The Brazilian Guitar Quartet has already appeared with the Delos
label through numerous releases, for instance with their Bach
Four Suites for Orchestra (see review).
Here they present an all Villa-Lobos programme in works for
piano or string quartet, arranged by quartet member Tadeudo
Amaral.
This is a well considered and very nicely recorded programme
which does no harm at all to either the guitar or Villa-Lobos’s
music. The Suite Floral leads us in gently, offering
a kind of Spanish pastoral feel with hints of Debussy in the
form and harmony of gentle pieces such as Idyll in a Hammock
and the more lively finale, Joy in the Garden.
Cirandas is another set of piano pieces, here divided
into two groups of three, each set in advance of the two string
quartet pieces on this CD. A Ciranda is a children’s
folksong to accompany a circle dance, giving Villa-Lobos an
opportunity to explore Brazilian folk themes and to transform
them into new and fascinating pieces which are more sophisticated
than their origins would suggest. Beautifully simple, almost
naïve melodies such as A Condessa have already been given
a level of enigmatic mystery through Villa-Lobos’s treatment,
and the guitar sonorities at times take this heightened level
of emotive content even further than would be possible on the
piano. The rhythmic character of the works is also enhanced
through the driving co-ordination of the quartet, and I love
the gentler more suggested feel of dance rather than the percussion
of hammer on strings as an alternative to the more familiar
piano version. The piano arrangements in this programme are
supplemented by the three African Folk Dances, subtitled
“Dances of the Mixed-Blood Indians of Brazil.” Gil Jardim’s
well written booklet notes make the justifiable claim for these
as occupying “a seminal position in the Villa-Lobos corpus…
[incorporating] typical elements of his later style, such as
formal discourse and unorthodox harmonies…”
The most substantial pieces in this programme are of course
the string quartets, and anyone familiar with these works in
their original form will of course need to adapt their expectations.
My own reference is that of the Latin American Quartet’s complete
set on the Brilliant Classics label which is a terrific bargain,
the single original discs having been reviewed here
and here
for the relevant pieces. As ever with this kind or arrangement
I always consider it best to shelve comparisons with the original
instrumentation and evaluate the pieces as they stand - and
stand they do in this case, very well indeed. The String
Quartet No. 5 uses folk tunes in its first and last movements,
and its fairly straightforward lyricism suits the guitar sound
superbly. The Brazilian Guitar Quartet have a fine knack for
balancing often quite busy accompaniments against melodic line,
and the clarity of the voices in the piece is a technical education
on all levels, bearing in mind that these are equal instruments,
though admittedly the combination of two 6-string and two 8-string
guitars does offer a wide harmonic range and spectrum of colour.
The String Quartet No. 12 is a more abstract piece, with
quasi-atonal material married to superficially traditional compositional
techniques. This is by some way the furthest seeking piece in
this collection, demanding concentration to follow its complications.
Attention always delivers rich rewards in this case, and the
guitar quartet makes a serious case for the bustling intensity
of the outer movements, the melodic expressiveness of the Andante
melancolico and the lively wit and uplifting élan of the
Scherzo.
This is a very fine recording and a highly enjoyable programme
of arrangements from Villa-Lobos. Alternative instrumentations
almost always offer a new and refreshing view on pieces. If
you seek good recordings of the piano originals then Sonia Rubinsky’s
surveys on the Naxos label are good enough, Débora Halász’s
on the BIS label having a bit more life and character. As it
is, these guitar quartet arrangements offer an excellent programme
of refined and highly involving music.
Dominy Clements
Brazilian Guitar Quartet
