Spanish composers like Turina faced challenges with Spanish opera, and his biblically inspired opera La sulamita ('The Shulamite') received interest but little commercial success.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Turina believed artists need to distance themselves from their homeland to truly understand it, stating, 'My music is the expression of the feeling of a true Sevillian who did not know Seville until he left it.'
Composer Biography
Joaquín Turina, born in Seville, initially had a father who hoped he would pursue a well-remunerated profession like medicine, but eventually acceded to his son's desire to pursue music.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Composers Isaac Albéniz and Manuel de Falla advised Turina to embrace his Andalusian heritage and base his art on Spanish popular song, which became a decisive guiding force for his music.
Compositional Technique
La oración del torero, Op 34, was originally composed for 'laúd' quartet, referring to Spanish folkloric instruments similar to mandolins, before Turina rearranged it for string quartet.
Compositional Technique
Turina's Piano Quartet in A minor, Op 67, uses melodic passages that evoke the ancient cante jondo, the 'deep song' of southern Spain, and employs a cyclical form.
Historical Context
The 'Edad de Plata', or 'Silver Age', was a cultural renaissance in Spain during the 1910s and '20s, to which Turina's achievements contributed substantially.
You might also enjoy...
Vieuxtemps / Franck: Music for Viola
Schubert/Schumann/Bruch/Enescu
Une prière
Songs For Viola And Piano
John Carmichael: Toward the Light
Paul Hindemith: Sonatas for Viola and Piano
Milhaud: Viola Works
Kornauth & Fuchs: Works for Viola & Piano
Fin de siècle: Late Romantic Music for Viola & Piano
