Customer Reviews

Moreno Torroba: Guitar Music, 1

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3 star:		(1)
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This is an excellent start to what, I hope, will be a recording of all of Moreno Torroba's compositions for guitar - at least, all those that have been released from Segovia's safekeeping.

The main bulk of the CD consists of two "suites" or perhaps, more accurately, two collections of pieces on a common theme. The Castles of Spain includes a couple of familiar works: "Torija" and "Romance de los Pinos" but many others which I think deserve to be better known. Similarly, The Gates of Madrid is a collection of pieces which show Moreno Torroba's gift for melody - not always immediately recognizable as "Spanish" - and his fondness for unusual harmonies and modulations which are surprisingly effective.

They are beautifully played by Ana Vidovic who is clearly a prodigy. She has been recorded on at least one previous Naxos CD though I have not yet heard it. Naxos really is to be commended for presenting so many brilliant young guitarists to the world and making it possible for us to hear so much music which has been hidden for too long. I look forward to the next volume of Moreno Torroba's music and wish Ana Vidovic the success she so clearly deserves. Ah, if only I could play like that!

She is a wonderful guitarist. She follows the published music closely (perhaps the Jim Ferguson edition of 'Castles'?) and I have had to go back and change some of my editing decisions as a result. She is one of those few guitarists where you can forget about the instrument and just listen to the music. A very good recording in quality of sound, as well.

Ana Vidovic, once a child prodigy, now guitar virtuoso, shows the full ripeness of her art in this album dedicated to the works of the Spanish composer Frederico Moreno Torroba.
Most of the pieces are part of the traditional repertoire of the classical guitar. They were made famous, of course, by the celebrated maestro Andrés Segovia, and evoke Spanish landscapes. You can travel trough Spain without leaving your couch, with a little imagination, the pieces are very suggestive, full of imagery.
Vidovic is in great form, and proves once more that she much more than a beautiful face. Her technique is quite impressive. She doesn't exaggerate the interpretation of the most lyrical passages, and makes the pieces sound effortless, laving to the listener the sole task of appreciating the music.

A great buy, Naxos has given us some extraordinary albums in their Guitar Collection, an initiative certainly worthy of applause.

Ana Vidovic is rapidly becoming one of the premier guitarists performing today. For those who cannot attend a live performance, I would recommend her Mel Bay DVD.

This guitarist has outstanding musicianship and excellent technique. She is possibly the best musician of all the guitar players I've ever heard.

We all seem to love food fights when it comes to opinions about interpretations of classical guitar pieces, so I'll go ahead and throw my piece of heretical red meat: Ana Vidovic owns this music. I have heard others (Segovia, Russell, e.g.) play these selections, and no one else brings them to life like she does. Others play the guitar; she makes music. Others play the notes; she lifts the notes off the page and lets them dance, sway, prance, and swoon in an aural performance not heard before. She is nimble, precise, and lyrical. She has a dynamic deftness, shifting from piece to piece, that makes me think that perhaps from now on only women should play Torroba -- or perhaps only women from Croatia. She is gifted, yes, but also accomplished. This is marvelous music-making that puts her in a class by herself. I have been listening to classical guitar recordings since the 60s when I first heard John Williams and Eugene Ormandy do the Aranjuez, and this is definitely one of my favorites among classical guitar recordings. Whether Torroba is profound or not, Vidovic is profoundly suited to these compositions. Viva Vidovic!

Ana VIdivic is a fresh new talent. She will probably reach the quality of Williams or Bream but is not there yet. Music selection is good and playing is clean but at times a little mechanic. Nevertheless it is a very good CD.