Camargo Guarnieri - Symphonies Nos. 2 & 3; Abertura Concertante (John Neschling)

Information

Composer: Camargo Guarnieri

• Symphony No. 2 'Uirapuru'
• Abertura Concertante
• Symphony No. 3

São Paulo Symphony Orchestra

John Neschling, conductor

Date: 2002

Label: BIS

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Review

Two vibrantly scored symphonies from a true master of the form

Swedish-based BIS has made several forays into Latin American repertoire, most memorably with the Cuban Ernesto Lecuona. Now, in what I hope is the start of a cycle, come the Second (1945) and Third (1952) Symphonies by the Brazilian, Mozart Camargo Guarnieri (1907-93). Probably the best-known Brazilian composer after Villa-Lobos, there are currently only a smattering of available recordings of his music, though Chandos has issued the Concerto for strings and percussion (10/00).

Guarnieri’s compositions tend to be more structured than Villa-Lobos’s and, if they lack the mercurial spark that electrified the latter’s finest inspirations, he is often more consistently satisfying. Comparisons of the Second Symphony, titled Uirapurú and dedicated to Villa-Lobos, with the latter’s brilliant 1917 symphonic poem encapsulate these differences. The later Third Symphony, written to underline a debate against serialism in local musical circles at the time, follows (like No 2) Guarnieri’s standard symphonic layout of two outer fast movements around a rather longer slow movement.

Both are attractive works, positive in outlook though not without pathos. The scoring shows Guarnieri had learned from Copland (an early champion and dedicatee of the filler, the 1942 Concert Overture) and Harris and while there are occasional resonances of others – the brass writing in No 2’s central Terno sounds like 1930s Vaughan Williams – rarely Villa-Lobos. Sound and performances are extremely good.

-- Guy Rickards, Gramophone

More reviews:
ClassicsToday  ARTISTIC QUALITY: 10 / SOUND QUALITY: 10

https://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2002/Oct02/Guarnieri.htm

https://www.amazon.com/Guarnieri-Symphony-Uirapuru-Abertura-Concertante/dp/B000066SGA

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Camargo Guarnieri (February 1, 1907 – January 13, 1993) was a Brazilian composer. He was born in Tietê, São Paulo, and studied piano, composition, and conducting in São Paulo and Paris, where his teachers include Charles Koechlin, among others. A key figure in the Brazilian national school, Guarnieri served as a conductor, a member of the Academia Brasileira de Música, and Director of the São Paulo Conservatório. His extensive oeuvre includes symphonies, concertos, operas, chamber music, piano pieces, and songs. He was regarded by some as the most important Brazilian composer after Heitor Villa-Lobos.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camargo_Guarnieri

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John Neschling (born May 13 1947, Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian conductor. He studied under Hans Swarowsky and Reinhold Schmid in Vienna, and under Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa in Tanglewood. Neschling has been music director of Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon, Sankt Gallen Theater in Switzerland, Teatro Massimo in Palermo and the Bordeaux Opera. During the twelve years under his leadership (1997–2008), the São Paulo State Symphony became a first rate international orchestra, and recorded a series of CDs of Brazilian and international music, winning five Diapason d'Or and one Latin Grammy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Neschling

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