The “Tristan” chord, the first chord of Richard Wagner’s opera “Tristan und Isolde,” is arguably the most famous chord in history. Theorists have dedicated countless pages to it, and still do, after more than 150 years. To many, it is a landmark in the starting of post-tonal music–a pivot to the twentieth century. The chord’s function–or […]
Two new videos of Latin American works: an Argentinian zamba by Pablo Del Cerro (pseudonym of Paula Nenette Pepín, wife of Atahualpa Yupanqui) and a Peruvian waltz arranged by Nicomedes and Victoria Santa Cruz.
Marco is featured on the February issue of the Uruguayan magazine “Sinfónica.”
The latest issue of the Guitar Foundation of America’s magazine, Soundboard (Vol. 41, No.3), includes a feature article by Marco: “Analysis and Performance of Dissonances in Joaquín Rodrigo’s Guitar Music.” Click here to order it. Here a similar column about a passage in Rodrigo’s music.
Nice review of Marc Regnier’s album “Tempo do Brasil” on Soundboard Vol. 41 No. 2. “This is a thoroughly delightful disc. There is great playing from Marc Regnier and a first-rate group of collaborators, infectious music, and good programming. Get it… Regnier and Uruguayan guitarist Marco Sartor make a powerful and well-matched duo… The excelent […]
This passage in Giulio Regondi’s Reverie, Op.19 is a sort of music-analysis puzzle: Giulio Regondi: Reverie Op.19, mm. 88-90 There must be a misprint somewhere in the group marked with X. As it is printed, it hardly constitutes a valid harmonic progression in the practice of the time. We can have certainty that the last chord of the group is D7, […]
There is a passage in the third movement of Joaquín Rodrigo’s Sonata Giocosa that I have always found interesting: Joaquín Rodrigo: Sonata Giocosa, mvt. III, mm. 137-144 The passage, like the rest of the work, is tonal. Each beamed group of eighths suggests a chord; the first and last note of each group belong to […]
When transcribing music for bowed instruments to the guitar, bowing indications can give us valuable insight into how the music should be articulated. However, they can also mislead us if we assume they are invariably included for musical purposes. Sometimes they clarify technical aspects of bowing, which for us guitarists means that we should not […]
“La Catedral,” arguably Agustín Barrios’s most famous work, was not conceived at once. The second and third movements were written in Uruguay in 1921, reflecting the peace of the Cathedral’s interior and the tumult of the town outside. The Prelude, Saudade, was added in La Habana in 1938. (Different versions conflict as to the true […]
Here is a spot that can provide for a lengthy discussion: Manuel Ponce: Sonata III, first movement, mm. 47-50 Let us focus on the first beat of measure 48 (second bar of the example). The open E appears slurred to the following A. This suggests that both notes belong to the same phrase. I would […]
