Villa-Lobos: Etude for Guitar, W 235 No. 7 in E major

A fascinating programme concept, evoking the unique athmosphere of Paris at the beginning of the 20-th century, a melting pot of styles, cultures and trends.

Netherlands Music Prize winner Izhar Elias draws fascinating sounds and colours from his guitar.

Already released by Izhar Elias: Rossini/Giuliani: Semiramide, an arrangement of the opera for guitar solo.

The musical selection on this disc is a fascinating combination of romanticism, modernism and the expressive sensibilities of contemporary composers, including Swedish guitarist Johannes Möller himself. He has captivated audiences throughout the world with charismatic and soulful performances, achieving “miracles with his lucid, spacious playing” London Evening Standard

Rafael Aguirre Miñarro, First Prize Winner in the 2007 International Francisco Tárrega Guitar Competition, has studied with Teresa García de Candido, Manuel Jesús Pérez Vela, Miguel Tojar and Javier Chamizo, and since 2004 with Joaquín Clerch.

Rafael Aguirre won the 2007 Certamen Tarrega Competition.

The scope of the pieces he plays in this recital is truly cosmopolitan, covering music from the early nineteenth century up to the present time, from the simplicity of Poulenc’s Sarabande to the exuberant virtuosity of Villa-Lobos and Tárrega.

In this sixth and last volume of André Segovia’s 1950s American recordings, the great guitarist is heard in a number of his transcriptions from eminent nineteenth century composers as well as in original guitar solos composed by his Spanish and South American contemporaries. The considerable diversity of the music is presented in Segovia’s inimitable manner, every nuance of sound and colour being uniquely exploited in delicately refined interpretations. Of particular note is Segovia’s interpretation of Falla’s Homenaje ‘Le Tombeau de Claude Debussy’, now regarded as one of the most emotionally charged solo guitar works. In his preface to Villa-Lobos’s Douze Etudes, that the composer had dedicated to him, Segovia writes: ‘Villa- Lobos has made a gift to the guitar’s history of the fruits of his talents as vigorous and as wise as that of Scarlatti and Chopin’.

For the first time, this budget priced 6 CD collection re-presents Segovia’s highly-prized recordings made for American Decca in the 1940s and 1950s, when he was arguably at the height of his powers. Here are the first six albums released by the label in that now legendary series, presented for the first time in original LP couplings and with their striking original-sleeve artwork: Andrés Segovia Guitar Solos; An Andrés Segovia Recital; An Andrés Segovia Concert; An Andrés Segovia Program; An Evening with Andrés Segovia; Andrés Segovia Plays…

Many of these 80+ tracks are appearing on Deutsche Grammophon for the first time. The set has been newly remastered, with a minimum of intervention, from original tapes or tape copies of original glass masters. Like the best whisky, Segovia’s art is unfiltered on these CDs. The results reveal a new intimacy and delicacy in these six classic recitals that are wholly captivating.

The package: Mini-LP sleeves (front and back), CD booklet (in the style of the The Martha Argerich Collection) has new liner notes by Segovia expert Graham Wade comprising introduction and annotations on each of the albums, with colour minis.