Classical Music | Piano Music

Recorded on 03/21/2012, uploaded on 11/12/2012

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Evocación, from Iberia, Book I

Written between 1905 and 1909 during the last years of his life, Spanish composer Isaac Albeniz’s monumental Iberia stands as one of the pillars of 20th century piano repertoire.  Iberia is a homage to the composer’s native land, divided into four books of three movements each, and based on Spanish dance rhythms in combination with the copla, the sung verses of these dances.

Book I opens with Evocación, a serene, nostalgic reminiscence of Spain.  It utilizes elements of a fandanguillo and jota navarra, and one can immediately hear the impressionistic flavor from the use of the whole-tone scale.  El Puerto, inspired by the port town of Cádiz, is formed by a combination of three different dances: polo, buleriás, and the gypsy seguidillas. The striking sounds of the guitar permeate throughout El Puerto, and all the flourishes of the dance finally give way to a quiet coda.  The last movement of Book 1, Fête-Dieu à Seville, is one of Albeniz’s most programmatic works.  It depicts a Corpus Christi day procession in Seville where the statue of the Virgin Mary is carried through the streets accompanied by a crowd of people including marching bands and singers.      Soyeon Lee

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.