No lists of best classical guitarists?
Aah, no- though if you name a piece of music I'd name a performance
I like or love, or someone who commented interestingly on it.
Bream's recorded legacy is stunning in its breadth and its quality.
He made superb recordings of Elizabethan music, Bach, the Spanish
repertoire, Villa-Lobos, and, as you noted, other modern composers. A
colossus of the guitar, beyond doubt.
Ya, Bream's the Man no doubt. I especially love his recordings of the
lutenist Francesco da Milano
(on 'The Woods So Wild') and of the vihuelistas Milan and Narvaez;
also his support for
instrument makers David Rubio and (especially) Jose Romanillos has
been exemplary.
One of Bream's last CDs, released on EMI, was entitled 'Noctural' and
has a second
recording of that piece (commissioned by Bream, and a masterpiece imo)
and the
Martin (exceptional), as well as Leo Brouwer's Sonata, which he shapes
to great effect-
written close to twenty years ago, few guitarists will touch it.
Highly recommended CD,
OOP but available from arkivmusic.com (great outfit).
I have heard almost half of the volumes in the Bream Edition, but the
one with Milan and Narvaez, sadly, is not yet among them. From time
to time, I snag a used copy from this series to add to my pile. Some
are readily available, others not. Re-release is unlikely now, I
suppose.
I did get one CD from arkiv -- Bream Vol. 18 with Peter Pears. That
one has Britten's Songs from the Chinese, which I'm very fond of.
There is a six-disc 'Music of Spain' compilation available which has
all the Milan and Narvaez-
Amazon has it new for about $35, and Marketplace sellers whom I've
dealt with and had good
luck have it for $19- a steal.
I'm thinking of buying the disc with Peter Pears- he had an unusual
voice, didn't he?
For Dowland I like Nigel Rogers' singing a lot.