Fernando Sor - Songs for Voice & Guitar (Nerea Berraondo; Eva Beneke)

Information

Composer: Fernando Sor

1. Arias from Mozat's Don Giovanni (arr. Sor): Batti, batti, o bel Masetto
2. Arias from Mozat's Don Giovanni (arr. Sor): Deh vieni alla finestra, o mio tesoro
3. Arias from Mozat's Don Giovanni (arr. Sor): Vedrai carino se sei buonino
4. Lagrime mie
5. Las quejas de Maruja
6. Á conquistar tu plaza
7. Acuérdate, bien mío
8. Al mediator jugando
9. Ausente de mi dueño
10. Boleras del caramba
11. Cesa de atormentarme
12. ¿Cómo ha de resolverse?
13. De amor en las prisiones
14. El que quisiera amando
15. Las mujeres y cuerdas (1st Version)
16. Mis descuidados ojos
17. Las mujeres y cuerdas (2nd Version)
18. Favores ni desprecios
19. Muchacha, y la vergüenza
20. No doblarán campanas
21. Si mis ojos te dicen
22. Si dices que mis ojos
23. Prepárame la tumba
24. Los canónigos, madre
25. O vous, que Mars rend invincible
26. Mon dernier mot
27. Valse du ballet de Cendrillon
28. Appel des nègres aux Français
29. Laurette
30. ¿Adónde vas, Fernando incauto?
31. Los defensores de la patria

Nerea Berraondo, mezzo-soprano

Eva Beneke, guitar

Date: 2017

Label: Naxos

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Review

There is music waiting in the wings for you always, ready when you are. It is in printed form or manuscript (or if advanced jazz or other improvisational forms, existing  powerfully in potentia). Somebody right now may be performing it somewhere. Then there are recordings, setting down a frozen musical moment in time after careful rehearsal. The performances are captured for you, waiting to be heard, released and only needing to be placed on your player.

This morning I once again put on a good one, while I gathered my thoughts about what I heard. What is it? It is Fernando Sor (1778-1839) and his Songs for Voice and Guitar (Naxos 8.573686) as very nicely brought to our ears by mezzo-soprano Nerea Berraondo and classical guitarist Eva Beneke.

Sor in his day was a major virtuoso among guitarists. His songs have an earthy beauty that make them essential, yet they are not often performed now. So lucky for us the recording playing for me again this morning can be enjoyed whenever we like.

Music like this, or even all music like anything, needs performance magic to bring it alive. Something as delicately balanced as voice and guitar music demands special performance care. We get it in Nerea Berraondo's very musical voice, with a bit of heft when needed but never Wagnerian in its intensity, tender and rousing in turn, seemingly recorded without overly close miking so that she does not overpower Eva Beneke's wonderfully nuanced guitar work.

As to the music itself, there is much in the way of very melodically vibrant and ornate songwork here. "Italian Arias" include a few from Mozart's Don Giovanni. They have genuine but imaginatively altered authenticity as beautifully worked re-scorings. The "Spanish Songs," quite a good number of them, are strong and most characteristic--and irresistible. The "French Songs" add another dimensional strength and a couple of "Spanish Patriotic Songs" end the program with a captivating verve.

This is one of those delightful surprises where I had no set idea what to expect and then found with exposure that I had grabbed onto some of the finest music and performances that I didn't know I wanted until I heard it all! Like meeting someone who ends up being a good friend in a seemingly unlikely place, I treasure it all the more for the vistas it has opened up without my being quite prepared for it.

Anyone who loves Spanish classical and/or the guitar heritage will welcome this disc. It feels just right as a listening choice any time or season. Highly recommended.

— Grego Applegate Edwards

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Fernando Sor (baptized 14 February 1778 – 10 July 1839) was a Catalan Romantic guitarist, composer and teacher. Trained at Montserrat's choir school, he wrote his first opera in 1797 and later worked under the French administration after Spain's defeat by Napoleon. Sor lived in Paris and London, composing prolifically and publishing influential works. His Méthode pour la guitar (1830) became a foundational study text. Though forgotten after his death, Sor's music was revived in the 20th century, and he is now celebrated for his guitar compositions, such as the Grand Sonata, Op. 22 and the Variations, Op. 9.

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Nerea Berraondo (born 1988 in Pamplona) is a Spanish mezzo-soprano. Her impressive career features principal roles in major European opera houses, collaborating with renowned conductors. Her symphonic highlights include the Spanish première of Kancheli's Styx, Mendelssohn's Elijah, Falla's El amor brujo and La vida breve, and Bernstein's Chichester Psalms. Also active in early and baroque music, she recorded Marini's vocal works with her ensemble Aldatu. Berraondo has won several international prizes and competitions, including the Centro Nacional de Difusión Musical's Merit Award in 2012.

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Berlin-born guitarist Eva Beneke studied at the University of Arts Berlin, the Franz Liszt Hochschule in Weimar, and later earned a doctorate from the University of Southern California under Scott Tennant, Pepe Romero and Bruce Forman. An award-winning soloist and chamber musician, her performances have been broadcast internationally. One of the most sought-after chamber musicians in her field, she has released five records, including the acclaimed duo album In Dulci Jubilo with GRAMMY winner Scott Tennant. Since 2018, she has been Associate Professor of guitar at the Norwegian Academy of Music.

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