Ponce Guitar Sonatas

Featuring

María Esther Guzmán
Manuel Ponce

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Composition History

All the sonatas on this album were commissioned by and dedicated to Andrés Segovia, a renowned 20th-century guitarist.

Composition History

Ponce and Segovia had a unique working method where Segovia would add corrections and suggestions to Ponce's mailed manuscripts, which sometimes led to lost material.

Composer's Artistic Vision

After years of intense work, Ponce came to consider the guitar "an exquisite instrument, containing a unique, sensitive, delicate, and mysterious world."

Interpretation

The performer, María Esther Guzmán, has made her own editorial decisions for this recording, omitting Segovia's added effects and fingerings to present a version closer to Ponce's original manuscripts.

Composer Biography

Manuel María Ponce, considered the father of Mexican musical nationalism, was also influenced by European romanticism, modernism, and impressionism.

Composition History

These sonatas represent the first collection of sonatas written for guitar in the 20th century by a non-guitarist composer.

Performer Biography

María Esther Guzmán, the performer on this album, gave her first public concert at age 4 and received praise and advice from Maestro Andrés Segovia at age 12.