CHRISTOPHER LAUGHLIN Guitar Program for Florida East Coast Guitar Society November 19, 2000 Prelude in d minor J.S. Bach (1685-1750) Three Pieces: Francisco Tarrega Recuerdos de l'Alhambra (1859-1909) Mazurka Capricho Arabe Canzonetta, From String Quartet, Op. 12 Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) Grand Solo Fernando Sor (1778-1839) Jongo Paulo Bellinati (b. 1950) Intermission Invocation y Danza Joaquin Rodrigo (1902-1999) Un tiempo fue Itálica famosa Joaquin Rodrigo Tango en Skai Roland Dyens Guajiras Paco de Lucia (b. 1947) Herencia Latina Paco Pena (b. 1942) CHRISTOPHER LAUGHLIN Program for Sturgis Council for the Arts March 28, 1998 Two Sonatas Domenico Scarlatti K. 322 in A (1685 - 1757) K. 323 in A Homenaje, Le Tombeau de Claude Debussy Manuel De Falla (1876-1946) Theme, Variations and Finale Manuel M. Ponce (1882-1948) Two Pieces: Joaquin Turina Fandanguillo (1882-1949) Sevillana (Fantasia) Sakura, Theme and Variations Yuquijiro Yocoh (b. 1925) Intermission Two Pieces: Agustin Barrios Julia Florida (1885-1944) Maxixe La Catedral Agustin Barrios Preludio "Saudade" Andante Religioso Allegro Solemne Primavera Porteña, From Las Cuatro Astor Piazzolla Estaciones Porteñas (1921-1992) Guajiras de Lucia Paco de Lucia (b. 1947) Herencia Latina Paco Peña (b. 1942) Jongo Paulo Bellinati (b. 1950) Program Notes Christopher Laughlin March 28, 1998 Sturgis-Young Auditorium Domenico Scarlatti was born in 1685, the same year as J.S. Bach and G.F. Handel. The son of the great Italian opera composer Allesandro Scarlatti, Domenico lived most of his adult life in Spain, in the service of the Prince of the Asturias. He composed over 500 sonatas for harpsichord. Sonatas 322 and 323, transcribed by Christopher Laughin, fit very nicely on the guitar. Manuel de Falla (1876-1946) began his career as a composer by writing zarzuelas, a Spanish form of light opera. Born in Cadiz, he moved to Madrid to enroll at the conservatory. Known more for the quality of his work than the quantity, his total output amounts to only 19 compositions. Best known are the opera La Vida Breve and the ballet El Amor Brujo. Homenaje le Tombeau de Claude Debussy is his only work for solo guitar. It was composed in 1920 in honor of his friend Debussy, who had died two years earlier. Manuel M. Ponce (1882-1948) was already a successful composer, pianist, and conductor in Mexico when he moved to Paris, where he lived from 1925 to 1933. There, after consultation with the post-impressionist composer Paul Dukas, he altered his style, which had earlier been marked by brilliant salon works for piano, and by sentimental art songs such as the enormously popular Estrellita. After 1925 he began employing French impressionist harmonies and neo-classical counterpoint in works such as the Theme, Variations and Finale for guitar, published in 1926. Joaquin Turina (1882-1949) was one of many Spanish composers who were inspired to write for the guitar by Andres Segovia. An interesting counterpart to the many French composers (Ravel, Bizet, Ibert) who often imitated the Spanish style in there works, Turina was for his part heavily influenced by French impressionism. The Fantasie Sevillanas juxtaposes the forceful rhythms and harmonies of Spanish music with lush harmonies and gentle lyricism typical of the French style. Japanese guitarist composer Yuquiiro Yocoh was born in 1925. Variations on Sakura, based on the instantly recognizable traditional Japanese melody, very cleverly combines the harmonic structure of Japanese music with the rhythms and forms of western music, in a manner that takes full advantage of the guitars technical potential. Agustin Barrios is one of the most interesting and important figures in the history of the guitar. Born in 1885 in San Juan Bautista, Paraguay, his concert career began in 1906 with extensive tours of South America. He made one tour of Europe in 1934, visiting Germany, Belgium, Spain, and England. He died in El Salvador in 1944. Although Barrios is believed to have composed over 300 works for the guitar, he left very little manuscript of his works, and those that were written out were often spontaneously altered in performance. Fortunately, he left many recorded versions of his compositions, from which most modern editions of his works are transcribed. La Catedral is one of Barrios's few long form works. Barrios originally conceived La Catedral in 1914 as a two movement work which describes the composer's impressions of the Cathedral of San Jose in Montevido, Uruguay. The first movement, Andante Religioso, represents the composer's impressions on entering the cathedral and hearing the music of Bach being performed on the organ. The second movement, Allegro Solemne depicts the bustle of the busy street the composer returns to on leaving the Cathedral. In 1938 Barrios added the Prelude, subtitle Saudade, to La Catedral and performed the work in this three-part form during his final years. The two pieces that open the second half of the program are examples of the short character pieces that make up the majority of Barrios's output. Julia Florida is a hauntingly beautiful barcarole, composed for the niece of a patron, and the Maxixe is a virtuoso showpiece based on a dance form that was very popular in Brazil around the years 1911-13. Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992) was born in Argentina, raised in New York City, and later settled in Buenas Aires. He created a unique musical style called Nuevo Tango, which expanded on the traditions of the tango style by incorporating elements of jazz and classical structures in his compositions. Along the way he alienated many tango purists in Argentina, while cultivating a huge following of music-lovers around the world who were receptive to his ideas. Primavera Porteña (Spring) is part of a cycle of compositions, Las Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas (The Four Seasons) composed around 1968 for Piazzolla's regular quintet of bandoneón, electric guitar, violin, bass and piano. (The word "porteño means harbor people, and is used to refer to people from Buenos Aires.) This transcription, by Sergio Assad, was commissioned by David Tanenbaum and the Augustine Foundation. Paco de Lucia is one of the greatest flamenco guitarists living today. Although thoroughly trained in the art of pure flamenco, he is continually striving to broaden the appeal of flamenco by incorporating elements of jazz and other forms of contemporary music into a unique synthesis of style. The Guajiras was transcribed by Michael Haas from Lucia's recording Entre dos Aguas. Paco Pena, born in 1942, is another world-famous flamenco virtuoso. Herencia Latina is a rumba, a flamenco form that has its roots in Latin-America Paulo Bellinati was born in 1950 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. He composed two versions of Jongo, one for solo guitar and one for guitar duo, and published the solo version in 1993. The piece alternates between 3/4 and 6/8 time in every measure, and features an extended percussion section toward the end that exploits the many sonorities that can be obtained by tapping on various parts of the guitar.