Guridi Viejo Zortzico Date of Composition??

[brittany-deyoung–2]

Does Anyone have the Date of composition for this piece?? I’ve looked everywhere and it’s nowhere to be found 🙁

[patricia-jaeger]

If any one might know a date for this, it may be Marisa Robles, virtuoso Spanish harpist now a British citizen teaching in London. She knew Guridi and he wrote several pieces for her. You might be able to contact her through the United Kingdom Harp Association.

[brittany-deyoung–2]

My Friend on Facebook just replied… it was written in 1949 and Premiered in 1950!… Figured I’d post it here just incase anyone else ever needs the same thing 🙂

[richard-hagan]

Interestingly, Mark Palkovic in “Harp Music Bibliography” lists it as circa 1960 (Madrid: Union Musical Espanola) and Annie Glattauer in “Dictionnaire du repertoire de la harpe” lists it as 1960. I suspect that 1960 is the date of publication of the available sheet music. As a sidelight, the Dictionnaire mentions another composition for harp by Guridi and identifies that it was premiered by Marissa Robles.

A zortzico is a Basque dance in 5/8 time. I found a brief discussion of Basque dance in “The Music of Spain” by Gilbert Chase (Dover press).

Jesus Guridi was Basque and took inspiration from Basque music.

Maria Luisa Rayan-Forero played the piece beautifully in her concert at Lyon and Healy in December 2012. It was my personal favorite of the program. She recorded it on her album “Latin Fire” (Egan Records). The album includes program notes on the composer and the composition.

[Alison]

I learnt that Guridi was much older than Marisa Robles and was probably more like a mentor given the age difference, she has photos of him, think with Rodrigo or Zabeleta. There are also some basqe folk songs for harp I understand, a different harpist has these.

[NAVAS-PEREZ María Rosa]

Guridi’s Viejo Zortzico was composed for Mari Lola Higueras in 1949-1950. This Spanish harpist asked him for writting a piece for harp that she could play in her recitals and she was who premiered the dance the 9th of June of 1950 at Madrid’s Ateneo. After that, the piece got fame thanks to her performances in France and the Uninted States and also thanks to Marisa Robles’s and Nicanor Zabaleta’s recordings and performances around the world. As Richard-Hagan suggests on January 17, 2013, 1960 is the date of the publication with UME of the available sheet music. UME meens Unión Musical Española. More information of this piece, this week at RCSM-Madrid.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by NAVAS-PEREZ María Rosa.

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[Alison]

Very interesting, if you could identify on which LP or disc Zabeleta recorded it, I would be extremely grateful. I listened to Marisa Robles recording in the 1970’s and then never heard it again until some 20 years later and the loveliest recording is on Gabriella Dall’Olio’s disc Recital for Harp.

[NAVAS-PEREZ María Rosa]

Dear Alison, as far as I know, there are no venal recordings of this piece by Zabaleta for sale. According to his programs, he played “Viejo Zortzico” by Jesús Guridi several times in his concerts. Perhaps you can find any TV or Radio recording anywhere that includes this piece. Let me know if you get it. In addition to Marisa Robles and Gabriella Dall’Olio recordings you can find more versions by other harpists (de Maistre, Padilla, Rayan, Mitchel,… and many others in Youtube to compare). Unfortunatly, there is no recording by Mari Loli Higueras, the first permofer for whom the piece was written and dedicated by Guridi, despite the fact that she recorded on the radio live direct from Spain to America around the 40s and 50s of the 20th century. I hope I have helped you to clarify your question.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by NAVAS-PEREZ María Rosa.

[Saul Davis Zlatkovski]

What is sad is that no one seems to perform his bigger work for harp, not more difficult, but longer, called La Del Alba Seria, which is extremely beautiful and satisfying. As much fun as Apunte Baetico is, by Gombeau-Guerra, it, too, seems to have dropped off the map, and it is very technically accessible. Viejo Zortzico, on the other hand, can get rather tiresome after hearing it played for the 150th time.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 2 months ago by Saul Davis Zlatkovski.

[NAVAS-PEREZ María Rosa]

Totally agree, Saul Davis.

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