The Best of Martin Jones: Discover Carlos Guastavino
10/5/2018, 18 Tracks, 1:11:03
Featuring
Martin Jones
Carlos Guastavino
Did you know?
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Historical Context
Argentine concert music in the 20th century blended European influences with indigenous traditions, leading to striking personalities like Alberto Ginastera, Mauricio Kagel, and Astor Piazzolla.
Composition History
Guastavino's later years were marked by depression; he abruptly stopped composing for over a decade after his mother's death in 1975.
Composer Biography
Carlos Guastavino, a leading Argentine composer, was originally intended for a scientific career and began as a chemical engineer before pursuing music.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Guastavino believed music should be based on singable melody and tonal harmony, written for the present, not for future discovery, aiming to create a genuinely popular national music.
Composer Biography
Carlos Guastavino toured internationally as a pianist in the 1940s and 1950s, performing in South America, London (at the BBC's invitation), the USSR, and China.
Compositional Technique
Guastavino's 'Diez Preludios' (10 Preludes) are concise settings of Argentine children's songs, showing a more polyphonic style, with J. S. Bach as a principal model.
Compositional Technique
In his 'Las Presencias' (Appearances), Guastavino created musical depictions of people, both real and imaginary, with the nature of the characters inferred from the music.
