I had forgotten just how much I like the music of
Mozart Camargo Guarnieri. Almost by accident the other day I re-encountered
his piano concertos and really enjoyed them all over again. The pianist
there is the same as on this pair of discs and he proves to be a perfect
guide: technically gifted, at one with the music's idiom and a wholly
committed and passionate advocate.
"Guarnieri suggests elements of Brazil's traditional music without resorting
to verbatim quotation." Liner-note writer, James Melo sums up the composer's
style with brilliant succinctness and although this quote relates specifically
to the Sonata which closes the programme it is equally valid for all
the music here. With the exception of the fifteen minute Sonata what
we are given are miniatures albeit collected into larger works. Of the
57 pieces/movements only one lasts longer than four minutes and 31 are
sub two minutes. For all their brevity these are jewel-like works. Guarnieri
does not try to achieve too much in any individual work; instead each
encapsulates a single musical mood or idea that is explored with little
effort expended in formal development.
The programme opens with three separate works dating from different
years. Each has been given the title
Dança. Thanks again
to James Melo for pointing out that these three dances are not intended
as folk-dances but instead are "suggestions of choreography and mood".
The third,
Dança Selvagem is the most overtly dynamic
and recalls the style of Ginastera. Pianist Max Barros then presents
the five books of
Ponteios written over a period from 1931 to
1959. Each book contains ten pieces. None of these has a descriptive
title other than an often evocative tempo indication:
Nostálgico
[Book II No.18] or
Confidencial [Book V No.48].
Ponteios
is a term coined by Guarnieri and derives from a prelude played by traditional
Brazilian guitar players as they tune and prepare their instruments
prior to performing a piece. As such, Guarnieri has appropriated the
concept to create often fragmentary works which he sought to embody
"styles, techniques, and references to the musical soul of Brazil".
Great credit to Barros for conveying the kaleidoscopic range of the
pieces so effectively. Clearly, it makes sense to sample these works
perhaps a book at a time rather than at a single 'sitting'. Within each
group there is a wide range of styles and moods although there is not
a huge amount of stylistic progression over the twenty-eight years of
their composition. The range of styles encompassed goes from gently
impressionistic tone poems to jazz-inflected swaying dances. Harmony
is clearly tonal but fluid and the keyboard textures are kept articulate
and effective. Guarnieri was by all accounts a considerable pianist
and improviser in his own right. These works exude a beguiling directness
and spontaneity that is very charming. These are clearly not simple
works yet they need to be performed with a certain insouciance - again
this is where Barros strikes me as ideal. Much the same can be said
of the
Suite Mirim which we are told is one of four suites composed
by Guarnieri concerned with childhood but again this is from a standpoint
of being charmingly naive music. The closing
Cirandinha is a
perfect example of the composer taking 'local' inspiration - in this
case dance patterns from North Eastern Brazil
- and producing
an original work of considerable appeal. This is not intended to be
music that breaks or defines boundaries in music. Taken in its own right
as a celebration of a moment or a passing musical thought they are as
delightful as they are understatedly sophisticated.
As mentioned previously, the Sonata is the largest work offered here.
Even then it lasts just over the quarter hour. It is also the latest
work written in 1972. From the opening bars this evokes a quite different,
more intense and rigorous musical world. Guarnieri shows his range and
skill as a composer because although the time-frame is still condensed
- just four minutes for the opening movement
Tenso - this has
a clearly defined structure that the more fluid, sometimes impressionistic
Ponteios lack. The central movement is marked
Amargurado
- which translates from the Portuguese as bitter or acrimonious. This
was the first music composed for this work and at nearly seven and a
half minutes the longest piece in the current collection by some distance.
The level of dissonance in the entire work is several steps higher than
any of the other pieces presented here although nothing that could be
termed overly modernistic. It is the chilled atmosphere evoked that
resonates in the memory as well as the juxtaposition of barely simple
passages and craggily etched block writing. Again, I must acknowledge
Melo's insightful liner for rightly pointing out the Stravinskian vigour
of the closing movement. Guarnieri's skill as a pianist allows him to
write for the keyboard effectively and idiomatically. The work closes
somewhat elusively albeit with a final assertive chord.
One must assume a volume two will follow - containing one expects -
the eight sonatinas and three other suites referred to in the liner
amongst any other works. The nature of this type of set is as a work
of collective reference rather than a 'concert programme'. That being
the case any accusations of similarity or stylistic repetition are somewhat
redundant. As previously mentioned Barros is a fine guide to this little-known
music. The Naxos recording is close and detailed and as such perfectly
acceptable without being demonstration class. For those yet to discover
the delights of Guarnieri I would direct you to the concertos on Naxos
(
review
review)
or indeed the superb symphonies on BIS (
review
review
review)
as a first port of call. That said, without doubt this set is an important
and valuable expansion of the recorded repertoire of this fine Brazilian
composer. Volume two will be eagerly awaited.
Nick Barnard
