History
of Aranjuez's
Concerto
Blind
from childhood, Joaquín RODRIGO began his musical studies
in Spain, then went to Paris where he took lessons at the Schola
Cantorum. It was there that he composed Aranjuez's Concerto, which,
from 1939 made him famous. The challenge was to write a concerto
for guitar!
The
second movement ( adagio of Aranjuez's concerto ) is simply miraculous
and one of the masterpieces of contemporary music. The magnificent
melody is infused with the warm and colourful Spanish atmosphere
and takes its inspiration from a small musical ornament building
slowly and developing into a final climax of rare beauty.Music
is enriched with a new jewel.
Because
of this the Aranjuez's Concerto has become one of most widely
performed in the world as well as one of the most widely recorded
on CD ( The classical version of the guitarist Narciso YEPES with
Garcìa NAVARRO and the Philharmonia Orchestra is in all
respects remarkable ). The Aranjuez's Concerto has often been
transcribed for instruments other than the guitar :
Thus
was it performed by the famous Jazz trumpeter Miles
DAVIS, John LEWIS's MODERN JAZZ QUARTET
with Kenny CLARKE and by the clarinettist and the composer of
Sacred music, Jean-Christian MICHEL. The famous clarinettist recorded
"ARANJUEZ" for the first time in 1968. His arrangement
of Aranjuez's Concerto achieved immense success with the pressing
of a one and a half million discs...
Jean-Christian
MICHEL's Arrangement
The
CD of Aranjuez's
concerto has been released !
@ranjuez
Jean-Christian
MICHEL, in the current version of Aranjuez's concerto, ( CD "
ARANJUEZ "), has created a magnifiscent new-age inspired
arrangement of RODRIGO's work : the sublime concerto returns today
revisited in a richer grander form.
Jean-Christian
MICHEL performs the theme of the adagio of Aranjuez's concerto
on the clarinet - with enormous sensitivity
and feeling. The magic, incantatory, clear, an almost transparent
sound, exorcises shadow in the vibration of his breath.
After
the return of the impressive synthesized strings, comes a long
dialogue of "tension - resolution" between guitar (
Nicolas De ANGELIS ) and organ ( Monique
THUS ). This latter great artist completely masters her art and
seems to diffract the colours of a heavenly watercolour in her
organ voices ...
Jean-Christian
MICHEL then resumes the theme of Aranjuez's concerto using
the warm and sensual tones of the clarinet's bass register, bringing
a delectable moment of peace and calm before the storm.
Then,
after a last dialogue organ - guitar, the concert performer
Nicolas De ANGELIS
expresses himself with great talent and fierceness in a climactic
guitar solo, accompanied by the rhythm of bass and castanets,
with so much talent and vehemence that he pulls from his instrument
the magnificences of a rainbow !
The
closing theme of Aranjuez's concerto then explodes with consummate
artistry : violins and synthesizers sing with passion and fervour,
the clarinet launches powerfully into
the high notes, reconciling opposite and sheding its golden fluid
while the rhythm section springs into pulsating life.
A
short coda on guitar chimes out the last few notes as a silvery
rain...
The
arrangement created by Jean-Christian MICHEL on the CD "ARANJUEZ"
is extremely original and beautiful : it respects the composer's
original music but lights it in modern colours and enhances, through
its modernity, the powerful contrasts of the work
-
Listen now to "@ranjuez" from
the Aranjuez's Concerto on MP3 
"Jean-Christian
MICHEL's clarinet communicates to the work all its magic and spiritual
dimension …"
"@ranjuez":
Jean-Christian MICHEL's new CD from the Aranjuez's Concerto
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