Los Angeles Guitar Quartet on Next Fretworks

This week on Fretworks we'll hear the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet in their arrangement of music from the Renaissance by Giovanni Gabrielli.  For well over 30 years this fine ensemble has been delighting audiences with its music-making, ranging from pieces in the standard repertoire, new works written for them, to engaging and creative arrangements of compositions not associated with the classical guitar. Spanish-born guitarist Roberto Moronn Perez will present music from French composer Henri Martelli.  When Andres Sevovia made his debut in Paris in 1924, he entranced listeners with the sounds he produced from his "orchestra in a box," creating subtle tone-colors, contrasts, and effects.  The Quatre Pieces from 1932 are the result of that influence and are on a new CD, "Roberto Moron Perez-- Andres Segovia Archives--French Composers." Uruguayan guitarist Eduardo Ferandez will play the Concerto for Guitar and Viola d'amore in D minor by Antonio Vivaldi in a recording from Decca going back to 1986.  Originally it would have been for the lute, but guitarists have been happily arranging lute concertos for their instrument for quite some time.  Speaking of the lute, Hopkinson Smith will play some J. S. Bach in its original form from the Lute Suite No. 6 in D. Also, Jason Vieaux will have a couple of popular pieces from the Suite espanola of Isaac Albeniz, Granada and Sevilla.  This is music that was written for the piano, but it sounds so idiomatic when performed on the guitar you can be excused for thinking it was written for that instrument. Join me for Fretworks Saturday evening at 7 and Wednesday evening at 7 here on Classical 101. Here's a first on blog posts related to Fretworks: classical slide guitar in a portion of Blue Echo by Chet Atkins, performed by the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet: http://youtu.be/rBQGrcOxe8U