Review: Classical Guitar Embodies the Diversity of Cultures, Sounds of Ibero-america
01/09/2009

Iberoamerica: Sonatas by Ponce, Rodrigo and Brouwer. Hermann Hudde, guitar; 2009 Centaur Records.

In the same way Ibero-America is a blending of cultures, peoples, traditions and languages, Iberoamerica: Sonatas of Ponce, Rodrigo and Brouwer is a luscious blend of everything beautiful about the music of these cultures. Manuel Ponce was a Mexican composer, best known for his guitar music and love of Mexican folklore; Joaquin Rodrigo was a blind Spanish composer who composed through the better part of the 20th century; and Leo Brouwer is a Cuban-born, American-educated composer who revels in the rhythmic complexity of mixing traditional Cuban melodies with modern classical music. While an album of solo guitar works could seem limiting, this list of composers proves it is anything but. And guitarist Hermann Hudde does not disappoint.

The first and longest work on the album, Sonata Romantica by Ponce, begins with an Allegro moderato that channels Franz Schubert, whose music was a source of inspiration for the composer. The work is exciting and clearly telling an epic story. Like a German lied, the piece is descriptive in its writing – I could hear the drama, the rise and fall of the character, the epic story come through in the music; at times, it felt like program music. While Ponce’s interest in folklore does translate, I wished the liner notes had given me some idea what story Ponce had in mind when he wrote this. Perhaps we do not know; perhaps he wanted us to wonder, to fill in the blanks ourselves. If that was the case, he was successful. Both my curiosity and imagination were piqued.

The second work, Sonata Giocosa written by Joaquin Rodrigo in 1959, is a brief, 13-minute piece very much in the Spanish guitar style. Sandwiched between two more serious works, this sonata comes across as almost an interlude. I wanted a light glass of Spanish wine and some tapas to enjoy while I was listening. I wanted to be on a terrace with the hot, Spanish sun baking my cares away. The work embodies the Spanish culture that Ernest Hemingway fell in love with and exemplified in his novels and stories. I could tell Hudde enjoyed playing it. The little waltz of the second movement lilts the listener into peaceful abandon. The guitarist’s transitions between the strong, punctuated chords and the wonderful melodies in the last movement were so delightfully schizophrenic, it was as if two different guitarists were competing for the limelight. I didn’t want this piece to end.

It is immediately apparent after the first few notes that the third work on the album, the Sonata written in 1990 by Leo Brouwer, is different from what has come before. Darker and more modern, the Sonata explores Cuban and American music in a primal way, letting rhythm outweigh melody, and pushing the limits of both instrument and performer. While this work is written for solo guitar, it could easily be orchestrated for a large symphony orchestra. Brouwer demands dynamic, tonal, and timbre modulations that I have never heard from a guitar. The piece is hard, both technically and interpretively, but Hudde performs the difficult and adventurous passages with passionate depth. By a less talented performer, it would fall flat. One must be an expert in technique, yes, but one must also have soul. Hudde really gets that.

Ibero-America refers to an enormous number of countries, each of which has its own history, languages, and traditions. To suggest that three composers could embody that richness of culture with three works for guitar is a dangerous claim. Yet each of these works takes on a life of its own; each of these works is a story, and in cultures built solidly on oral and aural tradition, these musical stories inspire understanding in a surprising and satisfying way.

© 2009 Emily Parkhurst