Monday, October 20, 2008

Argentina - Astor Piazzolla

Astor Piazzolla was born on March 11, 1921 in Mar del Plata, Argentina. In 1925, his family relocated to New York City. When he was eight years old, his father gave him his first bandoneon. In addition to lessons on that instrument Piazzolla also studied with classical pianist Bela Wilda in 1933. Around the same time, he met and played with Carlos Gardel. He played a newspaper boy in Gardel's tango film El Día que Me Quieras. Piazzolla chose to tour South America with Gardel in 1935. A year later, Piazzolla's family returned to Mar del Plata, and his passion for tango music was fired anew by violinist Elvino Vardaro's sextet. Piazzolla then moved to Buenos Aires in 1938, seeking work as a musician. He joined the Anibal Troilo orchestra, where he spent several high-profile years. He then studied music with Alberto Ginastera and piano with Raúl Spivak.

In 1943 he began his classical works with the Suite Para Cuerdas y Arpas. This is when he decided to leave Troilo’s orchestra for a chance to lead the orchestra which accompanies singer Francisco Fiorentino. During this time he composed his first formal tango, “El Desbande (1946).”

In 1949 he decided to dedicate himself to write and pursue his musical studies, so he stopped playing the bandoneon. In 1954, he received a scholarship from the French Government to study in Paris. After this, he went back to Argentina in 1955 to form a group called Octetos Buenos in 1955. Three years later he went to New York City to work as an arranger.

In 1963 he premiered “Tres Tangos Sinfonicos” and then in 1968 began a collaboration with Horacio Ferrer, with whom he composed the “operitaMaria de Buenos Aires. In 1969 he composed “Balada Para Un Loco”, and it’s presented at the First Iberoamerican Music Festival, where he received second place. He continued to compose and in 1970, he returned to Paris to collaborate once again with Ferrer. Together they composed the oratorio “Él Pueblo Joven”.

In 1972, he played at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires for the first time, sharing the bill with other Tango orchestras. He started a series of recordings in 1973 in Italy and formed the “Conjunto Electronico.” He went back to Buenos Aires to present his work, “500 Motivaciónes’’ at the Gran Rex Theater in both 1978 and 1977. And again went back to the Teatro Colón in 1983 to play a program dedicated to his music.

In 1985 he was named an exceptional citizen of Buenos Aires and premiered in a bandoneon and guitar concert called “Homenaje a Lieja.” In his last years, Piazzolla preferred to give concerts as a soloist in the company of a symphonic orchestra, with a few performances with his quintet. This is how he traveled the world and kept on extending the magnitude of his audience in each and every continent for the good and the glory of Buenos Aires music.

Piazzolla's health turned out to be at risk and he underwent quadruple bypass surgery in 1988, but recovered well enough to mount an international tour in 1989, including United States, Germany, England, Holland and what would be his final concert in Argentina. La Camorra, was released in 1989. The year after, he recorded a short album with modern-classical iconoclasts the Kronos Quartet, titled Five Tango Sensations. A short period after Piazzolla, unfortunately, suffered a stroke that left him unable to perform. On July 4, 1992, he died in his beloved Buenos Aires.

He left as a legacy his invaluable work - which comprehends some fifty records - and the huge influence of his style. The cultural production on Piazzolla seems to be never ending. It spreads to cinema and theatre, is always reviewed by record companies and made fresh at Fundación Piazzolla which his widow, Laura Escalada runs.

When one listens to Piazzolla music we are forced to question the roots and say, “This is Piazzolla.” It is all about the language he created, which is unique and can be identified as his and only his. With mixed elements of Jazz, classical music, experiments in sound he was able to create a product of unique music under the extreme pulse of his Tango.

Source:

http://www.starpulse.com/Music/Piazzolla,_Astor/Biography/
http://www.classiccat.net/piazzolla_a/biography.htm
http://www.piazzolla.org/biography/biography-english.html



List of Works

Adiós Nonino (1960)
Bandoneón sinfónico (1990)
Buenos Aires (1976)
Concierto de Nácar (1983)
El Exilio de Gardel (soundtrack, 1985)
Enrico IV (1984)
Five Tango Sensations (1991) with Kronos Quartet
Green Studio (1984)
Hommage a Liege: Concierto para bandoneón y guitarra/Historia del Tango (1988) with Liège Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Leo Brouwer. The concerto was performed by Piazzolla with Cacho Tirao, the Historia by Guy Lukowski and Marc Grawels.
Il Pleut Sur Santiago (1976)
ION Studios (1968)
La Camorra (1989)
La Guardia Vieja (1966)
Libertango (1974)
Live in Wien Vol.1 (1984)
María de Buenos Aires (1968)
Original Tangos from Argentina (1992)
Reunión Cumbre (Summit) (1974) with Gerry Mulligan With Amelita Baltar (1974)
Roma (1972)
Suite Punta del Este (1982)
Sur (1988)
SWF Rundfunkorchester (1983)
Tango: Zero Hour (1986)
Teatro Nazionale di Milano (1984)
The Central Park Concert 1987 (1994)
The New Tango (1987) with Gary Burton
The Rough Dancer and the Cyclical Night (Tango Apasionado) (1991)
Tiempo Nuevo (1962)

Argentina - Luis Gianneo

Luis Gianneo was an Argentine composer, conductor and pianist born on January 9, 1897. He received his training from his father. But as years went by, he studied with Ernesto Drangosch, Luis Romaniello, Constantino Gaito, and Eduardo Fornarini. From 1923 to 1942 he lived in Tucuman. In Tucuman he co-directed the Instituto Musical and conducted the Asociación Sinfonica.

Luis Gianneo moved permanently to Buenos Aires in 1943 where he taught at the Conservatorio Provincial de Musica (1949–1965), at the Universidad Nacional de la Plata (1956– 1966) and the Universidad Católica Argentina (1964–1968). From 1955-1958 he became an Interventor and in 1958–1960 he became director of the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica. Gianneo also founded and led two youth orchestras. He was a member of the Academia Nacional de Bellas Artes, vice-president of the Sociedad Argentina de Educación, and he also received a grant from the Comision Nacional de Cultura. He composed 80 works covering all genres (except opera), and he is especially known for his orchestral and chamber music.

Source:
http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/11073?q=luis+gianneo&source=omo_t237&source=omo_gmo&source=omo_t114&search=quick&hbutton_search.x=26&hbutton_search.y=14&pos=1&_start=1#firsthit

http://ostinato.tripod.com/giaworks.html



List of Works

Album Intimo / Intimate Album
Bailecito (1931) [Ricordi]
Caminito de Belén / Little Road to Bethlehem (1947) [EAM and Peer-Southern]
Cancion (1916)
Cinco Pequeñas Piezas / Five Little Pieces (1938) [Max Eschig]
Cuatro Composiciones / Four Compositions (1916) [Ricordi]
Dos Estudios / Two Etudes (1933)
En el Altiplano (1932)
En el Cañaveral
Improvisación / Improvisation (1948)
Mi Changuita (tango) / My Little Girl (tango) (1919)
Música Para Niños / Music for Children (1946) [EAM and Southern-Peer]
Noche en la Sierra
Nocturno
¿Por que? (After 1923)
Seis Bagatelas / Six Bagatelles (1957)
Siete Piezas Infantiles / Seven Children's Pieces (1946) [EAM and Southern-Peer]
Sonata No. 1 (1917)
Sonata No. 2 (1943) [Fischer]
Sonata No. 3 (1957)
Sonatina (1938) [EAM and Peer-Southern]
Suite (1933) [Grupo Renovación]
Tarantella (1913)
Te Amo (1916-1917)
Tres Danzas Argentinas / Three Argentinean Dances (1938) [EAM and Peer-Southern]
Tres Preludios / Three Preludes (1926-1932)
Vals Lento / Slow Waltz (1923)
Variaciones Sobre un Tema de Haendel / Variations on a Theme by Handel (1918)
Villancico / Christmas Carol (1947) [EAM and Peer-Southern]

Argentina - Carlos Gardel

Carlos Gardel was born on December 11, 1890 with the name of Charles Garde in Toulouse, France. When the popular vocalist Carlos Gardel was two years of age, his mother took him to Buenos Aires, Argentina. She then changed his last name from Gardes to Gardel. When he got older, he changed his first name from Charles to Carlos to make it sound more Latin. He tried to hide his French origins by saying he was born in Uruguay. He came from a poor working class family in Buenos Aires, Argentina. His mother worked as a cleaner. Despite the rough lifestyle he was forced to face, he began singing gigs at weddings, birthdays and other family receptions in his early years. He studied at a trade school known as Colegio Pio X.

Gardel started spending time at theatres and opera houses and that is when his interest in music began to show. He was ready to do any job that might get his foot in the door such has setting up a stage or participating in a cheering section for a concert.

In 1911, Gardel made his first recordings for the Columbia label and formed a trio to go on tour with Jose Razzano from Uruguay and with singer Francisco Martino. Gardel and Razzano sang as a duet when Martino left the trio in 1913. Gardel got into a bar brawl with Che Guevara’s father, Ernesto Guevara Lynch in 1915 and was wounded by a gun shot in Buenos Aires. In August 1924 he was asked to sing for the visiting Prince of Wales in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Gardel became a solo artist in 1925 after Rozzano started to have throat problems and went on tour through Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Colombia, and also made appearances in Paris, New York, Barcelona and Madrid. He sold more than 60,000 records in the first couple of months in his visit to Paris in 1928.

Carlos Gardel’s film debut took place in 1931 in the film, "Luces de Buenos Aires”. He traveled to New York where his film career grew. In 1934 he made the films, “El Día Que Me Quieras” and “Cuesta Abajo”. His success as popular tango vocalist came to an end abruptly in 1935. Carlos Gardel went on tour in Caribbean and northern South America but never completed it. Gardel, LePera, and other members of his staff embarked a plane in Medellin, Colombia. As the plane was attempting to depart from the ground, it crashed into another plane and burst into flames, killing almost everyone on board.

Source:
http://latinmusic.about.com/od/artistsen/p/PROGARDEL.htm
http://www.todotango.com/english/gardel/discografia.html


List of Works

A Mi Madre (Con Los Amigos), Song, Solo,1919.
A Mi Madre Querida (Pobre mi Madre Querida),Vidalita, Solo, 1912
A Mitre, Vals, Solo,1912
Adios Que me Voy Llorando,Song, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
Amargura (El Florindense), Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
Aurora,Vals, Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
Ay Ay Ay, Song, Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
Ay Elena, Vals, Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
Brisas (Brisas de La Tarde), Song, Solo, 1912.
Cantar Eterno,Song, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
El Almohadon, Vals, Solo, 1912
El Cardo Azul,Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
El Moro, Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
El Pangare, Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
El Senuelo, Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
El Sol del Veinticinco, Gato, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
El Sueno, Style, Solo, 1912.
El Tirador Plateado (Sos mi Tirador Plateado), Style, Solo,1917.
Es en Vano, Song, Solo, 1912.
La China Fiera, Song, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
La Criolla, Milonga, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
La Huella, Song,Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
La Madrugada, Song, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
La Mananita (Lo Que Fui), Style, Solo,1912.
La Mariposa (Gorjeos),Style,Solo, 1912.
La Yeguecita, Cueca, Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
Lo Que Fui, Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
Me Dejaste, (El Poncho del Olvido), Style, Solo, 1912.
Mi China Cabrera (Palanganeando), Style,Solo, 1912.
Mi Madre Querida (Pobre Mi Madre Querida), Vidalita, Solo, 1912.
Mi Noche Triste,Tango,Solo,1917
Mis Perros, Bambuco,Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
Pavadas, Media cifra, Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
Pobre Flor, Style, Solo, 1912.
Puntana, Zamba, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
Que Suerte la Del Ingles, Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1919
Sanjuanina de Mi Amor, Tonada, Duo with J. Razzano,1919
Sos Mi Tirador Plateado (El Tirador Plateado), Style, Solo,1912.
Suena Guitarra Querida, Style, Duo with J. Razzano,1919.
Te Acordas, Zamba, Duo with J. Razzano,1917.
Una Rosa Para mi Rosa (La Rosa Encarnada), Song, Duo with J. Rozzano, 1917.
Ya Canta el Gallo, Zamba, Duo with J. Rozzano,1917.
Yo Se Hacer, Cifra, Solo,1912.

Argentina Timeline

December 11, 1890: Carlos Gardel was born in Toulouse, France

1893: Gardel’s mother emigrated to Buenos Aires, Argentina

January 9, 1897: Luis Gianneo was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina

1911: Gardel made his first recordings for the Columbia label and toured with singer Francisco Martino, later adding Razzano to form a trio

1913: Martino left the Trio. Gardel formed a duet with Jose Razzano singing folk songs

1915: Carlos Gardel was shot by Che Guevara’s father, Ernesto Guevara Lynch, as a result of a bar room brawl in the belle epoque Palais de Glace in the Recoleta district of Buenos Aires

1917: Gardel created the Tango Cancion in 1917 with his rendition of Pascual Contursi and Samuel Castriota’s Mi Noche Triste

April 4, 1917: Germany sank two Argentine civilian ships, Monte Protegido and the Toro

1921: Yrigoyen's administration enacted enacted the Labor Code establishing the right to strike, implemented minimum wages laws and collective contracts. It also initiated the creation of the Dirección General de Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales (YPF), the oil state company

March 11, 1921: Astor Piazzolla born in Mar del Plata, Argentina

1923-42: Gianneo co-directed the Instituto Musical and conducted the Asociación Sinfonica in Tucuman

August 1924: Gardel sung for the visiting Prince of Wales in Buenos Aires, Argentina

1925: Rozzano was having problems with his throat, so Gardel became a solo performer

1929: The Great Depression hit Argentina. Grupo Renovación is founded by Juan José, José Maria Castro, Jacobo Ficher.
Gardel sang at the Paris Opera House

1930: A military dictatorship took control of Argentina. Gianneo composed his popular symphonic poem, El Tarco en Flor

1931: Gardel made film debut in "Luces de Buenos Aires

1932: Gianneo became a member of Grupo Renovación

1933: Gardel arrived at New York where his film career grew

1934: Gardel made films, El Día Que Me Quieras (The Day You Love Me) and Cuesta Abajo (Going Downhill)

1935: Gardel toured through the Caribbean and northern South America

June 24, 1935: Gardel died on in a plane crash in Medellin, Colombia while on tour

1938: Gianneo participated in The International Music Conference in Florence, conducted a performance of his symphonic poem Turay-Turay in Turin and created Cinco Piezas Pequeñas, First Symphony and the Concertino Serenata in Paris.
Piazzolla begins to play in Anibal Troilo’s orchestra

1942: Concierto Aymara, won second prize in an international competition sponsored the Edwin A. Fleischer Collection

1943: Gianneo permanently settled in Buenos Aires

1944: Gianneo performed his Concierto Aymara. Piazzolla left Troilo’s orchestra and joined Francisco Fiorentino’s orchestra to lead it

1945: Gianneo founded the Youth Orchestra of Radio El Mundo

1946: Piazzolla composed his first formal tango, “El Desbande

1949-65: Gianneo taught at the Conservatorio Provincial de Musica

1953: Buenos Aires won the first prize and the work is performed at the Law School in Buenos Aires by the Symphonic Orchestra of “Radio del Estado” with the addition of two bandoneons under Piazzolla

1954: Gianneo founded the Orquesta Sinfónica Juvenil the Radio Nacional (Youth Symphony Orchestra of Radio Nacional).
Piazzolla received a scholarship from the French Government to study in Paris

1955: Piazzolla returned to Argentina to form a group called Octeto Buenos

June 1955: Casa Rosada bombing in Plaza de Mayo, Argentina

1955–58: Gianneo became the interventor of the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica

1956–66: Gianneo taught at the Universidad Nacional de la Plata

1958: Piazzolla left the Octet and went to New York City to work as an arranger

1958–60: Gianneo became Director of the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica

1963: Piazzolla premiered “Tres Tangos Sinfonicos

1964–68: Gianneo taught at Universidad Católica Argentina

1965: Gianneo became President of the National Commission for Culture

August 15, 1968: Gianneo died in Buenos Aires, Argentina

1969: Piazzolla composed and presented “Balada Para Un Loco” at the First Iberoamerican Music Festival, where he received second place

1976: Piazzolla played at the Gran Rex Theater in Buenos Aires, where he presented his work, “500 Motivaciónes

1977: Piazzolla played at the Gran Rex Theater in Buenos Aires, where he presented his work, “500 Motivaciónes

1983: Piazzolla played a program dedicated to his music at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires

1988: Piazzolla underwent a quadruple bypass surgery

1989: Piazzolla started an extensive international tour

1990: Piazzola suffered a stroke

July 4, 1992: Piazzolla died in Buenos Aires

Uruguay - Luis Cluzeau-Mortet

Luis Cluzeau-Mortet was a composer, pianist, and a violinist. He was born in Uruguay’s capital city of Montevideo on November 16, 1889.

Cluzeau-Mortet’s musical and creative career has been broken down into 3 distinct phases or periods in his life. The first being his youthful phase which began in 1910. Early in his life he played the violin with the Asociación Uruguaya de Musica de Camara while also performing numerous piano recitals. During this period of his life, Cluzeau-Mortet began writing music of a marked Romantic-Impressionist character.

In his second phase, considered to be his most important and influential phase, his style was shaped by his nationalist spirit. Nearly half of all works done by Cluzeau-Mortet came from this period of his life. During this time he created vocal and piano works that have been considered his masterpieces. From this time, he created Pericón (1918) which was performed in Montevideo by Artur Rubinstein and Canto de Chingolo for voice and piano (1924) which was recorded by RCA Victor in 1930, these two works are considered to be Cluzeau-Mortet’s best and most representative works. In 1938 Cluzeau-Mortet performs multiple concerts throughout the United States and in Paris. Also during this period, he created Rancherío (1940) which won an Uruguayan radio competition. Cluzeau-Mortet is documented as being the first violinist in OSSODRE (The Uruguay ROS) from the date of its foundation in 1931 until his retirement in 1946.

In his third phase, which consumed the last decade of his life, his works became influenced by new trends in European music. In total, Cluzeau-Mortet created almost 200 works. Of this, only a little more than one tenth has been published. In 1946 he retired and on September 28, 1957 he died at age 67 in Montevideo, Uruguay.

Sources:
www.oxfordmusiconline.com
www.geocities.jp/latinamericapiano/e_cluzeaumortet/e_cluzeaumortetintro.html


List of works

A Traves de las Calles (1939)
Cancion Triste (1920)
Capricho Crillo No. 1 & No. 2 (1926)
Capricho Crillo No. 3 (1934)
Carreta Quemada (1916)
Chant du crepusculo (1910)
Danza No. 1, 2, & 3 (1925)
Divagaciones, Libro 1 (1925)
Divagaciones, Libro 2 (I, II, II, IV, V) (1948)
Dos Preludios Regionales (1916)
En la Playa (1932)
Ensueno (1914)
Evocacion Criolla (1922)
Fantasia Apasionada (1912)
Feulles D’Automne (1910)
Fiesta en el Rancho (1930)
Homenaje a Dualde (I, II, III, IV. V, VI, VII) (1932)
Homenaje a Londres (1939)
La Cancion del Arroyo (1919)
La Pequena Nina Blanca (1939)
Limpiate con Dentinol (Tango Elegante) (1910)
Malezas (1930)
Marcha Funebre (1915)
Nativa (1918)
Nuestra Tierra, Libro 1 (1943 – 1952)
Nuestro Tierra, Libro 2 (1947)
Ocho Primeras Piezas Para Piano (1916 – 1930)
Paysage (1910)
Pericon (1918)
Polonesa (1910)
Primera Sonata (1946)
Primera Suite de Valses (I, II, III, IV, V, VI) (1914)
Segunda Suite de Valses (I, II, III, IV, V, VI) (1933)
Tema Con Variaciones (1915)
Trece Preludios (1914 – 1915)
Visiones Camperas (1931)

Uruguay - Eduardo Fabini

Eduardo Fabini was a composer and violinist born in Solis de Mataojo, Uruguay on May 18, 1882. He is known as the one who helped shape and create the style of music in Uruguay. Fabini began his musical career by studying violin at the Conservatorio Musical La Lira in Montevideo. Fabini then traveled to Europe and attended the Brussels Conservatory from 1900-1903.

While at the Brussels Conservatory, Fabini continued to study violin under the instruction of Cesar Thomson. Also, while at the Brussels Conservatory, Fabini began to officially study composition under the instruction of August de Boeck. After completing his tenure at the Brussels Conservatory, Fabini was awarded the first prize in violin and then returned to Uruguay in 1903. He held concerts in Europe, Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay.

In 1907 Fabini co-founds the National Music Conservatory of Uruguay. In 1910 Fabini joined the Asociación Uruguaya de Musica de Camara. Fabini then teamed up with two other Uruguayan composers, Alfonso Broqua and Luis Cluzeau-Mortet, and founded a new nationalist style of music in Uruguay. This new style is best known by Fabini’s symphonic poem “Campo (1913)” and was executed in public in Montevideo on April 29, 1922.

In 1927 Fabini is appointed Artistic Attache of the Embassy of Uruguay in the United States. He died on May 17, 1950 in Montevideo, Uruguay a day before his 68th birthday.

Sources:
www.oxfordmusiconline.com
www.biografiasyvidas.com/biografia/f/fabini.htm
www.sekher.com/eduardo_fabini.htm
www.books.google.com
www.geocities.jp/latinamericapiano/e_cluzeaumortet/e_cluzeaumortetintro.html
www.arkivmusic.com


List of Works

Campo (1922)
Estudio Arpegiado - Performer: Irma Ametrano (Piano). Written: Brussels, Belgium
Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra (1929)
Intermezzo
La Isla de los Ceibos (1924)
Las flores del campo (1900)
Mburucuya (1953)
Melgar Symphony (1931)
Tristes (1925)
Triste No. 1 – Performer: Irma Ametrano (Piano). Written: Uruguay
Triste No. 1 – Performer: Eduardo Fernandez (Guitar). Written: Uruguay. 3 Min 58 Sec
Triste No. 2

Choirs: A Mi River, La Flores Del Campo, The Arroyo neglected, The Ranch, Vision of the Road

Songs and Piano: Intermezzo, Scarlatinosa, Study Arpegiado

Violin and Piano: Tres Tristes

Guitar: Mozartina

Hymns: The Anthem at Sea, The Colorado Party Anthem, Song of the Naval Academy Del Uruguay

Uruguay - Alfonso Broqua

Alfonso Broqua was a Uruguayan composer who was born on September 11, 1876 in Montevideo, Uruguay. Broqua has been associated with Eduardo Fabini and Luis Cluzeau-Mortet as being a leading figure of early 20th century musical nationalism in Uruguay.

At the age of 18, Broqua departed Uruguay and traveled to Europe to study music. While in Europe he studied for six years with Vincent D’Indy at the Schola Cantorum in Paris.

After studying in Europe, Broqua returned home to Montevideo in 1904. In 1910, Broqua’s lyric poem “Tabare” was premiered. This was considered to be a major event in the establishment of the nationalistic style that was to exploit, for the first time in Uruguayan art music, the forms, themes, instruments, and dance types of Uruguayan folklore.

Alfonso Broqua dies in Paris, France at the age of 70 on November 24, 1946.

Sources:
www.oxfordmusiconline.com
www.compumusic.com
www.notanorm.de/en/composer/Broqua.htm


List of Works

Chacarera (Pujol 1211) – Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
Ecos del paisaje (Pujol 1209) – Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
El Nido from Chants Uruguay (Pujol 1509) – Publisher: Durand. Voice/flute/2 guitars. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
El Nindo (Chants de l’Uruguay) - Voice/flute/2 guitars
El Tango (Chants de l’Uruguay) – Publisher: Durand. Voice/flute/2 guitars. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
Estudios criollos (Pujol 1227) – Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
Evocaciones Criollas Nr. 3: Chacarera – Guitar Solo
Evocaciones Criollas Nr. 1: Ecos del Paisage – Guitar Solo
Evocaciones Criollas Nr. 5: Milongueos – Guitar Solo
Evocaciones Criollas Nr. 6: Pampeana – Guitar Solo
Evocaciones Criollas Nr. 7: Ritmos Camperos – Guitar Solo
Evocaciones Criollas Nr. 2: Vidala – Guitar Solo
Evocaciones Criollas Nr. 4: Zamba Romantica – Guitar Solo
Milongueos (Pujol 1213) - Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
Pampeana (Pujol 1214) – Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
Ritmos Camperos (Pujol 1215) – Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
Vidala – Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical
Zamba Romantica (Evocaciones Criollas) – Guitar Solo. Publisher: Durand. Category: Sheet Music/ Classical

Uruguay Timeline

16th Century: Uruguay begins colonization

17th Century: Spaniards occupied the territory of modern day Uruguay. Colonization continues and the country begins to become fully developed

1726: Montevideo, Uruguay’s current capital founded

18th Century: Colonial music begins to flourish in the late 18th century

1802: The earliest known Uruguayan polyphony, the four-part Misa para Día de Difuntos (1802) by José Manuel Ubeda is created

August 25, 1825: Uruguay issues declaration of independence

August 28, 1828: Treaty signed to guarantee Uruguay’s independence

1830: The Uruguayan constitution was established

September 11, 1876: Alfonso Broqua (Composer) is born in the Uruguayan capital city of Montevideo

1878: The first Uruguayan opera, La Parisina by Tomas Garibaldi, had its premier

May 18, 1882: Eduardo Fabini (composer and violinist) born in Solis de Mataojo, Uruguay

November 16, 1889: Luis Cluzeau-Mortet (composer, violinist, and pianist) born in Montevideo, Uruguay

1894: Broqua leaves Uruguay and travels to Europe to study music

1898 - 1904: Broqua studies with Vincent D’Indy at the Schola Cantorum in Paris

1899: Eduardo Fabini leaves Uruguay and studies the violin and composing in Europe at the Brussels Conservatory

1902: Fabini wins the Prix du Conservatoire as a violin virtuoso from the Brussels Conservatory

1903: Fabini returns to Uruguay

1904: Broqua leaves Europe and returns to Montevideo

1907: Fabini co-founds the National Music Conservatory of Uruguay

1910: The premiere of Broqua’s lyric poem “Tabare” which exploited Uruguayan folklore. Cluzeau-Mortet begins writing music of a marked Romantic-impressionist character

1910 - 1920: Uruguay’s first nationalist compositions appeared between 1910 and 1920, two of the most notable composers being Alfonso Broqua and Eduardo Fabini

1913: Fabini co-founds the Association of Chamber Music

1914 – 1930: Cluzeau-Mortet played the violin with the Asociacion Uruguaya de Musica de Camara, and also performed numerous piano recitals

1918 – 1924: Cluzeau-Mortet creates Preicon (1918) and Canto de Chingolo for voice and piano (1924), considered to be his best and most representative works

April 29, 1922: Fabini’s first symphonic poem, “Campo” executed in public in Montevideo

1927: Fabini is appointed Artistic Attache of the Embassy of Uruguay in the United States

1930: Cluzeau-Mortet’s “Canto de Chingolo” is recorded by RCA Victor

1931: The OSSODRE (the Uruguay RSO) is founded

1938: Cluzeau-Mortet performs multiple concerts throughout the United States and in Paris

1940: Cluzeau-Mortet creates Rancherio which wins a radio competition

1946: Cluzeau-Mortet retires

November 24, 1946: Alfonso Broqua dies in Paris, France at the age of 70

May 17, 1950: Eduardo Fabini dies at age 67 in Montevideo, Uruguay

September 28, 1957: Luis Cluzeau-Mortet dies at age 67 in Montevideo, Uruguay

1960’s: As the Beatles become famous worldwide, many Uruguayan youths begin to form their own rock bands. One group in particular was named “Los Shakers”

1994: The Uruguayan congress created the Fondo Nacional de la Música to sponsor research and projects related to Uruguayan music

Sources:
www.oxfordmusiconline.com
www.compumusic.com
www.notanorm.de/en/composer/Broqua.htm
www.biografiasyvidas.com/biografia/f/fabini.htm
www.sekher.com/eduardo_fabini.htm
www.books.google.com
www.geocities.jp/latinamericapiano/e_cluzeaumortet/e_cluzeaumortetintro.html
www.arkivmusic.com
www.geocities.jp/latinamericapiano/e_cluzeaumortet/e_cluzeaumortetintro.html

Paraguay - Digno Garcia

Digno Garcia was born in the city of Luque, Paraguay in September 22, 1919. He started playing the guitar at a very young age. By twelve years old he was already a very proficient guitar player without having any formal musical instruction. Soon after, he also thought himself how to play the Paraguayan Harp (Arpa Paraguaya).

When he first began playing the harp he was part various music groups. He played with other accomplished Paraguayan harpists such as Tito Fernandez, Ignacio Melgarejo, Demetrio Ortiz. He then because part of the well known group, “Guaireno de Gumercindo Ayala Aquino”. As part of this new group, he toured throughout Latin America for the first time.

In 1942 he formed the trio, “Los Paraguayos”, which also included Augustin Barboza and Luis Alberto del Parana.

In 1944 he created his first composition “Cascada”, inspired by the time he spent admiring a waterfall in the town of Chololo Paraguay. This composition later became a standard piece for all Paraguayan harpists.

By 1954 the Paraguayan government decided to sponsor the trio as a sort of cultural representative of Paraguayan folkloric music to Europe.

When this mission was over, Digno Garcia formed yet another trio, this time called, “Digno Garcia y sus Carios”. With this group he began recording what would be a long series of albums. They played traditional Paraguayan folkloric pieces, as well as many compositions by Digno. Many of the albums that followed went on to be marketed and sold not only throughout Paraguay, but in more then fifteen other countries.

Digno played in over forty five countries. In 1962 he moved to Belgium. Some of his most prominent fans include King Baudouin I of Belgium and the Spanish artist Salvador Dali.

He received many honors and awards at home and abroad. In his hometown he was presented a gold medal naming him a “Distinguished Son of the City of Luque”. And in Barcelona he received a trophy from a Spanish recoding company (Belter) for his composition “Costa Brava”.

After recording 8 albums, of all which included numerous original compositions, Digno Garcia died in 1984 in Belgium.

Note: information taken from the website: musicaparaguya.org, the article used was composed based on the book by Paraguayan author Aida Lara, ­Vidas, perfiles y recuerdos: Vivencias de músicos, cantores y poetas paraguayo. The article and book from which it is a part of are both in Spanish. http://www.musicaparaguaya.org.py/dignogarcia.html

This list of works was found on: http://www.paraguayanmelodies.com/digno_garcia.htm



List of Works

Album: Digno Garcia y su Trio Paraguay
Recording Company: Montilla (USA)
Origional Composition:
Cascada

Album: Digno Garcia Paisaje de Mi Teirra
Recording Company: Divisca (Spain)
Original Compositions:
Paisaje de Mi Tierra
Madrecita
Retorno Lirico
Fuente Silvestre

Album: Esto es Paraguay
Recording Company: Belter (Spain)
Origional Compositions:
Paraguaya Mia
Asuncion
Nea Purajhei
Chipera

Album: Fiesta Paraguaya
Recording Company: Phillips (France)
Origional Composition:
Viajera

Album: Made in Paraguay
Recording Company: Palette (France)
Original Compositions:
Mi Nostalgia
Filigrana
Sabio Completo
Madrecita

Album: Noches de Paraguay
Recording Company: Discolando (USA)
Origional Compositions:
A Mi Paraguay
Arroyito

Album: Spanish Soul Digno Garcia y sus Carios
Record Company: Command Records (USA)
Origional Composition:
Costa Brava

Album: Viva Digno Garcia
Recording Company: 4 Corners (USA)

Paraguay - Jose Asunción Flores

Jose Asunción Flores was born in August 27, 1904, in the capital of Paraguay, Asunción. His father, Juan Volta, was a guitar player, and so Jose Asunción Flores was always musically inclined. In 1915, at the age of eleven, he joined the Capital Police Marching Band. He was a student of the famous Paraguayan harpist Felix Hernandez and director Salvador Dentice.

His first composition was written in 1922. It was an upbeat polka dedicated to his godfather, Manuel Gondra.

He is credited with creating a Paraguayan genre of music called the “Guarania”. His first song in the genre was the “Jejui”, composed in 1925. In 1928 he met poet Manuel Ortiz Guerrero, and together they composed many Guarania pieces.

In 1932 he enlisted in the Paraguayan army to fight in the Choco War. After the war he moved to Buenos Aires. In 1936 when he returned to his country he was commissioned as director of the Guarani Folkloric Orchestra. He also started teaching at the Music School Enseñanza Primaria Musical. In 1944, his composition, India was declared by the Paraguayan government as the national song. In 1949 he was awarded the National Order of Merit but turned it down in protest against the assassination of a Paraguayan student.

Although he was forced into exile in 1954, his compositions continued to be very popular throughout Paraguay. He died while still in exile in Buenos Aires in 1976.
Note: Information used to compile the biography was taken from:
http://www.musicaparaguaya.org.py/flores/flores2000.html

List of works was taken from:
http://www.bookrags.com/wiki/José_Asunción_Flores


List of Works

Arribeno Resay
Buenos Aires, Salud
Choli
Gallito Cantor
India
Ka’aty
Kerasy
Mburicao
Musiqueada Che Amape
Nande Aramboha
Nasaindype
Nda Raty Py Kua
Nde Rendape ajú
Obreiro
Panambí Verá
Paraguaýpe
Purahei Paha

Symphonies:

Maria de la Paz
Nande Ru Vusu
Pyhary Pyte

Paraguay - Augustin Barrios Mangoré

Augustin Barrios Mangoré was born in San Juan Bautista de las Misiones, Paraguay on May 5, 1885. As a young man he went to the capital, Asuncion, to study music. There he studied guitar with Gustavo Sosa Escalada and composition with Nicolo Pellegrini. His first compositional endeavors were transcribing works by Bach, Beethoven and Chopin.

As early as 1910 he left Paraguay for what was to be a week-long tour in Argentina. Because he was such a virtuosic player, he ended up extending his travels, being out of the country for fourteen years playing in Brazil, Chile and Uruguay. Sponsored by the diplomat Tomas Salomini, he gave concerts in Mexico and Cuba.

Then in 1919 his success was further consolidated when he was invited to play for the president of Brazil. As is explained the Garland Handbook of Latin American Music, “about 95 of the population of Paraguay is of mixed Spanish and Guarani Indian descent”. In 1930 he adopted the pseudonym Mangoré, after a famous Guarani chieftain.

By 1934 he made his way to Europe with his patron Salomini, living in Berlin while he played in Belgium and Spain. Two years later he returned to Latin America, and in 1939 taught at the conservatory in San Salvador, El Salvador until his death n 1944.

His compositions are very significant because they incorporate many elements of the folk music heard throughout Latin America. This includes Choros, which is a folk form out of Rio de Janeiro, Tangos from Argentina, Cuecos from Chile, and of curse the Danza Paraguayas from his home country.

He is argued to be one of the first guitarists in the world to have made recordings, and his virtuosic abilities were compared to that of Paganini. It is believed that he composed about 300 pieces for solo guitar, there are manuscripts and/or recordings for about one third of those compositions. Some of the most famous include La catedral, Danza paraguaya, Un sueño en la floresta, Preludio, op.5 no.1, Julia Florida, Una limosna por el amor de dios, Mazurka apasionata, Vals, op.8 nos.3 and 4, and Variations on a Theme of Tárrega, all of which have become part of the repertory.


Note: This biography was compiled using information found on Oxford Music Online, article on Augustin Barrios Mangoré, and on the website: http://www.cybozone.com/fg/jeong.html, only where it quotes excerpts taken from Richard Stover, Six Silver Moonbeams, "The Life and Times of Agustín Barrios Mangoré" (Clovis, CA: Querico Publications, 1992).

Citation from the introduction also taken from: Richard Stover, Six Silver Moonbeams, "The Life and Times of Agustín Barrios Mangoré", as is posted on http://www.cybozone.com/fg/jeong.html



List of Works

Abrí la Puerta mi China
Aconguija
Aire de Zamba
Allegro Sinfónico
A mi Madre
Arabescos
Armonías de América
Canción de Cuna
Canción de la Hilandera
Capricho Español
Choro da Saudade
Confesión
Contemplación
Cueca (Danza Chilena)
Danza Guarani
Danza Paraguaya
Dinora
Divagación
Don Pérez Freire (Tango)
El Sueño de la Muñequita
Estilo Uruguayo
Estudio de Concierto
Estudio del Ligado
Estudio en Arpegio
Estudio in G minor
Estudio No. 3
Gavota al Estilo Antiguo
Jha, Che Valle!
Julia Florida
La Catedral
Leyenda de España
Mazurka Appasionata
Medallón Antiguo
Minuet in A Major
Minuet in E Major
Minuet in B Major
Oracion
Oración por Todos
Pericón
Prelude in G Minor
Prelude in D Minor
Prelude in C Minor
Romanza en Imitación al Violoncello
Sarita
Serenata Morisca
Tango No. 2
Tarantella
Tua Imagem
Una Limosna por el Amor de Dios (The Last Tremolo)
Un Sueño en la Floresta (Souvenir de un réve)
Vals Op. 8 No. 3
Vals Op. 8 No. 4
Variations on a Theme by Tárrega
Vidalita

Paraguay Timeline

1816: Paraguay gains independence from “United Provinces”, resisting efforts of Buenos Aires to dominate the “Rio de la Plata” region.

1840: Death of dictator Francia, a somewhat constitutional government is established under Carlos Antonio Lopez, isolationist policies expelled and industrialization promoted.

1865: Lopez declares war on Brazil over border disputes and is eventually defeated.

1885: Augustin Barrios Mangoré was born in San Juan Bautista de Las Misiones, Paraguay.

1904: Jose Asunción Flores was born in Asuncion, Paraguay.

1910: Augustin Barrios Mangoré leaves Paraguay for week-long tour in Argentina, ended up giving concerts in Brazil, Chile and Uruguay.

1915: Jose Asunción Flores Joins the Capital Police Marching Band.

1919: Augustin Barrios Mangoré invited to play for the president of Brazil.
Digno Garcia was born in Luque, Paraguay.

1922: Jose Asunción Flores writes his first composition.

1925: Jose Asunción Flores composes the first piece that is classified as part of the “Guarania” genre of music.

1928: Jose Asunción Flores meets and starts composing with poet Manuel Ortiz Guerrero.

1930: Augustin Barrios Mangoré adopted Guarani name; Mangoré.

1932: Jose Asunción Flores joins the Paraguayan army to fight in the Choco War.

1934: Augustin Barrios Mangoré goes to Europe with his patron Salomini, lived in Berlin while giving concerts in Spain and Belgium.

1936: Augustin Barrios Mangoré returns to Latin America.
Jose Asunción Flores returns to Paraguay from Buenos Aires and is made director of the Guarani Folkloric Orchestra.

1939: Augustin Barrios Mangoré teaching position in conservatory in San Salvador, El Salvador.

1944: Digno Garcia is part of the trio, “Los Paraguayos”.
Digno Garcia’s first composition, “Cascada”.
Augustin Barrios Mangoré dies.
Jose Asunción Flores’ composition, India in declared the national song.

1949: Jose Asunción Flores is awarded the National Order of Merit by the Paraguayan government but turns it down in protest of the assassination of a Paraguayan student.

1954: Paraguayan government sponsors European tour for “Los Paraguayos” to expose Europe to Paraguayan music.
Jose Asunción Flores is forced in exile.

1962: Digno Garcia moves to Belgium.

1976: Jose Asunción Flores dies while in exile in Buenos Aires.

1984: Digno Garcia dies in Belgium.