Customer Reviews

The Legendary Segovia

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Andre Segovia is a master story teller who shares his insights of the classic lute, voilin and cello compositions of J. S. Bach. I find the Suite No. 3 (cello) part 5 Bourree to capture the essence of classical guitar music. This album is at the top of my gift list and has been shared with a dozen of my friends.

Segovia makes his brilliance shine on this compilation. You can't deny the musicianship in these early recordings that, if you are familiar with any of his later sessions, were never left behind. Buy it, you'll love it. I'm sure you'll be scouring for more Segovia to grace you cd player.

I don't agree with Leslie Gerber's editorial review of this disc, Segovia's playing of Bach is beautiful and he infuses this music which is so easy to play in a sterile fashion with great attention to the melodic line, contrapuntal texture and form, skills which are often sadly lacking in todays performances of Bach. Leslie Gerber blindly follows the politically correct mood of the day which is to deny that there is any romance in this music, truly great performers don't just play the dots they bring something special of their own to the music, a point completely missed by Leslie Gerber and other critics and commentators of her kind.

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I used to play a classical guitar once, but, of course, i never played like Segovia. If you like silent music, music for the heart, you should purchase thi album. Both for silent listening and listening while doing something else. It nice like eraly spring.

The only recordings of Segovia I have had access to are those made when he was in his 60s through his 80s. This latter stage of life does not give the real breadth of the man when he was in or at least entering his prime. This set of pieces recorded in London when he was in his 30s and 40s, the ages when he was producing perhaps his finest performances, reveal not only his true virtuosity but the instinct he had for music. Despite the technological defincies of the day, the recordings are sound enough to distinguish the tonal voices of the music. His skilled synthesis and separation of vocal sections easily overcome shortcomings in mono-sound engineering. His arrangements of Back while a bit licentious at points are filled with the life and spirit of a romantic, not simply the technical prose of fugues and gavottes. But it is with Sor's variations and the all that follows where Segovia's irrepressible muses find their home. Bouncing glissandos, mastered tonal shadings, slurs, and beautiful vibratos grace these works into life.Clear and lively voicing (it is amazing to hear his bass voicing, very distinct and with great energy), exclamation points, sheer technical virtuosity and sensitive interpretations give listeners a peek into the spirit(s) populating his heart. In this man's mind, technical skill is simply not enough. It is the ability to bring music to life that defines the musician, regardless of the instrument, much the way a great actor brings Shakespeare to life. Franz List was known for his lively attitude at the piano. Segovia plays in the same vein, turning pieces into living, blithe (and provocative) entities. Listening is believing. His legacy tells the rest.

As a casual fan I was surprised by the noise
on the track. You might choose to hear
the noise as a pleasing retro background. This
CD is probably great for Segovia experts, but
if you're looking for nice background music
just be aware it will sound like the old vinyl
it was remastered from.

This is a good sampling of the great master's earlier works and I suppose given the age of the recordings, it's inevitable that the sound quality would suffer. It doesn't help when this album is recorded in Mono from an ADD master source as well. What this means is that the sound quality is very poor indeed. Given the state-of-the-art sound engineering technology that is out there these days, I hope EMI decides to revisit the vaults and dig up the best preserved master tapes and remaster these in stereo and clean up as much of the sound as is possible for re-release. That would be the only way to do justice to the memory of this all-time guitar great. They've already done this with Django Reinhardt's early work and so it's about time they got around to updating and remastering the Segovia catalog. I, for one, will be waiting for the day with great anticipation...

Gotta have that slow spanish guitar when things get hectic. Spanish guitar by Segovia (not the more frenetic flamingoists which is another mood) and other slow subtle spanish greats fits a special mood. I usually mix it with nature music, oud, sitar, and Anouar Brahem (all).