Agustin Barrios (1885-1944)

Paraguayan guitar virtuoso/composer. First truly great performer from the Americas, concertised in every country in South America, where he would perform his own transcriptions of many of the great composers works (indeed, he was the first guitarist to transcribe all four Bach Lute suites, and perform challenging piano pieces  by Chopin, Beethoven,Schumann etc). In his lifetime he composed over 300 pieces. His works are noted for their richness and romantic nature. His music blends the classical influence from the old world with the South American urban/folk rhythms perfectly. He was thought out of step by many Europeans, as the Romantic movement was out of favour by the time he came to prominence in th early 20th Century.

Repertoire

My repertoire consists of pieces ranging from the Baroque period to the 20th Century. I find the romantic period the most rewarding to play. Many of the pieces have only recently been arranged for the classical guitar, some by myself,  so are not traditionally associated with the instrument. However they are highly idiomatic.

Being mostly self taught, I have chosen to break away from the standard guitar repertoire and therefore believe my performance is strikingly original.

My Repertoire is:

Romanza (Anonymous)

Cavatina (Stanley Myers)

Gymnopedie No. 1 (Eric Satie) arr. Paul Armstead

Sonata in A Major K331 allegretto (w.A. Mozart) arr. Paul Armstead

Recuerdos De La Alhambra (Francisco Tarrega)

Una Limosna por el amor de Dios (Agustin Barrios)

Etude No. 1 ( Hector Villa-Lobos)

Prelude C Min (Agustin Barrios)

Prelude G Min (Agustin Barrios)

Choro de Saudade (Agustin Barrios)

The Swan (Camille Saint-Saens)

Cello Prelude No 1 (from suite No. 1 in G Major) (J.S Bach)

Canon in D Major (Johann Pachabel) arr. Paul Armstead

Las Abejas (Agustin Barrios)

Julia Florida (Barcarola)  (Agustin Barrios)

Waltz op. 8  No 4 (Agustin Barrios)

Bagatelle in A Min. (L.V. Beethoven)

Junto a tu Corozan (Agustin Barrios)

Asturias (Leyanda) (Isaac Alberniz)