Guitar Recital: Johan Fostier

Description

Johan Fostier - Guitar RecitalMario Castelnuovo-Tedesco was stimulated by images, both visible and in the mind, and stories, one of which was the book Platero y yo, written by the Spanish poet Juan Ramón Jiménez (1881-1958). It recounts the beautiful story of his life and travels with his faithful donkey Platero, whose death he finally mourns. Although the music was originally intended to be performed simultaneously with the recitation of the text, which Castelnuovo-Tedesco considered to be important for the understanding of the former, it is rarely presented in that way. A complete performance lasts for about fifty minutes. Consequently it is usual, with the composer’s perhaps reluctant approval, to make a selection from the 28 instrumental movements, as is done here. The titles evoke their own images: Melancolia (Melancholy), El canario vuela (The canary flies), Primavera (Spring), Platero en el cielo de Moguer (Platero in the sky above the little town of Moguer where Jiménez was born, that is in heaven), Arrulladora (Lullaby). In December 1929 Segovia wrote to Manuel Ponce, asking him to write a set of variations on the theme of the Folias, the earliest form of which, he said, was Spanish and for the lute. In fact the Folias originated in sixteenth-century Portugal as a wild street dance and in passing into Spain it evolved into a stately dance with changed rhythmic and harmonic structure. Thence it travelled to Italy and, taken by guitarists of whom Francisco Corbetta was one, to France. Its history in this later form is somewhat complex and reflects its wide popularity. Together with the above letter Segovia sent the score of Corelli’s famous variations and suggested that if Ponce did not wish to put his name to the work they might attribute it to Giuliani. Ponce succeeded briefly in ‘passing for’ Weiss - but for Giuliani? Fortunately it was never put to the test. In Segovia’s recording of 1932 the theme is given in a ‘bare-bones’ period form but in the published edition it was adorned in chromatic dress, as it appears in this and all later recordings. Though Segovia had asked for twelve to fourteen variations there are only nine in his recording. As the published edition contains twenty variations it seems that the recording was made whilst the work was still evolving. Moreover, while the earlier (recorded) variations clearly follow the harmonic ground of the theme, the later ones diverge, suggesting that Ponce’s imagination had by then adventurously moved into new pastures. The Postlude, recorded in 1931, is overtly based on the harmonic ground, which indicates that there may have been other variations which Segovia set aside but re-titled. The subject of the extensive fugue, complete with pedal point and stretto, is based on the first note in each of the opening bars of the theme. Segovia asked that the variations should explore a wide range of musical and guitaristic te