set up a guitar school (which he did, with great success: The Spanish Guitar Centre continues his work today, under the guidance of Barry Mason). It's worth noting that Len Williams' later years were devoted to setting up the Looe Monkey Sanctuary in Cornwall: depending on whom you speak to, Len Williams is most famous for: being the father of a famous guitarist, establishing the London Guitar Centre, or his work with Woolly Monkeys. Few people can manage being famous for one thing in one lifetime, but for three? He also had an ulterior motive: recognising his young son's talent, he wanted him to study with the only the best teachers. This was not an option in Australia, and through a friendship with Terry Usher, they met Andres Segovia during a visit to London. The "creator of the modern classical guitar" was impressed with the 11-year-old and arranged for him to attend his summer school at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana di Siena in Italy. The young prodigy returned annually until 1959.

The first of John Williams' successes came when, at the request of his fellow students, he received the unprecedented honour of giving the first complete solo recital by a student of any instrument in 1955.

While not in Sienna, he attended the Royal College of Music in London from 1956 to 1959, where he studied piano and music theory. He didn't study guitar simply because, like most other musical colleges and conservatoires at that time, the RCM didn't provide a Guitar curriculum! Shortly after his graduation, however, he was invited to run the newly-created Guitar department. The College was evidently getting prepared for the onslaught of musicians who'd want to emulate their recent alumnus! He remained in the post until 1973, when his place was taken by his former student Carlos Bonnell. Williams has maintained a relationship with the College throughout the years and remains a Visiting Professor, including to the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.

Stephen Dodgson, lecturer in Harmony at the College, was to continue a professional association with his erstwhile pupil for many years as arranger and advisor, and his Second Guitar Concerto was written in 1971 at Williams' commission, and is dedicated to him.

Williams made his professional debut at the Wigmore Hall in London on 6th November 1958, five months shy of his 18th birthday and completing his formal musical education.

The programme mirrored the contents of his first two record albums, recorded at that time, and released in early 1959. He signed to the prestigious Ibbs & Tillett Agency (which later became part of the Harold Holt Organisation, now Askonas Holt), with whom he has remained throughout his career.

Even then, he had a reputation to live up to, as the concert bill included the now famous quote (at least with regard to the first sentence) from Maestro Segovia:

A prince of the guitar has arrived in the musical world.
God has laid a finger on his brow, and it will not be long before his name becomes a byword in England and abroad, thus contributing to the spiritual domain of his race. I hail this young artist on the occasion of his first public performance, and make the heartfelt wish that success, like his shadow, may accompany him everywhere.

Of his performance, the London Times had to say:

... Already he has a remarkably well-developed technique; this was particularly evident in a transcription of three movements from a Bach cello suite, [No.3, trans. J.W. Duarte] where every detail was perfectly in place, and to his control he added most musical and stylish phrasing and tone-colouring. Nervousness may well have been responsible for a few over-stressed notes which obtruded from his otherwise shapely line in Weiss's well-known A-minor suite and inevitable artistic immaturity was no doubt the explanation of the unstylish rubato he frequently allowed himslf in Sor's Variations on a Theme of Mozart. [...] He is plainly an accomplished, serious-minded young artist whose future development can be watched with great interest.

Successful debuts followed in Paris (1959), Madrid (1961) and in 1962 he had the rare privilege for a Western musician to tour the Soviet Union. Wherever he played, he was greeted with adulation.

His first UK appearance upon his return, again at the Wigmore Hall, was hailed as a major event, the Times stating: What has emerged first and foremost was the extent to which Mr Williams has strengthened his technique since we last heard him on this platform. He can now boast a very controlled agility, which served him admirably from viewpoints of rhythmic poise in a suite by Bach and and two sonatas by by Scarlatti. ... His concluding romantic group by Villa-Lobos, Turina, Ponce and Grandaos was also treated with sympathetic solicitude, but all this later music he still tends to interpret too inexpansively in terms of black and white instead of enjoying the flexibility and wider range of expressive colour for which it cries out.

After two further successful recordings, 1963 saw his debut Japanese and North American tours, during which he was offered a recording contract with CBS Records (now Sony Classical), the first release, unimaginatively entitled CBS Presents John Williams, being issued in 1964. Williams has since averaged at least one new recording each year for the label, although some less classicallly-oriented repertoire has been issued by others. Until the mid-seventies, most recording sessions were conducted in New York, under the watchful eye of CBS Senior Producer Paul Myers.

In 1964 he married for the first time, though this regrettably ended in divorce in 1969. His daughter Kate, born in 1965, is now a jazz pianist: see her own web site for further information.

John Williams was one of several high-profile young classical solosists trying to make careers during the sixties, very much against the counter-culture norm for their peers. This group, including Isaac Perlman, Fou Ts'ong, Daniel Barenboim, Vladimir Ashekanzy, Jacqueline du Pré, all based in London, had a tendency to congregate both socially and professionally, to the extent that Williams and du Pré were the official witnesses at Fou Ts'ong's wedding (of course, Jacqueline and Daniel Barenbiom were themselves famously married by the end of the decade).

One of the fruits of these friendships was John Williams' guest appearances on one of Jacqueline du Pré's first recordings in 1963, playing de Falla's Jota from Suite Española. Later collaborations included Daniel Barenboim conducting various orchestras in concerto performances, including on record, and an album of duets with Itzak Perlman.

He also made appearances with Wilfred Brown (Tenor, also on record), the London String Quartet and other artists, and eventually took Julian Bream's place in frequent appearances with Alan Loveday (violin) and Amarylis Fleming (cello). He was already showing his preference for finding opportunities and repertoire to play with others, rather than solo recitals.

John Williams has always spent a considerable amount of energy on expanding his repertoire beyond what Segovia had established, and an increasing interest in modern music led him to performing at the Premiere of Michael Tippett's King Priam in 1963, and later being involved in Pierre Boulez's ambitious recording of Anton Webern's entire oeuvre.

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Johann Sebastian Bach

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH BIOGRAPHY
1685-1750

 

 

 

 

Baroque Composer J.S. Bach wrote the genius UNFINISHED masterpiece "ART OF FUGUE" in his last years, while SLOWLY GOING BLIND!

 

Johann Sebastian Bach is THE most brilliant BAROQUE COMPOSER in history. Bach wrote the genius unfinished masterpiece "ART OF FUGUE" in his last years, while SLOWLY GOING BLIND.  After an eye operation, Bach reportedly died mid-bar while writing the final fugue, having just composed a musical notation based on his name:   B A C H.

 

Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 21, 1685 in Eisenach, Germany into a musical family. He was taught violin by his father, but at the age of 10, Bach was orphaned and sent to live with his older brother. His brother did not recognize Bach's talent as a musician and forbade him from handling certain music manuscripts, which caused Bach to borrow the music at night and in hiding Bach would copy the scores by moonlight, severely straining his eyes and possibly leading to his blindness later on.

 

In 1714, at the age of 29, Bach became the Konzertmeister to the Duke of Weimar, where he composed cantatas and conducted.  In 1716, the post of Kappellmeister became vacant and not offered to Bach, so he decided to take a similiar post in Anhalt-Cothen. Trying to prevent Bach from leaving, The Duke IMPRISONED HIM FOR A MONTH in 1717 and then discharged him from the court. Bach and his family left the court in disgrace.

 

In 1720, Bach's first wife Maria, with whom he had 7 children, died. A year later, Bach married Anna Magdalena Wilcke, with whom he had 13 children. Bach wrote the famous "Clavierbuchlein," dedicated to Anna Magdalena and preserved in notebooks.

 

Among Bach's MANY famous masterpieces are: "Brandenburg Concertos", "The Art of Fugue", "The Well-Tempered Clavier", "Goldberg Variations", "St. Matthew Passion", "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor", "Mass in B Minor".

 

In 1747, as Bach was working on the final fugue of "The Art of the Fugue" and finishing his masterpiece "Mass in B Minor", Bach was almost totally blind. In 1750, after two eye operations by the British opthamalic "specialist", John Taylor, Bach became TOTALLY BLIND.  That year, Bach suffered a stroke and died ten days later on July 28, 1750.  After Bach died, Bach's own son, C.P.E. Bach, wrote on the score for "The Art of Fugue" (on "Contrapunctus XIX") the following: "N.B. While working on this fugue, where the name B.A.C.H. appears in the countersubject, the composer died." (B,A,C,H -- "H" is B natural in German).

 

Bach was buried in an unmarked grave, until his remains were rediscovered in 1894.

Bach's fame in his lifetime came mostly as an organist, more than a composer. It wasn't until 1829 when the composer Felix Mendelssohn discovered Bach's "St. Matthew Passion" and conducted this work, that Bach's reputation grew to became known as one of the GREATEST COMPOSERS IN HISTORY.

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Göran Söllscher

 Göran Söllscher

 


Although the two are often mentioned in a single breath, the temperament, style, and even career details of Swedish classical guitarist Göran Söllscher and those of the controversial and famous Japanese guitar virtuoso Kazuhito Yamashita are really just about as different as one could imagine. Yamashita was thrust into the limelight while still a teenager; Söllscher, on the other hand, continued his conservatory studies until his mid-twenties and took his time building up a major international career. Yamashita puts his amazing technical skill on display each and every night (and sometimes gets criticized for doing so); Söllscher is altogether more reserved, allowing mechanism to dominate only when he feels the music calls for it, giving warm, full-toned renditions of such standards as the Bach lute works, as opposed to flamboyant Yamashita transcriptions. It is not surprising, then, that the world's classical guitarists and classical-guitar lovers tend to sit on one side or the other of the Yamashita-Söllscher fence as far as next-generation talents are concerned: their approaches are so radically different from one another that most listeners find themselves unable to love them both equally.
Göran Söllscher was born in Växjö in 1955, and as a youth studied guitar at the Kalmar Municipal Music School. Later, he attended the conservatories in Malmö and Copenhagen, studying all the while with guitarist Per Olof Johnson. In 1978, he won the Concours Internationale de Guitare in Paris, and over the course of the 1980s, he conquered the international recital circuit. In 1991, he was a key participant in the much-touted international festival in honor of composer Joaquin Rodrigo (whose works include many now-standard guitar pieces), and soon afterwards he was appointed to the faculty of the Malmö Conservatory. Söllscher has been active throughout his career as a chamber musician; among the more well-known collaborations is a disc of Paganini's music for violin and guitar made with Gil Shaham.

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Francisco Tárrega

Francisco Tárrega

 

Francisco Tárrega was an important Spanish composer whose 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. Among his most popular compositions are Recuerdos de la Alhambra and Danza mora. He wrote nearly eighty original works for the guitar and over a hundred transcriptions, mostly of piano pieces by Chopin, Beethoven, and others.
Francisco Tárrega was born on November 21, 1852, in Villareal, Castellon, Spain. An accident in his early childhood permanently impaired his eyesight. He was taught his first lessons on guitar by Eugeni Ruiz, ironically a blind musician. In 1862, concert guitarist Julian Arcas, on tour in Castellon, heard young Francisco play and advised Tárrega's father to allow Francisco to come to Barcelona for study with him. Tárrega's father agreed, but insisted that he take piano lessons as well. His father was well aware that the guitar, as a solo vehicle, was in decline, coming increasingly to be viewed as an instrument to accompany singers, while the piano was all the rage throughout Europe. By his early teens, Tárrega had become proficient on both instruments. For a time, he played with other musicians at local engagements to earn money, but eventually he returned home. In 1874 he enrolled at the Madrid Conservatory where he would study composition under Arrieta. He had brought along with him a recently-purchased guitar, made in Seville by Antonio Torres. Its superior sonic qualities inspired him both in his playing and in his view of the instrument's compositional potential. When Arrieta heard his student Tárrega in a guitar concert, he convinced him to focus on guitar and abandon ideas of a career involving the piano. In about 1876, Tárrega began teaching and giving regular guitar concerts. He typically received much acclaim for his playing and began traveling to other areas of Spain to perform. By this time he was composing his first works for guitar. In 1880, he met his future wife, Maria Rizo, when he was giving a concert in Novelda. That same year he went on tour to Lyon, Paris, and London, now playing his own works in addition to those of other composers. In 1881, he and Maria were married in Novelda. He soon began transcribing piano works of Beethoven, Chopin, Mendelssohn, and others to enlarge his guitar repertory, and, no doubt, to make use of his considerable knowledge of keyboard music. Tárrega and his wife moved to Madrid, but after the death of an infant daughter, Maria Josefa, they settled permanently in Barcelona in 1885. On a concert tour in Valencia shortly afterward, Tárrega met a wealthy widow, Conxa Martinez, who became a valuable patron to him. She allowed him and his family use of a house in Barcelona, where he would write the bulk of his most popular works, including Recuerdos de la Alhambra. From the latter 1880s up to 1903, Tárrega continued composing, but limited his concerts to Spain. In about 1902, he cut his fingernails and created a sound that would become typical of those guitarists associated with his school. The following year he launched a tour of Italy, giving highly successful concerts in Rome, Naples, and Milan. In January 1906, he was afflicted with paralysis on his right side, and though he would eventually return to the concert stage, he never completely recovered. He finished his last work, Oremus, on December 2, 1909. He died 13 days later.

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Fernando Sor

 Fernando Sor

There was a time, (25-30 year’s ago) that a Classical Guitar recital would seem incomplete without the inclusion of a work by Fernando Sor. Today it is rare for him to be included in a concert programme.

It must be said that his other works , Operas, Ballets, etc., have been silent since his death, and today his reputation rests solely as a composer of guitar music. It cannot be that today’s new generation of young guitarists find his pieces unworthy, as his contribution to the literature of the guitar is undeniable, (the critic Fetis adorned Sor with the title “The Beethoven of the Guitar”). He is acknowledged in the development of technique for the instrument and his collaboration with makers improved guitar construction. In the history of the guitar his name is assured. So why is it that today’s modern players neglect his music in the concert hall?

Present day critics may be responsible for the decline of Sor's exposure to the concert-going public by accusing him of being lightweight, of trying to inject a depth in his music that in the end only made it sound ludicrous, that he was guilty of clichés, (more eminent composers than Sor were guilty of that) and that he was unable to produce extended compositions of distinction. It may be this that dissuades the young guitarists of today from performing his work, so as not to invite negative critical reviews, but, nevertheless, I have always found Fernando Sor`s music (lightweight, clichés and all) pleasing, satisfying and always a delight.

Allegro non troppo

JOSEPH FERNANDO MACARI SORS was born in Barcelona, the actual date is in dispute, but he was baptized on the 14th February 1778. The son of a merchant, he was presumably in a better position than most to obtain a good education. As it was, his musical training took place in the Monastery of Montserrat Choir School. He also studied violin, piano and harmony, but not guitar. I do not know whether Fernando studied any other areas of basic education than music at the Monastery but his time there certainly set him in good stead for his musical career.

It is known that Senoir Sor Snr. owned a guitar so Fernando was familiar with its sound. On leaving the Monastery, he received the customary token of a gold coin from one of the monks with which he bought a guitar which was to become the passion of his life. (The gold coin was supposed to benefit the family of the graduating student).

It is at the age of eighteen that we next really hear of Fernando Sor. A production of his opera "Telemachus on the Calypso's Isle" performed in Barcelona in 1797 was very successful and led to a patronage in the service of the Duchess of Alba who apparently doted on the young composer. It is also at this time that Fernando was enlisted in the Spanish army, making the rank of captain in the Cordovan volunteers. It is also from this period that his first important guitar compositions can be charted. The premature death of the Duchess of Alba in1802 left Fernando without a patron, but luckily he found employment with the Duke of Medinaceli. His luck was not to last long: the French, under Napoleon Bonaparte invaded and occupied Spain.

Napoleon placed his brother, Joseph, on the throne of Spain and some more forward-thinking Spaniards thought that his puppet government would put into motion much needed political reforms. Fernando Sor was one of these French sympathisers (Afrancesados) and sided against the deposed Spanish King ,Charles IVth. So it was, when the French were defeated by Wellingtons army and had to withdraw, Fernando was obliged to leave with them. (This is a controversial issue; some scholars maintain that Sor was a Spanish patriot, and while I do think he believed that his association with the French was in the best interests of his own country, the fact remains he left Spain never to return. This implies that Sor must have regarded his actions as being perceived by his fellow countrymen as fraternising with the enemy and therefore treasonable).

Sor took residence in Paris and continued his musical career, encouraged by other prominent composers such as Cherubini and Berton. This was a productive time for Sor which saw him composing Operas, Ballets, Symphonies and Songs as well as guitar pieces.

In 1815 Sor went to England and with his virtuoso playing captivated the English guitar fraternity. On March 24th 1817 he performed his “Concertante for guitar, violin, viola and cello” at the Philharmonic Society to great acclaim. (This work is not included in Sor`s Opus listing and may be lost). By 1822 he became an Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Music, which is a tribute to his personality and his musicianship.

Sor`s musical ambitions then took him to Russia, arriving in Moscow in November of 1823. His talents were soon appreciated and before long he was mixing with the highest level of Russian society, playing for the mother of Tsar Alexander 1st and the Royal family. When the Tsar died in 1825, Sor wrote a funeral march which was played at the funeral in St Petersburg. Returning to Moscow he produced the premiere of his ballet “Cendrillon”.

By 1827 Sor was once again living in Paris. The instrument was enjoying an revival of popularity and other famous guitarist/composers such as Dionisio Aguado (1784-1849) and Ferdinando Carulli (1770-1841) were in the French capital at this time. Sor struck up a friendship with Aguado that prompted many of Sor`s duet pieces, which they frequently performed together. As well as giving concerts he also had guitar pupils, many of them ladies of high society. This is probably also his most productive period of compositions for the guitar. They were now also available to buy, being published by Antoine Meissonnier in sixteen volumes. (Sor would later use the publisher Pacini). Sor eventually published his works himself which included ,in 1830, his “ Methode Pour la Guitare”. This is a fascinating insight into the foundation of Sor`s view of the technique and thought process of guitar playing, acquired over a life times experience. All aspects are examined in detail, starting with his preferred make of instrument, sitting posture, the bodies relationship to the instrument, left and right hand positions, logical use of the fingers of both hands and the manner in which the right hand finger tips strike the strings. (Sor never advocated the use of the nails which was preferred by Aguado. This must have made an interesting, if not entirely compatible sound in their duet ensemble). Presumably Sor`s own technique was more than adequate to play all of his own compositions which indicates that even by today’s standards he must have been a formidable guitarist.

Fernando Sor`s last years were not happy ones. Both his wife and daughter died suddenly, one very shortly before the other. He himself suffered from cancer of the tongue and died in great pain on July 8th 1839. Buried in the cemetery of Montmartre, Paris, in the tomb of a friend, with no inscription, the last resting place of the greatest guitar composer of the nineteenth century was not identified until1934.

Theme and Variations.

The legacy that is Fernando Sor`s guitar works are listed in 63 opus numbers. These range in style and forms such as Divertissements, Theme and Variations, Fantasies, Waltzes, Sonata’s and groups of Studies etc., plus Duets. (Recently a number of lost pieces have been rediscovered, for example “Fantasie pour guitar seule” in D, which as yet carry no opus numbers).

The Studies, written periodically throughout his life, number almost one hundred, involve techniques of playing in thirds, arpeggios, rapidly repeated notes (tremolo), staccato chords, in fact all aspects of guitar playing is thoroughly covered. A compilation of 20 of the Studies from Op. 6, 29, 31, and 35 were compiled by Andre Segovia (1893-1987) who frequently performed a selection of them in his recitals. Make no mistake these Studies are not just exercises but valid pieces of music in their own right, albeit in miniature. Probably the most famous of Sor's works is his Op. 9. (1821) “Variations on a Theme of Mozart” the theme being “O Cara Armonia” from the 2nd act of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute”. In the hands of a virtuoso this becomes a dazzling tour de force that displays the skills of the guitarist and the imagination of the composer. When writing extended works like Sonatas, Sor never tried to emulate the piano or violin works of the same genre. He knew the strengths and weaknesses of the instrument and wrote for it accordingly. A good example of this is his “Sonata in C” Op. 25. (1827). It is unusual in as much that normally the first movement of a Sonata uses the Sonata Form, but Sor's Op. 25, opens with a long Introduction in C minor and the Sonata Form appears in the second movement, an Allegro non troppo, which moves to the tonic of C major. There then follows a Theme and Variations and it ends with a quick Minuet and Trio instead of the usual Rondo.

The duets ,which occupy 12 of the opus numbers, vary in scale from short pieces like his set of “Six valses faciles” Op. 44 bis. (1831) to longer works like “Les deux amis” Op. 41. (1829-30) with the parts labelled “Sor” and “Aguado” and the well known “L`Encouragement” Op. 34. (1828). (This has the dedication “une de ses élève”). The parts of this are labelled “L’élèves” and “Le Maître” indicating that the pupil play the more difficult melody line while the teacher has the accompaniment. (A pupil of Sor, Napoleon Coste (1806-1883), would later rearrange this work, sharing the parts in a more democratic way). A less well known duet is “Divertissement” Op. 62. (c1837-38) where the movements are Andantino Cantabile followed by a Polonaise (the Polonaise is rare in Sor`s music) and is a wonderful example of duet writing. It is a shame that it is not performed more often, perhaps because a prodigious technique is required by both guitarist.

Finale.

Performing any composers work requires thoughtful consideration. Julian Bream (b. 1933) gave an insight to his thoughts and approach to playing Sor when in conversation with the late Peter Sensier on BBC Radio 3`s programme “The Classical Guitar” in the early 1970`s Here are some extracts.

“An important factor in his (Sor`s) music is its charm. It has its use in music, and I for one, am quite prepared to be charmed, not twenty four hours a day, but I think on occasion”.
“I think Fernando Sor does have to be played with respect but for a certain type of innocence in his music. I think to over apply romanticism to the music is a great mistake. There is a classicism for example not unlike Mozart in his style which to my mind is a style of beautiful understatement. But if you give understatement space and time, it has a positive element that transcends the simplicity or the innocence of the material. Sor needs immense care and affection, and if one invests his music with that, I can’t see how anybody can object to it”.

My sentiments exactly.

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Ferdinando Carulli

 Ferdinando Carulli


 
Classical guitarists owe a debt of gratitude to this Italian-turned-Parisian guitar master. Ferdinando Carulli, born to an affluent, upper-class family, began his musical training under the tutelage of a priest; who was little more than a musical dilettante himself. 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. After Milan, he apparently spent some time in Venice, as evidenced by published manuscripts 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. One of his more popular pieces was Trio, Op. 12, for guitar, violin, and flute. Other pieces that exemplify his artistry include several serenades for guitar and violin and for flute and guitar. 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 willing 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 masterpieces were lost. This, no doubt, also played a role in Carulli's decision to self-publish. In addition to publishing some of his own works, he published the works of other guitarists as well. Carulli was one of the few guitarists in Paris and the first to popularize classical guitar. He was so successful many burgeoning guitarists came to Paris to study under him. In addition to this influx of foreign students, many of whom were from Italy like himself, Carulli counted nobility and upper class Parisians as his students. His popularity was only surpassed when Fernando Sor arrived in Paris in 1823. Carulli's interest in the guitar extended beyond composing, teaching, and performing to include guitar design and construction. He worked closely with the French guitar maker René Lacote to help evolve the guitar into the instrument it is today. Ferdinando Carulli married Marie-Josephine Boyer from France in 1801. They had a son, Gustavo, with whom Ferdinando composed several pieces for guitar and piano.

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Ernesto Bitetti

 Ernesto Bitetti



Ernesto Bitetti was born in Rosario, Argentina and has lived in Madrid since 1968. His performances extend to the five Continents, playing in such famous halls as the Bolshoi (St. Petersburg, Russia), Metropolitan Festival (Tokyo), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Lincoln Center (New York), Pleyel (Paris), Teatro Colon (Buenos Aires), Musikverein (Vienna), Queen Elizabeth Hall (London), Town Hall (Sydney), Teatro Real (Madrid), City Hall (Manila), Opera (Rome), Tchaikowsky (Moscow), Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.), Gulbenkian (Lisbon), Herkulesaal (Munich) and many others.
Mr. Bitetti has been invited by the most prestigious chamber orchestras such as the English Chamber, Prague Chamber, Zagreb Soloists, Munich Chamber, I Solisti Italiani, I Solisti Aquilani, Camerata Bern, Northern Sinfonia, Israel Chamber. Also Symphony Orchestras in London, Munich, Liverpool, The Hague, Jerusalem, Osaka, Sydney, Netherlands, St. Louis, Hamburg, Suisse Romande, BBC, Stuttgart, Peru, Chile, Bogota, Manila, Buenos Aires, as well as all the principal Spanish orchestras.
Composers of the stature of Rodrigo, Torroba, Tedesco, Duarte, Abril, Gilardino, Piazzolla, de los Rios and Marco have written and dedicated pieces or conciertos for Ernesto Bitetti.
His numerous recordings on such labels as Hispavox, EMI, VOX, ERATO and Deutsche Grammophon are distributed all over the world, receiving the Records National Prize in Spain (1979, 1985). In 1983 his TV program "Bitetti from the Aranjuez Palace" won the International Television Prize in Prague. In 1986 he recorded his first CD for EMI International with the London Philharmonia Orchestra (Rodrigo: Aranjuez, Fantasia for a Gentleman).
In 1989, he established the Guitar Department at the Jacobs School of Music and continues to chair the program.

• "Bitetti is a concertist without frontier" -- Madrid ABC
• "A star of the guitar" -- Amsterdam Het Parool
• "Ernesto Bitetti is a classical guitarist of the highest calibre" -- Tokyo Mainichi
• "A First rate virtuoso" -- The New York Times
• "Sensitive musician and brilliant technician" --Vienna, Wiener Zeitung
• "Posesses the art of clarity and evocation" -- Paris Aurore

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Enrique Granados

 Enrique Granados

 

Enrique Granados was born in 1867 in Lerida, Spain. He began his musical studies at an early age. At first, he studied the piano in Barcelona with Joan Baptista Pujol, who studied with the Mallorcan pianist and student of Liszt Pere Tintorer. Pujol was the one who created what could be called the first Catalan piano tradition. Among his numerous students were Albeniz, Malats (teacher of Mompou) and Ricard Viñes.

In 1887, Granados moved to Paris to study with Charles de Beriot. In Paris as well as continuing his friendships with Albeniz, Nin and Viñes, he came into direct contact with the most important French composers of the time like Faure, Debussy, Ravel, Dukas, d’Indy, establishing a very close relationship with Camille Saint-Saëns.

Two years later, in 1889, he returned to Barcelona to begin his career as a performing virtuoso/composer. In 1892 he gave the first performance of Grieg’s piano concerto in Spain. During this time he performed many chamber music concerts with close friends such as, Pau Casals, Mathieu Crickboom, Jacques Thibaud, Emil von Sauer and Camille Saint-Saens. During the years 1895-98 several of works were premiered, performed by Miel de Alcarria, Maria del Carmen along with various chamber works and pieces for piano.

In 1901 he founded the Granados Academy, that was to become the hallmark of teaching the art of playing the piano as understood by Granados. Granados directed the Academy until his death, when it was taken over by his pupil and friend Frank Marshall. To solve inheritance problems after the sudden death of Granados, the decision was made by Marshall and the tutor of the Academy, Felipe Pedrell, to change the name to the Marshall Academy, those making Marshall the sole owner.
Along with Albeniz and de Falla, Granados is often recognized as a nationalistic composer. Actually the term neo-romantic would describe him better as he developed a personal romantic style up until his time unknown in Spain. An expressive style influenced by Chopin, Schumann, Schubert and Grieg and the 18th century majas of Goya. He represents the romantic and poetic piano of 19th century Spain.

He wrote piano music, chamber music (a piano quintet, music for violin and piano), songs, zarzuelas, and an orchestral tone poem based on Dante's Divine Comedy. Many of his piano compositions have been transcribed for the classical guitar by Spanish guitarist Andres Segovia, 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 at least two other important Spanish composers and musicians, Manuel de Falla and Pablo Casals.

Granados died in 1916 on the way across the English Channel when the Sussex boat he was traveling on 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 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.

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ELENA PAPANDREOU

 
The Washington Post says of her that she is "…a poet of the guitar." One of her former teachers, Leo Brouwer, is even more effusive: "If you want to hear music of the highest level of interpretation with poetical perfection, you must hear Elena Papandreou".
The Greek guitarist Elena Papandreou was born in Athens in 1966.
Elena Papandreou studied with Evangelos Boudounis at the Greek National Conservatory and graduated in 1985. She continued her studies with Gordon Crosskey at the Royal Northern College of Music (UK) on a British Council scholarship, obtaining the Diploma in Advanced Studies in Musical Performance in 1986. She hasalso been tutored by Alirio Diaz, Oscar Ghiglia, Julian Bream, Leo Brouwer and Ruggero Chiesa.
Ms Papandreou has won first prize at three international events (the Maria Callas, Gargnano and Alessandria competitions) and second prize at the Guitar Foundation of America Competition. In the latter she also won the Naxos prize, a contract enabling her to record with our company.
Ms Papandreou has performed in eleven countries in Brazil, Japan, Venezuela and Puerto Rico, as well as in North America. She has given concerts at the Vienna Musikverein, the Koelner Philharmonie, the Birmingham Symphony Hall, the Athens Concert Hall as well as in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall and the Queen Elizabeth Hall. She frequently tours the U.S.A. and in March 1998 she gave her Carnegie Hall debut, to return another two times since.
Among contemporary composers to dedicate their works to Elena Papandreou are Roland Dyens, Nikita Koshkin, Nikos Mamangakis, Vangelis Boudounis, Giorgos Koumendakis and Dimitris Nicolaou.
In 1992, Elena Papandreou received the Spyros Motsenigos Prize from the Athens Academy - the most important music prize in Greece.
For Naxos Elena Papandreou has recorded a stunning recital in the Guitar Laureate series, mainly featuring works by Greek composers for the instrument, and a critically-acclaimed disc of works by Leo Brouwer

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Eduardo Fernández

 Eduardo Fernández




The Uruguayan guitarist, Eduardo Fernández, began his studies of guitar at age 7. His principal teachers were Abel Carlevaro, Guido Santórsola and Héctor Tosar. After being prized in several international competitions, the most notable being the 1972 Porto Alegre (Brazil) and 1975 Radio France (Paris) competitions, he won the first prize of the 1975 Andrés Segovia Competition in Mallorca (Spain).

Eduardo Fernández' New York debut in 1977 won critical accolades, being described as "A top guitarist...Rarely has this reviewer heard a more impressive debut recital on any instrument" (Donal Henahan, The New York Times). Fernández has returned to the USA every season since then, playing with prestigious orchestras as well as giving recitals, always to great acclaim from critics and audiences. His London debut, in Wigmore Hall (1983), had also a great impact. He has also played, with the same success, in most European countries, and in the Far East (Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong and China, Thailand and Singapore), as well as in South America and Mexico. Recognized as one of today's leading guitarists, he has a vivid interest in historical instruments, and he plays often the repertoire of the 19^th century on a period guitar.

Eduardo Fernández' London debut had also a great impact, and resulted in his signing an exclusive recording contract with Decca, a label for which he made 18 recordings (solos, and with the English Chamber Orchestra and the London Philharmonic Orchestra), that cover a wide section of the repertoire, from J.S. Bach to the contemporary. They include many first recordings (for instance, Luciano Berio's Sequenza XI), and several of them have been selected as "best of the month" and "best of the year" by publications such as Stereo Review and The New York Times, as well as Asahi Shinbun from Japan. He has also made a recording for Erato with violinist Alexander Markow, covering most of Paganini's work for violin and guitar, and two duo CD's with Japanese guitarist Shin-Ichi Fukuda (with whom he has also performed in the Far East and in Germany) for Denon, in Japan. Currently he is exclusive recording artist of the Oehms Classics label, for which he has recorded the complete lute suites by Bach and "Romantic Guitar" a 19^th-century guitar recording on a period instrument. In 2005, Labor Records from USA, has released the CD "Between two worlds".

Eduardo Fernández is also active as a teacher, having taught several years at the University's School of Music in Montevideo, where he is now a fellow researcher, as well as being very much in demand for masterclasses and lectures all around the world. Since 2002 he has been conducting every year master-classes in Germany ("Gitarre und Natur", Erlbach). He has written a major book on guitar technique (Technique, Mechanism, Learning, published by Chanterelle Verlag, Heidelberg and in Spanish edition by ART Ediciones, Montevideo), a book of essays on Bach's lute music, published in 2003 by ART Ediciones, and several articles in leading guitar publications.

An active composer, Eduardo Fernández was the secretary of the Uruguayan branch of ISCM for two years. He is also a founder of Uruguay's CIM/UNESCO section, and Artistic Director of Montevideo's biannual International Guitar Festivals since 1996, and of Colombia's Encuentros Nacionales de la Guitarra since 2000.

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Eduardo Falú

Eduardo Falú





Eduardo Falú (born July 7, 1923) is a well-known Argentine folk music guitarist and composer.
Eduardo Falú was born in El Galpón, a village near San José de Metán in the province of Salta, Argentina in 1923. His parents, Juan and Fada Falú, were Syrian immigrants. Raised in rural surroundings, he was strongly influenced by the folk traditions of Salta (which remain, in Falú's words, "something lively, dynamic and evolutionary").
Falú was given his first guitar as a gift during childhood, and he began to perform traditional folk tunes of the Argentine Northwest as a troubadour. He formed a duo with César Perdiguero, and became well known in the region during the 1940s. Largely self-taught, Falu deepened his knowledge of the guitar through study of the 19th century masters and was trained in harmony and theory by the prominent Argentine composer Carlos Guastavino.
His increasing renown brought him to Buenos Aires, in 1945, and recorded his first album there, in 1950. Among the volume of collaborations with many of the leading Argentine poets, perhaps the best-known are his compositions for lyrics written by Jaime Dávalos, among which some of the most popular are "Zamba de la Candelaria", "Trago de sombra", and "Canción del jangadero". Falú wrote music for a number of Argentine historical epics, as well, including "Romance de la Muerte de Juan Lavalle" (written by Ernesto Sábato) and "José Hernández" (by Jorge Luis Borges).

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Duo Presti - Lagoya

In praise of classical guitarists Alexandre Lagoya and Ida Presti

 



Alexandre Lagoya (1929-1999) and Ida Presti (1924-1967) formed the greatest classical guitar duet in the world to date. This was not simply due to their technical excellence, but their subtlety and force in emotional expression. They also transcribed music for the instrument from many sources, most notably the harpsichord, violin and piano.
By the time Lagoya—born in Alexandria, Egypt of Italian and Greek parentage—was 19, he had already given about 500 concerts throughout the Middle East. He decided to move to Paris and continue his studies with Jean Saudry, also studying harmony and counterpoint with Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos.
He met the French-born Presti—already a celebrity, having made her first recording at 10—soon after his arrival in Paris when he was invited to perform at a guitar society concert. (Presti had been a student of Segovia and he fondly called her Ida Prestissimo.)
At the concert Presti declared Lagoya the best guitarist she had ever heard. They soon married, and from 1950 until her death in 1967 performed exclusively as a duo. In a musical world that still regarded the guitar as a folk instrument, duos were comparatively rare. Most other guitarists were finding it hard to establish solo careers.
To meet their need for material they began transcribing keyboard works by Bach, Scarlatti, Debussy, Falla, Granados and Haydn—among them a concerto by the last-named originally written for two hurdy-gurdies—and commissioning works from other composers.
Segovia was so taken with their performance at their New York debut that he wrote to Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco asking him to consider writing for two guitars. The resultant 24 Preludes and Fugues became a staple piece. Castelnuovo-Tedesco also composed for them a Concerto for Two Guitars.
André Jolivet, Pierre Petit, Federico Moreno Torroba and Joaquin Rodrigo, amongst others, also wrote for them. Between 1952 and 1967 they played some two thousand concerts.
Tragically, in 1967, Ida Presti died in New York City of an internal hemorrhage resulting from cancer of the lung. Alexandre survived her by 32 years. He became professor of guitar at the International Academy of Music in Nice from 1960 and at the Paris National Conservatory in 1969. He retired from these positions in 1994. He began to perform solo again in 1972.
In these tawdry times where great emphasis is given by the media to celebration of the purely physical side of humanity—sport, models, etc.—questions of the mind and heart are often given short shrift. At a time when intimacy between adults is most often identified with the sexual act, it is refreshing and invigorating to hear proof of the narrowness of this view and the possibilities that exist.
If you listen to any of Lagoya-Presti's playing—not just hearing, but actively engaging with the music—you will hear conversations of such intimacy that one at first feels embarrassed at being privy to them. It is hard at times to believe that two people could communicate so intricately. Given that both are playing classical guitars makes it all the more extraordinary.
The instrument is perhaps the finest made by the hand of man for the hand of man to play. Beethoven, on hearing the guitar for the first time, was moved to say: “It is an orchestra in one instrument.” It is, for example, the only instrument on which can one can play two notes—or more—of the same pitch at the same time.
However, it is truly said of the instrument that it takes “a minute to learn, but a lifetime to master.” The problems of construction, strings and tunings aside, the critical issue is that the instrument is played not with plectrums, bows or hammers, but only by the hand.
Being less than a millimetre off either way in fretting or striking the strings will result in a variation from pitch. Given that there are up to nine fingers at work at any one time, the chances of a “bum” note are raised considerably.
It takes great control and coordination to play even most solo pieces of the concert repertoire. When we get to duos it becomes hellishly complicated. Most of us who play a bit can only gape and marvel at the pristine technique of Lagoya and Presti. For example, in their transcriptions of harpsichord pieces the pair have to play what one person would normally play.
There they are, with all 20 fingers flying around the neck, fret board and sound hole and landing perfectly every time. I saw them once in an old documentary. It was astonishing to see the ease with which they played. Ida seemed to be merely waving her hands up and down the front of the guitar without any effort. And this amazing music seems to be pouring out of nowhere.
At times I would have sworn there had to be another guitar somewhere, and perhaps there is a point in that: that something more is produced than merely 1 + 1 = 2; that from their control, nuance and precision in dynamics the resultant overtones and harmonics produce a third sound arising from the interplay.
This does not happen in every duet. More often than not what one hears is two people playing the same bit of music at the same time, coincidentally as it were; not genuinely listening to or feeling what the other is playing.
For two people to be able to play as one is an amazing demonstration of not only human capability and possibility, but of human intimacy. And one must note the considerable courage it took, on both their parts, to bare so openly and generously their innermost selves and love for each other.
To work, love and play as one; to express precise shadings of emotion in unity. It speaks volumes about the possibilities of human beings and their relationships.
It is in this spirit that I recommend any and all of their recordings. There are several inexpensive CDs of their playing available: Belart, Nonesuch, Naxos, and so on. Most cost less than $10 (Aus) and will give a lifetime of pleasure.
My personal picks for the tracks to look for would be: Ferdinando Carulli's Serenade in G Op. 96, No. 3. Claude Debussy's Claire de Lune, any of the Scarlatti harpsichord transcriptions, Enrique Granados's Intermezzo and Danza Espanola, Op. 37 No. 2, Oriental, and Fernando Sor's Premier Divertissement pour Deux Guitares, Op. 34, L'encouragement.
However, one shouldn't be too fussy. Listen to any of their recordings and they will take you on a musical journey of passionate and tender beauty. You will return to the tasks and worries of the world re-energised, more thoughtful and re-sensitised.

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Duo Assad

 Duo Assad

 


Sérgio Assad was born in 1952 in Brazil and is one of the world’s important contemporary composer for the classical guitar. He often performs in duo with his brother Odair Assad and together they form the legendary Assad Duo sometimes known as the The Assad Brothers as well. They studied the classical guitar with Monina Tavora, a former student of Andres Segovia, for seven years. Sergio once stated: “I believe we were always meant to be a team right from the first time we picked up our guitars. We began playing guitar at exactly the same time and we always studied with the same teachers learning the same music and techniques. Such interaction can only really happen with brothers, because we shared every aspect of our musical education together."

Sergio’s US debut was in New York in 1969, although he was already performing in his native Brazil. He has also made numerous transcriptions and arrangements for both solo guitar and guitar duo including music by Ástor Piazzolla.

The 20th century has produced quite a number of guitar duos but for Brazilian-born brothers Sergio and Odair Assad, the roots obviously go much deeper. There are today's foremost guitar duo and have been credited with double handedly reviving Brazilian music for the instrument.

The Assad Duo embarked on a North American tour in the fall of 1995 with engagements that included Toronto's Ford Centre, and performances in Phoenix, Nashville, The Wolf Trap Foundation in Vienna, Virginia, and New York City. In 1993-94, they returned to Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall in New York. Last season they appeared at Pasadena's Ambassador Auditorium and in San Francisco, Seattle, Miami and New York City.

The Assads' American career began in 1969, under the "Youth for Understanding" aegis. A major prize at the "Rostrom of Young Interpreters" in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia, launched their European career. They also achieved victory in the 1973 Brazilian Symphonic Orchestra competition for young soloists. They have given recitals and performed with famous orchestras throughout France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Poland, Luxembourg, Slovenia, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Scandinavia, Australia, Great Britain, the Far East, Argentina, and their native Brazil.

Their virtuosity and musicianship inspired composers like Radames Gnattali, Marlos Nobre, Edine Krieger, Nikita Koshkin, Astor Piazzolla, Roland Dyens to write and dedicate pieces for them. Their repertoire includes original music composed by Sergio Assad and his re-workings of folk and jazz music as well as Latin music of almost every style. Their standard classical repertoire includes transcriptions of the great Baroque keyboard literature of Bach, Rameau, and Scarlatti; and adaptations of works by such diverse figures as Gershwin, Ginastera, and Debussy. Their programs are always a compelling blend of styles, periods, and cultures.

They have worked extensively with such renowned artists as Yo-Yo Ma, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Fernando Suarez Paz, Paquito D’Rivera, Gidon Kremer and Dawn Upshaw.










The Assads are also recognized as prolific recording artists, primarily for the Nonesuch and GHA labels. In 2001, Nonesuch Records released “Sérgio and Odair Assad Play Piazzolla,” which won a Latin Grammy in September 2002. Other duo CDs include an album of Baroque works and “Saga dos Migrantes” for Nonesuch. They have recorded Piazzolla discs with Gidon Kremer (Nonesuch) and Yo-Yo Ma (Sony Classical), the latter a Grammy winner in 1998.

A Nonesuch collaboration with Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg in 2000 featured a collection of pieces based on traditional and Gypsy folk tunes from around the world. Since that recording the Assads and Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg have made three highly successful tours of the United States, displaying unique chemistry, humor and stunning virtuosity. In 2003, Sergio Assad wrote a triple concerto for this trio that has been performed with the orchestras of São Paulo, Seattle and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.

Upcoming projects include performances of Joaquin Rodrigo’s “Concierto Madrigal for Two Guitars” at the Hollywood Bowl where the piece was originally premiered, as well as Sergio’s arrangement of the “Four Seasons” by Piazzolla for two guitars and orchestra in September 2006. The duo will be released a new recording for Nonesuch in 2006 and a Bach recording with Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg for the same label in 2007.

Sergio Assad will be a new faculty member at the San Francisco Faculty of Music. He will formally join the faculty and begin teaching guitar in September 2008.

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Duo Abreu

 Duo Abreu

 

Classical Guitar Magazine exclaims: “The maturity of musicianship and technical virtuosity …is simply outstanding.” in describing the Brasil Guitar Duo, winner of the Concert Artists Guild International Competition.  Equally at home on a Classical or World Music series, the Duo’s innovative programs feature a seamless blend of traditional and Brazilian works, resulting in a global tour schedule and numerous critically acclaimed recordings.

The Brasil Guitar Duo’s 2011-12 US recital tours include the Concert Associations of Anchorage and Fairbanks in Alaska, California’s Lancaster Performing Arts Center and the “Sundays Live” series at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Strathmore Performing Arts Center (MD), University of Wyoming Cultural Center, the Grand Canyon Guitar Society (AZ) and the Chamber Music Society of Little Rock.  This season, the Duo partners with jazz legend Paquito D’Rivera in a special tour program of Latin Music, featuring performances at Atlanta’s Ferst Center for the Arts, Jacksonville’s Beaches Fine Arts Series, Chamber Music Albuquerque and the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix.  International highlights include a recital at the Concertgebouw as well as appearances in Taiwan, Poland and Brazil, and the world premiere of a concerto written for them by Brazilian composer Paolo Bellinati, with the Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo led by Giancarlo Guerrero.

A favorite of summer festivals, the Brasil Guitar Duo recently made its debut at the Aspen Festival, in a special collaborative program with CAG alumnae flutist Marina Piccinini.  Previous summers have included concerts at New York’s River to River Festival, the Grand Teton Music Festival, Chautauqua Institution, Cooperstown Chamber Music Festival, Look and Listen Festival Stowe Summer Music Festival (VT), Lancaster Festival (OH), and abroad, the Bermuda Guitar Festival, Two Moors Festival (UK), Heinsberg Guitar Festival (Germany), Gliwice International Guitar Festival (Poland) and Sao Paulo’s Campos do Jordão International Festival (Brazil). 

In the recording studio, the Brasil Guitar Duo’s debut for the Naxos label features two CDs of the complete works for two guitars by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco.  Just one of many stellar reviews includes the American Record Guide, which said: “It would be hard to imagine a better performance...This is wonderful music played at the highest interpretive level.”  Previously, the Duo’s first CD of all-Brazilian repertoire, Bom Partido, was released in August 2007 on CAG Records and is now in its third printing.  Their latest release features the complete Bach Flute Sonatas with flutist Marina Piccinini (Avie).

Eager advocates for both traditional and new concerti for two guitars and orchestra, the Duo’s recent concerto performances include with the Dallas and Houston Symphony Orchestras, Dayton Philharmonic, Lancaster Symphony (OH) and the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas at Columbia University’s Miller Theatre.

Recent featured New York recital engagements include Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, NY Guitar Seminar at Mannes College, Symphony Space, Baruch College and Joe’s Pub.  In addition, they have performed for the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Lied Center of Kansas, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, University of Chicago, Spivey Hall, Montalvo Center for the Arts, Purdue University Convocations, Daytona Beach International Festival, Virginia Arts Festival, CityFolk Festival in Dayton, OH, the Santa Barbara Symphony’s Guitar Festival and for Miami Guitar Festival and the Asociacion Nacional de Conciertos in Panama City and the Classical Guitar Societies of, St. Louis, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Houston, Tucson and Upstate New York.

The Duo appears frequently in conjunction with CAG’s highly regarded New Music/New Places initiative, performing in diverse non-traditional spaces.  Just some of the venues who have hosted the duo are: BAMcafé and Barbés Bar and Performance Space in Brooklyn; Long Island’s Cinema Arts Centre; and Philadelphia’s World Café Live.  The Brasil Guitar Duo is perfectly suited for these venues, having established a broad repertoire of classical guitar duos combined with the traditional music of its native land (choro samba, maxixe and baião).  

João Luiz and Douglas Lora met in São Paulo as teenage guitar students and have been performing together for more than twelve years, perfecting a sublime synchronicity and effortless performance style. The ensemble’s primary studies were with Henrique Pinto along with Fabio Zanon, Paulo Martelli, Sergio Abreu and Alice Artz.  Douglas Lora earned his Master’s degree at the University of Miami as a student of Dr. Rene Gonzalez.  João Luiz is pursuing his Master’s degree at New York’s Mannes College of Music studying with Michael Newman.

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Domenico Scarlatti

 Domenico Scarlatti

 



Composer, born at Naples on the 26th of October 1685. Presumably he studied first under his father, composer Alessandro Scarlatti, but he was in all probability also a pupil of Gaetano Greco. In 1704 he remodelled Pollaroli's Irene for performance at Naples. Soon after this his father sent him to Venice, where he studied under Gasparini, and became intimate with Thomas Roseingrave. Domenico was already a harpsichord player of eminence, and at a trial of skill with Handel at the palace of Cardinal Ottoboni in Rome he was adjudged his equal on that instrument, although inferior on the organ. In 1709 Domenico entered the service of Marie Casimire, queen of Poland, then living in Rome, and composed several operas for her private theater. He was Maestro di Cappella at St. Peter's from 1715 to 1719, and in the latter year came to London to direct his opera Narciso at the King's Theatre. In 1720 or 1721 he went to Lisbon, where he taught music to the princess Magdalena Theresia. He was at Naples again in 1725, but in 1729 went to Madrid as music master to the princess, who had married into the Spanish royal house. He remained in Spain for some twenty-five years, holding various honorable appointments, and devoting himself entirely to the harpsichord, for which he composed over four hundred pieces. He is supposed to have died in 1757, either at Naples or in Spain.
Like his father, Domenico Scarlatti was a composer of great fertility, intellectual rather than emotional, presenting us with an example of steady development of style up to the end of a long life. His operas and cantatas are of no importance, but his harpsichord pieces are the most original productions of their time. Little known until the beginning of the 19th century, their technical difficulties have caused them to be regarded as mere studies in virtuosity, and modern pianoforte technique owes much to their influence; but considered from a purely musical point of view they display ar audacity of harmony and modulation, a freshness and variety of invention, a perfection of workmanship and a vigorous intellectuality in thematic development that places them almost on a level with the sonatas of Beethoven.

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Dionso Aguado

 Dionso Aguado



Born in Madrid, this Spanish Maestro surname is derived from the spanish word for "soaked" : this was a nickname an ancient relative, a knight, acquired after returning from a battle caked in mud! Dionisio Aguado was taught by Miguel Garcia.
At this time tablature was still the notation of choice for guitarists in Spain. Frederico Moretti began employing 5-line staff notation, distinguishing different parts through the use of note stems and rests. Along with others, such as Fernando Sor also a Spaniard, Aguado switched to this new guitar notation.
In the aftermath of the Napoleonic french invasions of Spain (1808), Aguado continued to perfect and develop his technique while working as a guitar teacher in the village of Fuenlabrada.

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Dilermando Reis

 Dilermando Reis


 




Dilermando Reis, probably the most famous Brazilian popular guitarist, was born in São Paulo, but lived most of his life in Rio de Janeiro, where he worked actively in radio and recordings. From 1941 to 1975 he recorded over forty albums.
Reis was the son of the guitarist Francisco Reis who was also his first teacher. At 17, Dilermando attended a recital in his city Guaratinguetá by the guitarist Levino da Conceição. Inspired by the dexterity of the blind musician, Reis became his accompanist throughout the tour of Brazil.
After a while he moved to Rio de Janeiro, where he became a guitar teacher. In 1935, he premiered on Radio Clube do Brasil, presented by Renato Murce. Soon his mastery at the accompaniment of the great singers of those times was widely acknowledged, and he became active in other radio stations, including the most prestigious Rádio Nacional, where he worked until 1969.
Reis played different types of guitar music and recorded the compositions of Bach, Barrios, Tárrega, as well as popular Brazilian composers. His preference was the traditional Brazilian guitar style: waltzes and choros full of modulations to "confuse accompanists," played with his unique style and sound.
Reis's first LP came out in 1941, with his waltz "Noite de Lua" and his choro "Magoado." In the period between 1941 and 1942 he joined a guitar orchestra which enlivened sophisticated evenings at the Casino da Urca. In 1953, he toured the U.S., recording for CBS. His waltz "Abismo de Rosas," still popular to this day in some circles, was one of the most expressive recordings for Continental (Brazil) during the fertile period between 1950 and 1960. In 1972 he recorded the LP Dilermando Reis Interpreta Pixinguinha and in 1975, released O Violão (The guitar).
He recorded about 100 of his own compositions, many of which became standards of Brazilian popular guitar, like "Dois Destinos" and "Se Ela Perguntar." In 1975 he recorded the LP The Brazilian Guitar of Dilermando Reis, containing his last compositions.
Reis was responsible for the rediscovery of the great composer João Pernambuco, and recorded several of Pernambuco's works. As a professor of guitar, Reis counted among his students president Juscelino Kubitschek and the guitarists Bola Sete and Darci Vilaverde.

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David Russell

The Scottish guitarist, David Russell, was born in Glasgow, and while still very young (age 5), moved with his parents to Menorca, a Spanish island in the Mediterranean. His father, an artist, was an avid amateur guitarist. It became natural for David to pick up the instrument, and his father began to teach him to play it. He cannot remember when he did not play the guitar. Before he could read music, he could play the pieces by ear that he had learned from listening to Andrés Segovia recordings. When he got somewhat older he also learned to play violin and French horn.

David Russell returned to Britain at the age of 16 to attend the Royal Academy of Music in London. There his primary teacher was Hector Quine. He also continued to study horn and violin. While studying, he twice won the Julian Bream Prize in guitar. He graduated in 1974 with a Ralph Vaughan Williams Trust Scholarship. In 1975, the Spanish Government granted him a special grant to enable him to return to Spain and continue his studies with José Tomás in Santiago de Compostela. In the next few years, he won the major Spanish guitar prizes - the José Ramírez Competition of Santiago de Compostela in 1975, the Andrés Segovia Prize of Palma de Mallorca in 1977, the Alicante Prize, and the most prestigious of all, Spain's Francisco Tárrega Competition.

David Russell made his Wigmore Hall (London) and New York debuts in the same year, 1981, and has since performed and recorded widely in concerts, recitals and music festivals. He has performed in the major concert venues of the world in North (New York, Los Angeles, Toronto) and South America, Asia (Tokyo), Australia, and Europe (London, Madrid, Rome).

David Russell is an exceptional classical guitarist, known for an attractive and outgoing stage presence. He is world renowned for his superb musicianship and inspired artistry, which have earned the highest praise from audiences and critics alike. He is noted for including new or unfamiliar music in most of his recitals. An often-mentioned attribute of his playing is his command over a wide variety of tone colour. His love of his craft resonates through his flawless and seemingly effortless performance. The attention to detail and provocative lyrical phrasing suggest an innate understanding of what each individual composer was working to achieve, bringing to each piece a sense of adventure. Composers who have written music for him include Jorge Morel, Francis Kleynijans, Carlo Domeniconi, Sergio Assad, and Guido Santorsola. His qualities carries over into his frequent stints as a teacher of master-classes, for which he is much in demand.

 David Russell

David Russell has recorded primarily for the GHA and Telarc Records labels, and on Opera Tres, he recorded the complete works of Francisco Tarrega. Since 1995 he has an exclusive recording contract with Telarc International, with whom he has recorded 12 CD's up to now, among them Aire Latino, which received a grammy in 2005. He has made recordings of several works of the Paraguayan composer Agustín Barrios Mangoré and Spanish composer Federico Moreno-Torroba and a release comprising the three solo guitar concerted works of Joaquín Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuéz, Fantasía para un Gentilhombre, and Concierto para una Fiesta.

In recognition of his great talent and his international career, David Russell was named a Fellow of The Royal Academy of Music in London in 1997. In May 2003 he was bestowed the great honor of being made "adopted son" of Es Migjorn, the town in Minorca where he grew up. Later the town named a street after him, "Avinguda David Russell". In November 2003 he was given the Medal of Honor of the Conservatory of the Balearics. In 2005 he was GRAMMY award winner for his CD Aire Latino, in the category of best instrumental soloist in classical music. After winning the grammy award, the town of Nigrán in Spain where he resides, gave him the silver medal of the town in an emotional ceremony. In May 2005 he received a homage from the music conservatory of Vigo, culminating with the opening of the new Auditorium, to which they gave the name "Auditorio David Russell".

The New York Times wrote about his performance: "... Mr. Russell made his mastery evident without ever deviating from an approach that places musical values above mere display. It was apparent to the audience throughout the recital that Mr. Russell possesses a talent of extraordinary dimension".
Upon hearing play in London, Andrés Segovia wrote: "My congratulations on your musicality and guitaristic technique".

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