Joaquin Rodrigo: Complete Piano Music

Joaquin Rodrigo (1901-99) composed music for solo and piano duet throughout his long creative life. The earliest works on this collection of his complete music for piano dates from 1923 and the last from 1987.

Blind from birth, Rodrigo studied composition in Paris with Paul Dukas and became a pianist of considerable ability. Whilst his main contemporary Manuel de Falla delved deeply in to Spanish traditional music, Rodrigo created a kind of neo classical style imbued with a Spanish flavour, drawing heavily on 18th century musical styles and mannerisms. The more conservative style of his music compared with de Falla's appealed greatly to the post civil war authorities of Franco's Spain.

Many of the works for piano are short, and look back to the single movement sonatas of Scarlatti, and the keyboard music of Rameau, Couperin and Soler. However some of the works display considerable virtuosity such as Preludio al galo mananero which is a brilliant and highly effective composition.

The third of the CDs in this set features the composer and his wife, pianist Victoria Kamhi performing his music for four hands -- it is a fascinating document and the listener can hear the composer adding personal touches to his music.

Other information:
- Unusual repertoire that adds another dimension to the composer of one of the most famous concertos in the repertoire, the Concierto de Aranjuez for guitar and orchestra.
- The first volume in an edition of Rodrigo's music approved by the Rodrigo Foundation.
- Detailed booklet notes.
- Fascinating historical recordings of the composer as pianist.