Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5
Duets With The Spanish Guitar
Laurindo Almeida - Guitar
Martin Ruderman - Flute
Salli Terri - Contralto
Capitol Records P8406
1958
From the back cover: LAURINDO ALMEIDA has achieved fame by creating serious compositions for guitar, by performing brilliantly with some of the nation's most distinguished jazz bands, and by playing with equal brilliance on the classical concert stage. His appearances at such places as Carnegie Hall, Chicago's and San Francisco's Civic Opera Houses, and the Hollywood Bowl have been marked by enthusiastic acclaim.
MARTIN RUDERMAN studied flute and composition at both USC and UCLA. At present he is active on the West Coast, and is first flutist at the Walt Disney Studios.
SALLI TERRI has appeared as soloist with the Roger Wagner Chorale in concerts in the United States and in Europe. She also appears as soloist and arranger in many Capitol albums by the Chorale.
Also from the back cover: In the primitive regions of Brazil, one can still hear people repeat the story of the birth of the guitar. It seems that, once upon a time, there was a gaucho who could no longer bear the utter loneliness of the wide-open pampas. He tried to find a remedy for his loneliness, but found none, and finally he went to a wise old man for advice. The old man took a piece of wood, shaped it like the body of a beautiful woman, and set strings to it. And thereafter the gaucho was never lonely – he would play his ballads of passion and longing on the woman's body, while his left hand caressed her long, graceful neck.
This tale might not be quite true – those with superior knowledge and intelligence insist that the guitar came from the Orient, through the Arabic cultures, the way of many other instruments. But that is another story. What is significant in the tale of the Brazilians is the emphasis on sensuousness and earthiness in the music for the guitar. Whether it be Spanish flamenco or a Brazilian maxixe, these qualities are inherent in the music, as is its inseparable connection with dance.
For centuries, the guitar has been the favorite among folk musicians, although it long remained forgotten by urban composers. It has a unique and wonderful quality of blending with the human voice and with the sound of other instruments. In this album, Mr. Almeida has chosen, besides voice, the flute as the other instrument with the guitar, and this combination results in many subtle and beautiful passages.
The songs in the album all stem from Brazil. All of them express the deep-rooted connection that South American composers have with their background, and all of them have the fascinating rhythmic and melodic variety of Brazilian folk music. The compositions for guitar and flute, on the other hand, deal with the traditions of the Old World, of the French musical scene from the late sixteenth century, through Chopin's Paris of the 1800s, to the present.
This tale might not be quite true – those with superior knowledge and intelligence insist that the guitar came from the Orient, through the Arabic cultures, the way of many other instruments. But that is another story. What is significant in the tale of the Brazilians is the emphasis on sensuousness and earthiness in the music for the guitar. Whether it be Spanish flamenco or a Brazilian maxixe, these qualities are inherent in the music, as is its inseparable connection with dance.
For centuries, the guitar has been the favorite among folk musicians, although it long remained forgotten by urban composers. It has a unique and wonderful quality of blending with the human voice and with the sound of other instruments. In this album, Mr. Almeida has chosen, besides voice, the flute as the other instrument with the guitar, and this combination results in many subtle and beautiful passages.
The songs in the album all stem from Brazil. All of them express the deep-rooted connection that South American composers have with their background, and all of them have the fascinating rhythmic and melodic variety of Brazilian folk music. The compositions for guitar and flute, on the other hand, deal with the traditions of the Old World, of the French musical scene from the late sixteenth century, through Chopin's Paris of the 1800s, to the present.
Also from the back cover: IBERT: Entr'acte. Born in 1890, Jacques Ibert belongs to the generation of Les Six, although he never was a part of the group. In his smaller compositions especially he shows a definite affinity with that group, in his clarity and lyrical simplicity, and in his frequent touches of whimsy. Of all the instruments, the flute has especially interested him; he has even written a concerto for it. The Entr'acte has the charm of folk music combined with the elegance of seventeenth century theater music.
VILLA-LOBOS: Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5. Together with Mexico's Carlos Chavez, the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos, born in 1887, is the com- manding figure in Latin American music. Among his best known works is the series called Bachianas Brasil- eiras, scored for various instruments from piano to full orchestra. To Villa-Lobos, Bach's music possessed at truly universal spirit in the world of music, and in his Bachianas he has combined this spirit with the deep-rooted beauty of the Brazilian folk-tradition. The fifth one, originally scored for voice and eight cellos, was later arranged by the composer himself for voice and guitar.
DESPORTES: Ronde. Emile Desportes is a French composer who has written many works for the wind in- struments. This Ronde has the charming melody and the lilting rhythm of a folk dance.
OVALLE: Azulão. Jayme Ovalle, born in 1894, is a Brazilian composer who has made a special study of Afro-Brazilian folk music. His own compositions, such as Azulão (Bluebird), strongly reflect folk elements. The words of this song are directed to a bluebird, asking it to fly to the singer's beloved and to tell her that life without her is worthless.
CHOPIN: Prelude in E minor, Opus 28, No. 4. Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) composed his 24 Preludes, Opus 28, between 1836 and 1839, the first years of his famous love affair with the authoress George Sand. Each one is complete and faultless in its description of a single mood. The fourth one is particularly lovely in this transcription for flute and guitar, with its delicate, singing melody and reiterated accompanying chords. ALMEIDA: 0 Caçador. O Caçador (O Hunter) by Laurindo Almeida is set in the Brazilian Jongo rhythm of Negro origin. In its authentic form it is a strongly syncopated ritual dance sung by a solo voice with drum accompaniment. The words of the song mock a hunter, caught in the web of love, who is seen going "hunting" without his gun.
DESPORTES: Pastorale Joyeuse. The second selec- tion by Emile Desportes in this album gaily praises the beauty of spring. It has the same simple charm as the first one, and the same quality of a folk dance, with its rhythmic ostinato accompaniment.
OVALLE: Azulão. Jayme Ovalle, born in 1894, is a Brazilian composer who has made a special study of Afro-Brazilian folk music. His own compositions, such as Azulão (Bluebird), strongly reflect folk elements. The words of this song are directed to a bluebird, asking it to fly to the singer's beloved and to tell her that life without her is worthless.
CHOPIN: Prelude in E minor, Opus 28, No. 4. Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) composed his 24 Preludes, Opus 28, between 1836 and 1839, the first years of his famous love affair with the authoress George Sand. Each one is complete and faultless in its description of a single mood. The fourth one is particularly lovely in this transcription for flute and guitar, with its delicate, singing melody and reiterated accompanying chords. ALMEIDA: 0 Caçador. O Caçador (O Hunter) by Laurindo Almeida is set in the Brazilian Jongo rhythm of Negro origin. In its authentic form it is a strongly syncopated ritual dance sung by a solo voice with drum accompaniment. The words of the song mock a hunter, caught in the web of love, who is seen going "hunting" without his gun.
DESPORTES: Pastorale Joyeuse. The second selec- tion by Emile Desportes in this album gaily praises the beauty of spring. It has the same simple charm as the first one, and the same quality of a folk dance, with its rhythmic ostinato accompaniment.
GOSSEC: Tambourin. François Joseph Gossec (1734- 1829) was born in the Netherlands, but spent all his cre- ative life in Paris. As a composer he was much influenced by Rameau, who wrote perhaps the best-known composition in the form of a tambourin. This form is originally a dance from Provence and is played on a pipe and a tambour drum.
HENRIQUE: Boi-Bumbá. This song by Valdemar Henrique is also of Afro-Brazilian origin. Boi-Bumbá or Bumba Meu Boi (My Good Ox) is the closing number of a celebration called Reisados (reis, the kings), which depicts the pilgrimmage of the three Magi to Bethle- hem. The dance-song, also found on the island of Cuba, is danced by Negroes in a circle, accompanied by drums and clapping of hands. Although it has a Biblical subject, it is of pagan origin, and deals with the glorification of the sacred ox.
FAURE: Sicilienne. Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) in- cluded this Sicilienne in the incidental music that he composed for the play Pelléas et Mélisande, by Maurice Maeterlinck. The music is graceful and flowing, show- ing the composer's exceptional melodic gift. The Sicilienne is the name of an old dance-song originating in the island of Sicily.
BARROSO: Para Ninar. Para Ninar (Go To Sleep). by Paurillo Barroso, is a simple lullaby that gently tells the bogeyman to go away from the bedside of the sleep- ing child.
RAVEL: Pièce en forme de Habanera. Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) was born in the Basque country on the French-Spanish border, and Spanish rhythms and melodies inspired him throughout his life. He composed Pièce en forme de Habanera originally for voice and piano, and later incorporated it in his Rhapsodie Espagnole. It has the slow, languorous and dignified rhythm of the habanera, a dance introduced by Negro slaves in Cuba, from where it was imported to Spain. It gets its name from the city of Havana.
BRAGA: Maracatú. Maracatú is one of the dances in the Afro-Brazilian ritual called Macumba. It has a song of the jungle, a call for the jungle goddess, Loanda, and is full of sounds describing tribal drums: bombo ganza zabumba bombo. The composer of this maracatú, Ernani Braga (1868-1945), was one of the first to exploit the wealth of Brazilian folk music.
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