| Next year, 2007, marks the 20th
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| | for guitar or transcriptions of works by
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| anniversary of the death of Andres
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| | Bach, Haydn and others.His recital at the
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| Segovia, the father of the classical
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| | Arlington ranged freely over the body of
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| guitar for almost the entire 20th
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| | music available for the guitar, from Luis
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| Century. This remembrance of what was to
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| | de Narvaez' "Differencias on a Spanish
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| be one of his last concerts, a 1985
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| | Theme", written around 1538 to "Danza
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| performance at the Arlington Centre,
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| | Pomposa" by Alexandre Tansman, which was
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| Santa Barbara, is a tribute to his
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| | written at Segovia's request in the
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| extraordinary and ground-breaking
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| | 1950s. The "differencias", or variations,
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| influence on the classical guitar
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| | utilising striking contrasts between the
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| repertory.Segovia was born in Linares, a
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| | sonorous chords and dazzling scale runs,
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| village in southern Spain. Originally he
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| | are based on a popular folk song of the
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| was taught to play the violin, but after
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| | 16th century, known as "Guardame las
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| discovering a guitar at the home of a
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| | Vacas" (Guard the Cows).As was true of
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| friend he rebelled, determined to make
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| | all the evening's music, they displayed a
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| the guitar a "respectable" instrument on
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| | master's command of dynamics and sheer
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| the concert stage. Both his family and
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| | musicality, but it would be foolish to
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| teachers at the Granada Institute of
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| | ignore the fact that Segovia had by then
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| Music objected, but to no avail. Unable
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| | lost much of his technical skill. He was
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| to find a teacher capable of instructing
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| | after all, well over 90 years old, and a
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| him, the young Segovia became his own
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| | guitarist needs great strength and
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| guide. "To this day," he has commented
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| | control in his hands. The repertoire he
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| wryly, "teacher and pupil have never had
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| | chose reflected an admission that he was
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| a serious quarrel."His first public
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| | growing old. Instead of exploiting
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| appearance was in Granada at the age of
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| | mechanical virtuosity, his concert
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| 16, where his performance was described
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| | celebrated the breadth of musical
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| as a revelation; his name was soon known
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| | dynamics which he displayed and the close
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| throughout Spain and the rest of Europe.
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| | communion created between performer and
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| In 1928 he played the first ever guitar
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| | audience, even in a theatre the size of
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| recital in New York, at the Town Hall,
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| | the Arlington.The ovation that Segovia
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| which received rapturous reviews. After
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| | received, at the end of a recital which
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| that he played repeatedly in the United
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| | left the audience rapt, seemed to me a
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| States and attracted a wide and loyal
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| | recognition of what he had been, not what
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| following. His influence was threefold;
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| | he now was. But that was only a fraction
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| he established the guitar as an important
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| | of what he deserved; without his
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| concert instrument; many of the world's
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| | influence, the world of the classical
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| greatest contemporary composers wrote
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| | guitar would have been much poorer.You
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| works for him (including
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| | can read more of Tuppy Glossop's thoughts
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| Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Villa-Lobos and
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| | on music and popular culture at his Web
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| Rodrigo), and he uncovered a wealth of
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| | site, AtTheFamilyPlace.
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| older literature, either original works
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|
