Villa-Lobos' "Introduction to the Choros" (1929) should be considered a groundbreaking work; it demonstrates that the guitar can be effective in an orchestral setting.]]>
From the Summer 2016 issue of Classical Guitar magazine | BY RHAYN JOOSTE In this digital era of crafted, “perfect” performances, there is a constant motivation for guitarists to be musically and technically better. Striving to achieve ever-higher plateaus involves playing studies, lots of studies. Therefore, it is worth appraising your approach to learning studies. Are your studies played one after the other, in hopes that the mere process will help improve your technique? This article, focusing on the great Brazilian […]]]>
BY JOHN PATYKULA The music of Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887–1959) once again cast a magical spell over Richmond, Virginia, when the Virginia Commonwealth University Department of Music hosted the “Experiencing Villa-Lobos Festival” on March 21–23, 2019. VCU held a similar festival in 2008, which was quite successful. The 2019 festival attracted performers and scholars from Brazil, Chile, Germany, Canada, and from across the United States. The many performances, master classes, and scholarly presentations showcased the great variety of music composed by […]]]>
A lot of people really seemed to enjoy the video we posted recently of Julian Bream and John Williams performing together, so here’s “half” an encore: Bream solo playing Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Chôros No. 1, written in 1920 and dedicated to fellow Brazilian guitarist and composer Ernesto Nazareth.]]>
We’ve been dazzled by the skills of the young German guitarist Leonora Spangenberger for a couple of years now; in fact, one of our choices for Video Pick of the Week last July was her incredible version of Legnani’s Caprice No. 7, when she was just 11. This video is from two years after that one, so she’s two years better! And still playing some really difficult music with seeming effortlessness. Some players are just gifted; she is clearly one […]]]>
Talk about versatile! French guitarist Gaëlle Solal has long been an outstanding solo guitarist, taking on repertoire that spans Bach to Dyens, but she also works beautifully with others, as her duo appearances with other guitarists and various colleagues who play bandoneon, piano, and other instruments attest. She’s up for anything—including comedy, as I learned when I saw her and Boris Gaquere deliver a side-splitting parody of the classical guitar and flamenco worlds as a duo billed as Crazy Nails at […]]]>
From the Summer 2017 issue of Classical Guitar | BY JOHN PATYKULA Last year marked the 60th anniversary of the premiere of the Concerto for Guitar by the great Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887–1959). For many, this work is the culmination of all of the composer’s contributions to the guitar’s repertoire. In this concerto, one can hear compositional elements found in Villa-Lobos’ technically demanding Etudes (1929) combined with the lyricism of his Preludes (1940). This piece, which is both an […]]]>
From the Winter 2016 issue of Classical Guitar | BY PAUL FOWLES Julian Bream’s 1978 release of all 12 of Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Etudes is an event many recall. It had two precedents: Turibio Santos (1968/9) and Narciso Yepes (1971). Santos’ was a landmark recording, but not easy to get. Yepes’ never caught on, possibly due to his trademark leaden sound combined with such eccentricities as the mezzo-staccato lower voice in No.5. So Bream’s became the one every guitarist owned and many […]]]>
We wanted to share this fascinating and beautifully shot-and-edited video morsel about the making of Portuguese guitarist Mickael Viegas‘ new double-CD, The Complete Guitar Works of Heitor Villa-Lobos: The Prospect of a Future Guitar, on the French Paraty label, distributed by the good folks at Harmonia Mundi. The video narration is in Portuguese with English subtitles; the nuggets of music are everything you’d hope for from Villa-Lobos and make us very curious to hear the whole album. Kudos to video […]]]>