Federico Moreno Tórroba - Guitar Concertos Vol. 2 (Pepe Romero; Vicente Coves)

Information

Composer: Federico Moreno Tórroba

• Homenaje a la seguidilla
• Tonada concertante
• Concierto de Castilla

Pepe Romero & Vicente Coves, guitars

Extremadura Symphony Orchestra

Manuel Coves, conductor

Date: 2017

Label: Naxos

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Review

Pepe Romero and his student Vicente Coves are the soloists on Torroba Guitar Concertos Vol.2 with Spain’s Extremadura Symphony Orchestra conducted by Manuel Coves, the brother of Vicente (Naxos 8.573503).

Although not a guitarist himself Torroba wrote close to 100 works for the classical guitar, thanks initially to a close working relationship with Andrés Segovia that started in the early 1920s. Despite some early attempts at a concerto there were no significant results until the 1960s, when Torroba concentrated less on his zarzuelas, the Spanish light-opera form at which he was so successful, and more on his writing for guitar. He ended up writing ten guitar concertos, all of which – like his zarzuelas – are richly lyrical and deeply melodic as well as being grounded in the Spanish folk idiom so prevalent in Spanish guitar music.

The three concertos here are Homenaje a la seguidilla from 1962 (but revised in 1975 and 1981), Tonada concertante from 1975-80 and Concierto de Castilla from 1960, with Vicente Coves the soloist in the latter. Superb playing and idiomatic orchestral support mark all three performances, my only complaint being the ludicrously short CD break – four seconds! – between the concertos.

— Terry Robbins

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Federico Moreno Tórroba (3 March 1891 – 12 September 1982) was a Spanish composer, conductor and impresario. Trained by his father, organist José Moreno Ballesteros, and later by nationalist composer Felipe Pedrell and Conrado del Campo, Moreno Tórroba developed a distinctive Spanish style for himself. A leading zarzuela composer, with Luisa Fernanda (1932) remaining especially popular, his output also included ballets, symphonic and piano works, and operas, including the opera El poeta (1980) written for Plácido Domingo. He promoted Spanish musical culture by touring widely with his own zarzuela company.

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Pepe Romero (born 8 March 1944 in Málaga) is a Spanish guitarist. Trained exclusively by his father, the legendary Celedonio Romero, he debuted at age seven and later moved with his family to the United States, becoming part of the famed ensemble The Romeros. As a soloist, he has performed with major orchestras worldwide and appeared at prominent international festivals. Romero has recorded over 60 albums, earned numerous awards, and inspired many composers, such as Joaquín Rodrigo and Federico Moreno Tórroba to write works for him. He has also held teaching positions at several leading American universities.

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Vicente Coves (born 1982 in Jaén, Spain) is a guitarist and protégé of Pepe Romero. He has performed as a soloist with major orchestras including the Buenos Aires Philharmonic, RTVE Symphony Orchestra and BBC Philharmonic, touring widely across Europe, Asia and the Americas. Coves has appeared in prestigious venues such as the Moscow Conservatory's Great Hall, Teatro Colón and the National Auditorium of Madrid. He has released 9 solo albums on Naxos, and is founder of the European Guitar Foundation. He received the Moscow Conservatory's Rubinstein Medal in 2008.

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