Spanish and Argentinian Art Songs

 

During the first half of the 20th century, Spanish music needed to transform and evolve following the trends of other European musical and artistic currents. This development eventually happened through the research of Spanish popular and folk music.

 

Concerned with the preservation of traditional songs and the need of a national musical style, composers developed the art song. The art song was one of the most important genres of this time, and one of the prominent pioneers of this genre was the composer Manuel de Falla (i.e. Siete canciones populares españolas).

 

Composers developed musicological research of the traditional Spanish music and they adapted the original pieces to the contemporary artistic current. This current arrived to South America through composers such as Carlos Guastavino and Ginastera, and the concerns of these composers would also preserve the typical South American rhythms and tones to create the new national style.

 

The character of these types of songs are typically based on popular music and everyday life, and are easily accessible for the listener. The compositions bring many of the European musical innovations of the time such as polyrhythm, neoclassicism, and polytonality which bring to this repertoire a high level of interest and musical emotion. 

 

Performers:

 

Nerea Berraondo (Voice)

Ainhoa Urkijo (Piano)