Aranjuez Guitar Concerto

[Angelique Syria]

TheConcierto de Aranjuez ([konˈθjeɾ.to e a.ɾaŋˈxweθ], "Aranjuez Concerto") is a concerto for classical guitar by the Spanish composer Joaqun Rodrigo. Written in 1939, it is by far Rodrigo's best-known work, and its success established his reputation as one of the most significant Spanish composers of the 20th century.

The Concierto de Aranjuez was inspired by the gardens at the Royal Palace of Aranjuez, the spring resort palace and gardens built by Philip II in the last half of the 16th century and rebuilt in the middle of the 18th century by Ferdinand VI. The work attempts to transport the listener to another place and time through the evocation of the sounds of nature.

According to the composer, the first movement is "animated by a rhythmic spirit and vigour without either of the two themes... interrupting its relentless pace"; the second movement "represents a dialogue between classical guitar and solo instruments (cor anglais, bassoon, oboe, horn etc.)"; and the last movement "recalls a courtly dance in which the combination of double and triple time maintains a taut tempo right to the closing bar." He described the concerto itself as capturing "the fragrance of magnolias, the singing of birds, and the gushing of fountains" in the gardens of Aranjuez.

Rodrigo and his wife Victoria stayed silent for many years about the inspiration for the second movement, and thus the popular belief grew that it was inspired by the bombing of Guernica in 1937. In her autobiography, Victoria eventually declared that it was both an evocation of the happy days of their honeymoon and a response to Rodrigo's devastation at the miscarriage of their first pregnancy.[1] It was composed in 1939 in Paris.

Composed in early 1939, in Paris, amid the tensions of the impending war, it was the first work Rodrigo wrote for guitar and orchestra. The instrumentation is unusual: rarely does the guitar face the forces of a full orchestra. Thus, the guitar is never overwhelmed.

The premiere of the Concierto de Aranjuez was held on 9 November 1940 at the Palau de la Msica Catalana, in Barcelona. It was performed by guitarist Regino Sainz de la Maza with the Orquesta Filarmnica de Barcelona conducted by Csar Mendoza Lasalle.

On 11 December 1940, the concerto received its first performance in Madrid, at the Teatro Espaol de Madrid conducted by Jess Armbarri, with the same soloist. The United States premiere was given by Rey de la Torre on 19 November 1959, with the Cleveland Orchestra conducted by Robert Shaw.

The first movement's 40-measure introduction begins with the solo guitar strumming a three-measure theme in 6/8. The theme is made of tonic, supertonic, and dominant chords and features a flamenco-like hemiola rhythm. As it repeats several times, the tonic chord's uppermost note gets higher, starting with the third, then using the fifth, the tonic, and the fifth again.

The second movement in B minor, the best-known of the three, is marked by its slow pace and quiet melody, introduced by the cor anglais, with a soft accompaniment by the guitar and strings. A feeling of quiet regret permeates the piece. Ornamentation is added gradually to the melody in the beginning. An off-tonic trill in the guitar creates the first seeds of tension in the piece; they grow and take hold, but relax back to the melody periodically. Eventually, a climactic build-up starts. This breaks back into the main melody, molto appassionato, voiced by the strings with accompaniment from the woodwinds. The piece finally resolves to a calm arpeggio from the guitar, though it is the strings in the background rather than the guitar's final note that resolve the piece.

The third movement is in mixed metre, alternating between 2/4 and 3/4. At the beginning of the movement, four-measure phrases containing 9 beats in total are formed from one 3/4 measure followed by three 2/4 measures. As the movement progresses, the metre becomes more irregular. It begins with the guitar starting the theme in the "wrong" key of B major, but the orchestra restates it in the home key of D major.

Until asked to perform and interpret Concierto de Aranjuez in 1991, the Spanish flamenco guitarist Paco de Luca was not proficient at reading musical notation, and Jos Mara Gallardo Del Rey advised and directed him musically. De Luca claimed in Paco de Luca-Light and Shade: A Portrait that he gave greater emphasis to rhythmical accuracy in his interpretation of the Concierto at the expense of the perfect tone preferred by classical guitarists.[13] Composer Joaqun Rodrigo later declared that no one had ever played his composition in such a brilliant manner[citation needed].

Jazz musician Miles Davis reinterpreted the second movement of the work on his album Sketches of Spain (1960), in the company of arranger Gil Evans. Davis stated: "That melody is so strong that the softer you play it, the stronger it gets, and the stronger you play it, the weaker it gets."[15] Columbia, the label that released Sketches of Spain, had not asked the composer for permission to record or adapt his music, and Rodrigo did not learn of the recording until after its release in 1960, when the blind jazz pianist Tete Montoliu, who claimed to have been the first person in Spain to own a copy of the album, played it for the maestro and his family. Rodrigo was irate that the American record label had used his music without permission.[16] Aside from the fact that he, as the composer, had not been asked for permission, which he considered a violation of moral rights," Rodrigo also tried to block the jazz and pop recordings from being released, before realizing, "In the end, the composer resigned himself to accept the fact that the pop versions reached a far greater public than that of classical music concertgoers, and led to much wider recognition of the original classical concerto for guitar and orchestra, Concierto de Aranjuez."[17] In fact, "Rodrigo changed his mind and came to accept the subsequent jazz recordings of his music in part because the legal terms of use were resolved (Ediciones Joaqun Rodrigo now owns the Gil Evans arrangement), but also in part because these versions, far from obliterating the original guitar concerto, have helped disseminate it."[18] The composer's wife, Victoria Kamhi, was very harsh in her memoir, however, referring to the Miles Davis recording as "an act of piracy."[19] She described how Rodrigo attempted to sue the SGAE in February 1967 in the Palace of Justice for authorizing the transcription of the Concierto for trumpet and jazz, which Davis recorded, but, "we lost the case, for the judge's opinion was that, since Miles Davis' record had granted authors' rights to Joaqun, he had no redress against the SGAE."[20]

Rodrigo was born in Sagunto, Province of Valencia. At the age of three, he lost his sight completely after contracting diphtheria.[1] At the age of eight he began to study solfge, piano, and violin and from the age of 16 he studied harmony and composition. Although distinguished by having raised the Spanish guitar to dignity as a universal concert instrument and that he is best known for his guitar music, he never mastered playing the instrument. He wrote his compositions in Braille and they were transcribed for publication.

Rodrigo studied music under Francisco Antich in Valencia and under Paul Dukas at the cole Normale de Musique in Paris. After briefly returning to Spain, he returned to Paris to study musicology, first under Maurice Emmanuel, and then under Andr Pirro. His first published compositions[2] date from 1923. From 1947, Rodrigo was a professor of music history, holding the Manuel de Falla Chair of Music in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, at Complutense University of Madrid. Notable students include Yksel Koptagel, Turkish composer and pianist.

His most famous work, Concierto de Aranjuez, was composed in 1939 in Paris for the guitarist Regino Sainz de la Maza. In later life, he and his wife, Victoria, declared that the work was written as a response to the miscarriage of their first child.[3] The composition is a concerto for guitar and orchestra. The central adagio movement is one of the most recognizable in twentieth-century classical music, featuring the interplay of guitar with cor anglais.[4] This movement was later adapted by the jazz arranger Gil Evans for the 1960 album Sketches of Spain by Miles Davis. At the request of Nicanor Zabaleta, Rodrigo adapted the concerto for the 1974 Harp and Orchestra Concerto and he dedicated the adaptation to Zabaleta.

The success of this concerto led to commissions from a number of prominent soloists, including Nicanor Zabaleta, for whom Rodrigo dedicated his Concierto serenata for Harp and Orchestra. For Julian Lloyd Webber, Rodrigo composed his Concierto como un divertimento for cello and orchestra. For flutist James Galway, Rodrigo composed his Concierto pastoral for flute and orchestra.

In 1954, Rodrigo composed Fantasa para un gentilhombre at the request of Andrs Segovia. His Concierto Andaluz, for four guitars and orchestra, was commissioned by Celedonio Romero for him and his three sons.

Of Rodrigo's works, those that have achieved the greatest popular and critical success are his Concierto de Aranjuez and Fantasia para un gentilhombre. These two works are very often paired in recordings.

He married Victoria Kamhi in 1933. She was a Turkish-born pianist whom he had met in Paris. They shared professional interests and she documented their life together in Hand in Hand With Joaqun Rodrigo: My Life at the Maestro's Side (1992). Their marriage lasted until her death in 1997.[1] Their daughter, Cecilia, was born on 27 January 1941.

Rodrigo died at his home in Madrid on 6 July 1999, aged 97.[1] His daughter succeeded him as Marquesa de los Jardines de Aranjuez. Joaqun Rodrigo and his wife Victoria are buried at the cemetery at Aranjuez.

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