Flute and Guitar Music from the 20th and 21st Century that pushes the boundaries of conventional art music into a new dimension of musical expression. Featuring Bartok, Ravel, Villa-Lobos, Piazzolla and exciting new works by Ourkouzounov and Merlin.

18 MP3 Songs in this album (57:55) !
Related styles: Classical: Chamber Music, World: World Traditions, Instrumental

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"Colors" is an expressive selection of music for flute and guitar from the 20th and 21st century. The works chosen for this recording reflect a wide international range of art music and all are firmly rooted in the indigenous folk music of each composerâs land of origin. This music is compelling and intimate in its ability to capture moods and ideas that transport the listener to a particular place and time, while simultaneously communicating universal themes.
Ourkouzounovâs â4 Legendesâ is a case in point: This is a decidedly modern work with complex rhythms and unusual instrumental techniques; yet the music speaks with immediacy, power, and a sense of familiarity.

-Liner Notes by Elyse Knobloch and Peter Press:

Bela Bartok (1881-1945) Bartokâs lifeâs work, both as an ethnomusicologist and composer serves as an eternal timepiece to the folk music of Eastern Europe. The selections on this recording are from his two volume set of piano works called âFor Childrenâ that consist of eighty adaptations of Magyar melodies; music based on Hungarian,
Slovakian and Bulgarian folk music. Although these pieces are simple in texture and quite short, they convey an enormous breadth of expression, color, and emotion.

Jose Luis Merlin (b. 1952) Argentinean composer Jose Luis Merlin was born in Buenos Aires. Evocacion e Joropo are the first and last movements of a larger work, âSuite Del Recuerdoâ (Suite of Memories) that Merlin wrote for solo guitar. As in Bartokâs music, the Suite draws heavily on folk music. Evocacion has a singing melody that has a sense of reminiscence. Joropo is lively and exudes joy and abandon.

Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959) Heitor Villa-Lobos has been referred to as âthe single most significant creative figure in twentieth century Brazilian art music.â âBachianas Brasileiras No. 5â (Aria) is taken from a nine cycle work composed between 1930 and 1945 in which Villa-Lobos took the âform and nationalism of the choros and added the composerâs love of Bach.â Aria, originally scored for voice and 8 cellos has three distinct sections. The first consists of a vocalise sung on âahâ, the middle section with poetic text written by Ruth V. Correa exalts the beauty of the transformations of the midnight sky, and the ending is a return of the vocalise, this time at a distance, as it is hummed with closed mouth. Villa-Lobos made the transcription for soprano and guitar in 1947. The 1947 version is performed unchanged; the flute following the articulation of the text in Spanish.

Atanas Ourkouzounov (b. 1970) Atanas Ourkouzounov is an exciting new voice on the modern music scene. His music is imbued with traditional elements of Bulgarian folk music and incorporates extended techniques for both instruments. â4 Legendesâ begins with Kukeri (Masquerade) which refers to the Koukeri: young, single men from
villages dressed in intricate masks and covered with large bells during several Lenten festivals. The Koukeri bang on the doors of houses, jumping up and down to make noise to scare away evil spirits, and are rewarded with rich pastry and plum brandy. Makedonska pesen (Macedonian song) is a beautiful and haunting melodic song with rich harmonic color. Hitar Petar (Naughty Peter) is a legendary folk hero known to Bulgarian children as a mischievous and humorous figure. The last movement, Sabor (Fair) evokes the lively cacophony of a fair with swirling rhythms and kaleidoscopic motifs.

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) Piece en forme de habanera of Maurice Ravel was written at a time when he was creating a body of work that was particularly influenced by Spanish music: Rapsodie espagnole and the opera Lâheure espagnole. His Basque birthplace and his motherâs stories of growing up in Madrid served to connect him to the roots of that culture. The habanera developed from the Cuban contradanza in the mid-19th century. It was then thought to have been brought back to Spain by sailors and became popular before the turn of the 20th century. Piece en forme de habanera was originally scored for low voice. The habanera dance rhythm is particularly evident in the accompaniment. The melody, using Ravelâs unique palette of color, is both haunting and sexy.

Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992) The tango originated in Buenos Aires in 1882 and was originally played on the guitar and flute. Astor Piazzolla was familiar with this music from his early years and used this dance form as a springboard to create a new musical art form that combined the Argentinean tango with diverse international musical influences. He was particularly influenced by Alberto Ginastera and Nadia Boulanger. âHistoire du Tangoâ depicts the evolution of the tango throughout the 20th century. Bordel 1900 is lively and depicts the chatter of French, Italian and Spanish women who frequented the bordellos. Café 1930 is a slower form of the tango that is listened to, rather than danced, with melancholy harmonies. Nightclub 1960 is sophisticated, subtle and brazen and incorporates the bossa nova. Concert dâaujourdâhui portrays the style of mechanique and tips its hat to Stravinsky, and Bartok.

PRODUCTION INFORMATION:
Produced and Engineered by Gregory Squires, Squires Productions Inc.
Recorded at The American Academy of Arts of Letters, NYC, NY 2010
Photography, Cover Art and Design by Jason Knobloch, www.illusionstudios.org