92NY Center for Culture & Arts

The Marshall Weinberg Spring 2021 Classical Music Season

Ana Vidovic, guitar

Ana Vidovic

“Ana Vidovic produces so many moments of insight you often feel you are listening to the music for the first time.”
Classical Guitar

Among the world’s most elite guitarists, Ana Vidovic combines technical mastery, beautiful tone and a refined musicality in performances that leave audiences enthralled. A first-prize winner in top competitions in England, Italy and Spain and student of the legendary Manuel Barrueco, Vidovic returns to the stage where she gave her US debut with a program showcasing a stunning range of music for guitar with selections by Bach, Torroba, Giuliani, Barrios and others.

Works of Bach, Torroba, Giuliani, Barrios and more.

Concert stream available for one week from date of broadcast.

Bach, Flute Partita in A Minor, BWV 1013 (trans. Despalji)
Bach, Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001 (trans. Barrueco)
Giuliani, Gran Sonata Eroica, Op. 150
Scarlatti, Sonata in E Major, K. 380
Barrios, Una limosna por el amor de Dios
Giuliani, Grande Ouverture, Op. 61

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Classical music at 92NY receives major support from Marshall Weinberg.

This program is part of Tisch Music.

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Program Notes

Ana Vidovic has earned a place among the elite guitarists in the world, and it is a pleasure to welcome her back to our stage …

Program Notes

Ana Vidovic has earned a place among the elite guitarists in the world, and it is a pleasure to welcome her back to our stage, on which she made her U.S. debut. Ms. Vidovic begins her program with a Bach’s Flute Partita in A Minor, transcribed for the guitar by the noted Croatian cellist Valter Despalj. Despalj made this very original arrangement on encouragement from the legendary guitarist John Williams, and it takes full advantage of the greater variety of sonorities possible on the guitar (as well as the fact that the guitarist, unlike the flutist, does not have to breathe mid-phrase!). The lyrical, soulful sarabande is one of my favorite slow movements of Bach’s, and the “English bourée” that concludes the partita does so in rustic, stomping good humor. Ms. Vidovic then continues with another Bach transcription, this time of the first violin sonata, by her teacher, the famed guitarist Manuel Barrueco (who makes an appearance on our season in May). The sonata opens with a stern adagio, in which Bach carefully notates every detail of the player’s embellishment to his harmonies. A concise fugue (which was in fact later adapted for lute by Bach himself) follows, giving way to a gentle, lilting Siciliano, which makes great use of the warm, singing tone of the guitar. The sonata concludes with a Presto so wild that, 150 years later, Johannes Brahms composed piano etudes based on the theme! Next, the Gran Sonata Eroica by Mauro Giuliani, a tour de force in one movement. Giuliani, a contemporary of Beethoven’s, opens the sonata with a grand flourish, and some Beethovenian gestures can be heard in the development of the themes. A short lyrical section connects to the finale, where fast passages of scales provide a thrilling conclusion. Scarlatti’s Sonata in E Major, a specialty of Ms. Vidovic’s, continues the program, showing off her exceptional dexterity and command of a wide range of colors. Then, though it’s difficult for most of us to travel right now, Barrios’ “Dream in the Rainforest” provides the next best thing—a welcome mental vacation to the tropics. This is one of the masterpieces of the Spanish guitar tradition, in which carefree, almost weightless melodies spin out over a series of tremolos until what might be a small storm (in the form of a minor-key middle section) momentarily interrupts. However, the impassioned melodies of the beginning return, bringing the dream (and our too-short vacation) to a pleasant, placid conclusion. Finally, Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s “diabolic capriccio”, written for the great Andrès Segovia and borrowing thematic material from Paganini’s “La Campanella”. This virtuosic work lives up to its title and concludes in a series of fireworks that will leave you breathless!

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Please note that all 92Y regularly scheduled in-person programs are suspended.