1. Act I
2. Act II
3. Act III

Sofia Bandin
Carlos Cossutta
Angel Mattiello
Victor De Narke
Adriana Cantelli

Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires
Bruno Bartoletti – conductor

Don Rodrigo is an opera in three acts by Alberto Ginastera, the composer's first opera, to an original Spanish libretto by Alejandro Casona. Ginastera composed the opera on commission from the Municipality of the City of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The first performance was at the Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires, Argentina on 24 July 1964 with Carlo Cossutta in the title role. The production was directed by Jorge Petraglia and conducted by Bruno Bartoletti. --- todoperaweb.com.ar

Synopsis

The setting is Toledo, Spain in the 8th century. A note is that Don Rodrigo is also the Spanish name for Roderic, the last Visigothic king of Spain. The three acts of the opera are divided into nine scenes linked by interludes, with labeling of the scenes as follows:

Act I
    Scene 1: Victory
    Scene 2: Coronation
    Scene 3: Secret

Act II
    Scene 4: Love
    Scene 5: Outrage
    Scene 6: Message

Act III
    Scene 7: Dream
    Scene 8: Battle
    Scene 9: Miracle

The scenes mirror each other in a format resembling a dramatic palindrome, with Scene 1 mirrored in Scene 9, Scene 2 mirrored in Scene 8, and so on, with Scene 5 forming the dramatic climax and fulcrum of the story.

At the start, Don Rodrigo has avenged an attack on his father. He is then about to be crowned King of Spain. Don Julian, Governor of Ceuta in Africa, introduces the King to his daughter Florinda. Rodrigo promises Don Julian that he will look after her as a daughter if she is permitted to stay at the royal court. At the coronation of Rodrigo, Florinda drops the crown. Although some regard this accident as a baleful sign, Rodrigo then retrieves the crown and places it on his own head. Historically, a chest in the Vault of Hercules has contained a locked mystery, which every King of Spain has respected since ancient times. However, Rodrigo opens the locked chest, where he sees the secret in the form of an Arab flag and a curse. The curse states that he who has opened the chest will be the last of his dynasty and that the Arabs will enslave Spain.

Later, Florinda bathes in a fountain, which Rodrigo sees. He goes to Florinda’s bedroom at night, and forces himself on her. Rodrigo then abandons her. Florinda writes to her father, angrily calling for revenge on Rodrigo.

Don Julian raises a rebellion against Don Rodrigo. At the battle at Guadalete, Don Julian is victorious against Don Rodrigo, which allows the Moors to enter Spain, fulfilling that part of the curse. Rodrigo becomes a penniless vagrant, and eventually finds shelter with a blind hermit. Florinda eventually discovers Rodrigo there. Rodrigo confesses his sins, and finally dies in Florinda's embrace.

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01. Piezas Infantiles - 1. Preludio [0:00:54.00]
02. - 2. Osito bailando [0:00:46.68]
03. - 3. Arrullo [0:01:14.72]
04. - 4. Soldaditos [0:01:21.15]
05. - 5. Anton Pirulero [0:00:56.20]
06. - 6. Arroro [0:02:23.38]
07. - 7. Chacarerita [0:00:43.40]
08. - 8. Arroz con lech [0:01:02.70]
09. Milonga (from Dos Canciones, op. 3, Cancional al arbol del ovido) [0:02:23.42]
10. Tres Piezas, Op. 6 - 1. Cuyana [0:04:08.03]
11. - 2. Nortena [0:04:32.17]
12. - 3. Criolla [0:04:49.65]
13. Malambo, Op. 7 [0:03:24.73]
14. Suite de Danzas Criollas, Op. 15 - 1. Adagietto pianissimo [0:02:35.22]
15. - 2. Allegro rustico [0:00:54.08]
16. - 3. Allegretto cantabile [0:02:24.40]
17. - 4. Calmo e poetico [0:02:30.60]
18. - 5. Scherzando - Coda: presto ed energico [0:03:00.25]
19. Rondo Sobre Temas Infantiles Argentinos, Op. 19 [0:03:34.07]
20. Piano Sonata No. 2, Op. 53 - I. Allegramente [0:05:47.73]
21. - II. Adagio sereno - Scorrevole - Ripresa dell'Adagio [0:05:57.20]
22. - III. Ostinato aymara [0:05:05.37]
23. Toccata (Recreaation for piano of Toccata per organo by Domenico Zipoli, 1716) [0:08:18.20]
24. Piano Sonata No. 3, Op. 55 in one movement (Impetuosamente) [0:06:35.08]

Alberto Portugheis – piano

Second release in the first-ever series to cover the complete piano music and chamber music with piano of Argentina's greatest composer, Alberto Ginastera, issued to commemorate the 10th anniversary of his death in 1983. Vol.2, which includes the fine 2nd and 3rd Piano Sonatas, is devoted to solo piano, with several of these exciting works not otherwise available. The interpreter is one of Argentina's most distinguished pianists, Alberto Portugheis. 'This disc will reward purchasers seeking something worthwhile' (Gramophone), arkivmusic.com

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01. Dos Canciones, Op. 3 (1938) - 1. Canción al árbol del olvido [0:02:29.65]
02. Dos Canciones, Op. 3 (1938) - 2. Canción a la luna lunanca [0:02:01.10]
03. Cinco Canciones Populaires Argentinas, Op. 10 (1943) - 1. Chacarera [0:01:19.05]
04. Cinco Canciones Populaires Argentinas, Op. 10 (1943) - 2. Triste [0:03:07.20]
05. Cinco Canciones Populaires Argentinas, Op. 10 (1943) - 3. Zamba [0:01:12.52]
06. Cinco Canciones Populaires Argentinas, Op. 10 (1943) - 4. Arrorró [0:02:04.58]
07. Cinco Canciones Populaires Argentinas, Op. 10 (1943) - 5. Gato [0:01:48.02]
08. Las Horas de una Estancia, Op. 11 (1943) - 1. El alba [0:04:02.38]
09. Las Horas de una Estancia, Op. 11 (1943) - 2. La mañana [0:02:47.02]
10. Las Horas de una Estancia, Op. 11 (1943) - 3. El mediodía [0:02:47.50]
11. Las Horas de una Estancia, Op. 11 (1943) - 4. La tarde [0:04:40.38]
12. Las Horas de una Estancia, Op. 11 (1943) - 5. La noche [0:04:41.35]
13. Pampeana 1, Op. 16 (1947) (Rhapsody for V & P) [0:08:25.00]
14. Quintet, Op. 29 (1963) - 1. Introduzione [0:03:47.25]
15. Quintet, Op. 29 (1963) - 2. Cadenze I per viola e violoncello [0:02:21.57]
16. Quintet, Op. 29 (1963) - 3. Scherzo fantastico [0:03:49.55]
17. Quintet, Op. 29 (1963) - 4. Cadenze II per due violini [0:03:14.73]
18. Quintet, Op. 29 (1963) - 5. Piccola musica notturna [0:03:30.70]
19. Quintet, Op. 29 (1963) - 6. Cadenza III per pianoforte [0:02:40.10]
20. Quintet, Op. 29 (1963) - 7. Finale [0:01:30.10]

Ian Hobson - Piano
Alberto Portugheis - Piano
Stephen Bingham - Violin
Olivia Blackburn - Soprano 
Marina Gillam - Violin
James Halsey - Cello
Sherban Lupu - Violin
Brenda Stewart – Viola

ASV's series of Ginastera's complete chamber music may have revealed some gems, but the quality has been somewhat variable. It certainly contains some stylistic diversity, and no issue displays that diversity more conspicuously than the volume at hand. Here we have the mildly exciting, deeply folk-inspired Pampeana no.1, several unashamedly populist songs that come across as popular or world music rather than classical music, and Ginastera's later, forbiddingly atonal (but ultimately very rewarding) piano quintet. The Pampeana no.1 is well played by Sherban Lupu and Alberto Portugheis, and may perhaps be the track to sample for most newcomers to this music (although the music is hardly very substantial).

The piano quintet (composed sixteen years later) is thoroughly avant-gardist with serialist and aleatoric elements coexisting rather convincingly in a classical structure. It is actually a rather stirring work (and the technical demands on the players pretty substantial), especially the otherworldly scherzo and the lively finale. The performances are convincing, though, and this is surely a work worth discovering even though the contrast to the other works on the disc could hardly have been greater.

The songs are pretty slight, however. Olivia Blackburn's performances are less informed by classical song traditions than by world music, and to be perfectly honest I was not very impressed - that may, of course, be because the style isn't entirely my cup of tea rather than a reflection of any shortcoming on the part of the composer or performers. Summing up the disc is rather hard, then, and while there is certainly music here for any taste, it seems also bound to contain music that any given listener will not particularly care about - for me, it was certainly the piano quintet that came across as the (by far) most interesting work. At least the performances seem consistently fine, and the presentation is good. Maybe the best recommendation is to sample before purchase (if possible). ---G.D., amazon.com

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1 – 3 Danzas Argentinas op.2

4 Pequena Danza

5 – 16 12 American Preludes op.12

17 – 20 Piano Sonata no,1 op.22

21 Pampeana no.2 op.21

22 Triste

23 – 26 Sonata for Cello and Piano op.49


Alberto Portugheis – piano
Aurora Natola-Ginastera – cello

Few composers have had the good fortune to be married to a performer of world class who has become a leading exponent of their music. Messiaen was one of that rare company: so was Ginastera, whose two cello concertos and fantastically difficult cello sonata were written for his wife Aurora Natola, whom he had first met in 1950 when the young virtuoso had won a Buenos Aires award playing his Pampeana No. 2. That is a rhapsodic showpiece with several solo cadenzas (beautifully shaped here), and features strongly rhythmic ostinatos of nationalist colouring: similar violently accented repetitive rhythms characterize most of the earlier works for piano here—many of the miniature American Preludes, the wild little dance transcribed from the ballet Estancia, the first and third of the Danzas argentinas—along with polytonality, block chords of piled-up fourths and tone-clusters. Alberto Portugheis is brilliantly fiery in all of these, but equally he brings seductive nuances to the languid second Argentine dance, a sensitivity matched by Natola in the affecting short Triste (a song transcription).

The principal works on this disc are the two sonatas. That for piano (1952) shows some stylistic development in its ghostly flitting scherzo and desolate Adagio (both of which toy with dodecaphony). The work has already established itself in the repertoire—there have been previous recordings—and Portugheis's reading is suitably intense and, where required, ferociously rhythmic: I would mildly question only a few Luftpausen at the ends of bars in passages widely extended over the keyboard. He has a splendid duo partner in the much later (1979) and exceptionally demanding Cello Sonata the most remarkable movement of which is the palindromic Presto, full of bizarre effects that seem to reflect Ginastera's enthusiasm for the paintings of Paul Klee. Outstandingly good recorded quality. -- Lionel Salter, Gramophone [10/1993]

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1. Bomarzo - CD1
2. Bomarzo - CD2

Pier Francesco Orisini, duque de Bomarzo: Salvador Novoa
Gian Conrado Orsini: Michael Devlin
Diana Orsini: Claramae Turner
Julia Farnese: Isabel Penagos
Pantasilea: Joanna Simon
Silvio de Narni: Richard Torigi
Maerbale: Brent Ellis
Girolamo: Andres Aranda
Nicolas Orsini: Joaquin Romaguera
Mensajero: Nico Castel
Niño pastor: David Prather
Pier Francesco como niño: Patricio Porras
Girolamo como niño: Andres Aranda
Maerbale como niño: Manuel Folgar

The Opera Society of Washington
Julius Rudel - conductor

Bomarzo is an opera in two acts by Alberto Ginastera, his Opus 34, to a Spanish libretto by Manuel Mujica Laínez, based on his 1962 novel about the 16th century Italian eccentric Pier Francesco Orsini. The opera had its world premiere at the Opera Society of Washington, Washington D.C., on 19 May 1967. The same production was first given at New York City Opera on 14 March 1968. The work had been scheduled for its first performance in Argentina on 4 August 1967 at the Teatro Colón, but the Argentine president, Juan Carlos Onganía, had banned the production, objecting to the sexual content of the story. The first performance in Argentina did not occur until 1972, with the composer in attendance. The first UK production was at English National Opera on 3 November 1976, in an English translation by Lionel Salter.

The opera makes use of the twelve-tone technique and quarter tones, the latter primarily in the harp parts. The work's two acts encompass a prelude and 15 scenes. Pola Suarez Urtubey has published an analysis of the opera with an outline of the dramatic structure.

Synopsis

Pier Francesco Orsini, the Duke of Bomarzo, a stunted hunchback, drinks what his astrologer Silvio de Narni claims to be a magic potion that will grant the Duke immortality. However, the drink turns out to be poisoned. After the poison starts to work, Bomarzo begins to recall his life in a series of flashbacks.

His father drags the young Pier Francesco into a room where a large skeleton dances and haunts him. Later, his father falls in battle. In Florence, the young, virginal Pier Francesco goes to see to the courtesan Pantasilea. However, he sees his image in her room of mirrors, to his disturbance.

Pier Francesco's brother Girolamo falls from a cliff and dies, and Pier Francesco becomes the new Duke of Bomarzo. He meets Julia Farnese, who prefers Bomarzo's brother Maerbale, to his anger. At a dance festival, the Duke experiences various dreams. While courting Julia, he spills a glass of red wine on her dress, which he interprets as a premonition of death.

Bomarzo and Julia eventually marry, but Bomarzo then becomes impotent. As time passes, the Duke creates large stone sculptures on his estate, symbolic of his tortured feelings. He starts to think that Julia is betraying him with Maerbale. The Duke orders his slave Abul to kill his brother.

The astrologer Silvio mixes the magic potion as Bomarzo’s nephew Nicolas watches. Nicolas then poisons the drink. After he drinks the potion, the Duke dies.

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1. Panambi, Op. 1: Claro de luna el Parana (Moonlight on the Parana) 4:42
2. Panambi, Op. 1: Fiesta indigena (Native festival) 0:26
3. Panambi, Op. 1: Ronda de la doncellas (Girls’ round dance) 1:23
4. Panambi, Op. 1: Danza de los guerreros (Warriors’ dance) 1:58		play
5. Panambi, Op. 1: Escena (Scene) 2:42
6. Panambi, Op. 1: Pantomima del amor eterno (Pantomime of eternal love) 3:53
7. Panambi, Op. 1: Canto de Guirahu (Guirahu’s Song) 3:21
8. Panambi, Op. 1: El Hechicero se dirige hacia Guirahu (The sorcerer approaches Guirahu) - Aparecen las deidades del agua (The water sprites appear) ? 0:29
9. Panambi, Op. 1: Juego de las deidades del agua (The water sprites play) 2:09
10. Panambi, Op. 1: Reaparece el Hechicero (The sorcerer reappears) - Los gritos del Hechicero (The Sorcerer’s cries) 0:36
11. Panambi, Op. 1: Inquietud de la tribu (The tribe is uneasy) - Suplica de Panambi (Panambi’s prayer) 4:15
12. Panambi, Op. 1: Invocacion a los espiritus poderosos (Invocation to the spirits of power) 1:19
13. Panambi, Op. 1: Danza del Hechicero (Dance of the Sorcerer) 2:10
14. Panambi, Op. 1: El Hechicero habla (The Sorcerer speaks) 0:34
15. Panambi, Op. 1: Lamento de las doncellas (The girls’ lament) 3:12
16. Panambi, Op. 1: Aparicion de Tupa (Tupa appears) - Los guerreros amenazan al Hechicero (The warriors threaten the Sorcerer) 0:51
17. Panambi, Op. 1: El Amanecer (Dawn) 5:09
18. Estancia, Op. 8: Scene 1: El Amanecer - Introduccion y Escena (Dawn - Introduction and Scena) 2:33
19. Estancia, Op. 8: Pequena Danza (Little dance) 2:07
20. Estancia, Op. 8: Scene 2: La Manana - Danza del trigo (Morning - Wheat Dance) 3:21
21. Estancia, Op. 8: Los trabajadores agricolas (The farm labourers) 2:55		play

22. Estancia, Op. 8: Los peones de hacienda - Entrada de los caballitos (The cattlemen - Entry of the foals) 2:04
23. Estancia, Op. 8: Los puebleros (The townsfolk) 2:19
24. Estancia, Op. 8: Scene 3: La tarde - Triste pampeano (Afternoon - ‘Triste’ from the Pampas) 3:22
25. Estancia, Op. 8: La doma (Rodeo) 2:04
26. Estancia, Op. 8: Idilio crepuscular (Twilight idyll) 2:51
27. Estancia, Op. 8: Scene 4: La Noche - Nocturno (Night - Nocturne) 4:19
28. Estancia, Op. 8: Scene 5: El Amanecer - Escena (Dawn - Scena) 1:41
29. Estancia, Op. 8: Danza final (Final Dance) (Malambo) 3:32 

Luis Gaeta - Narrator, Bass-baritone
London Symphony Orchestra
Gisèle Ben - Director

Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) ranks with Carlos Chavez, Heitor Villa-Lobos and Silvestre Revueltas as one of the best known (and most revered) Latin American composers. A native of Argentina, Ginastera was a "nationalist" composer who made use of his country's folk music and rhythms in many his works.

This newest addition to Naxos's LATIN AMERICAN CLASSICS series highlights two of Ginastera's earliest works, the ballets PANAMBI and ESTANCIA. PANAMBI, Ginestera's opus 1 which was written in 1937, is based on the supernatural tales of the Guarani Indians from northern Argentina.

Brimming with suspenseful, dreamlike melodies and contrasting hard-hitting rhythms and audacious percussion, PANAMBI, something of a pagan pageant, can be easily considered the Argentinean version of THE RITE OF SPRING. In fact, I have never heard a "Stravinsky-influenced" piece sound more like Stravinsky than this. Indeed, this is not negative; Ginastera's intrinsic originality and Latin sentiment shine throughout PANAMBI even though Stravinsky's presence ever looms in the background.

More original (but no less exciting) is Ginastera's music from the ballet ESTANCIA written in 1941. Set on the vast, lonely Argentinean plains (the pampas), ESTANCIA a nostalgic glorification of the gaucho (cowboy) and of his difficult yet vigorous life. The music of ESTANCIA is laden with Argentinean folk melodies and aesthetics, and even includes a part for bass-baritone. Like PANAMBI, there are slow, gloomy sections that seem to evoke the sprawling vastness of the pampas, but there are also moments of scintillating, percussive energy suggesting the work and play of the gauchos.

Unlike many of works from Ginastera's later period, PANAMBI and ESTANCIA avoid the severe atonality and aloofness of, for example, his two PIANO CONCERTOS (also available on Naxos). While both pieces from the present disc can certainly be classified as "modernist," they retain a welcome accessibility that won't be a turn-off to people who usually eschew such music. Any fan of early Stravinsky or Prokofiev would relish these recordings. And what recordings they are! Both ballets are impeccably recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra under the dynamic baton of the Uruguayan conductor Gisele Ben-Dor. Additionally, the bass-baritone Luis Gaeta is perfect in his turn as the narrator/soloist in ESTANCIA. His richly authoritative "Latin" tone adds authenticity and class to an already classy disc.

Another winning point for this recording is that the complete music from both ballets is presented; these are not just excerpts. (In fact, this CD features a world-premiere recording of the complete ESTANCIA music!) All in all, this Naxos album is easily recommended. ---Erik Homenick

I first heard Ginastera's music on an Arthur Fiedler LP from the '70's of a dance from Estancia. So it was with great curiosity that I acquired this CD of two complete ballets by Ginastera. Panambi is the longer of the two. It features long evocative solos for individual instruments, along with bracing sound pictures for the entire orchestra. It doesn't move along briskly, but is content with creating the various atmospheres the composer intended. Estancia is a different kettle of fish. It is vigorous and breathtakingly orchestrated, with a small evocative part for narrator/singer. It is disappointing that the text of the narration is not included in the album notes. The performances are very exciting, and one is very much aware of what a virtuoso ensemble the London Symphony is. Unfortunately, the sound engineering has a constricted dynamic range that prevents the full colors of the orchestration from being appreciated. Nevertheless, for the premiere recording of the complete Estancia, this is a necessary purchase. ---David Saemann

Although classical recordings, particularly those of orchestral music, are expensive to make and usually have only the faintest hope of generating enough unit movement to pay the studio bill, some don't really get a fair shot at finding an audience before the delete sheet arrives to reclaim them. Gisèle Ben-Dor's 1997 recording of the complete scores of Alberto Ginastera's first two ballets Panambí and Estancia with the London Symphony Orchestra are a good example of this; issued on Conifer Classics in 1998, the disc was barely in the catalog a year before BMG pulled the plug on its classical division, which essentially rang the death knell for Conifer. Nearly a decade later, Naxos rights this wrong by making this performance available once again in its Latin American Classics Series.

Both Panambí and Estancia are better known in their incarnations as concert suites; the concert suite for Estancia is probably the best-known orchestral work of Ginastera overall. This is the first recording made of Estancia as a complete ballet, and Ben-Dor has taken the option of having a narrator recite verses from the source work, José Hernández's poem "Martin Fierro," to link the various parts of the ballet, as is common in Argentine performances. Not everyone will be pleased with this choice, but it is completely in keeping with the nature of the work, and the narration is well delivered by singer/actor Luis Gaeta. In some cases Ben-Dor has also opted to substitute movements from the suites for those in the original ballets; although through mere circumstance the suites for both works were premiered before the ballets were staged, they were written later and represent ideas that seem a bit more finished than in the originals. Again, not everyone will find that a satisfactory compromise, but you have to hand it to Ben-Dor for taking the initiative in making these recordings the best that they can be from a textual standpoint.

These recordings were made at Abbey Road and the London Philharmonic Orchestra does a terrific job in making these unfamiliar, and often dense, scores sing under Ben-Dor's knowing baton. This is not as crisp a performance as the best ones of the suites -- just witness Eduardo Mata's 1995 recording of the Estancia Suite on the Dorian disc Latin American Ballets, one of his last. However, it is better than just adequate and the Danza Final "Malambo" in Estancia packs plenty of wallop, just as it should. Moreover, one is grateful to finally have access to a complete recording of Estancia, which reveals the work as a masterpiece of modern composition, containing many inspired moments and ideas that are 50 years ahead of their time. ---Uncle Dave Lewis , Rovi

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(Josep Pons)

Dances from Estancia, dance suite from the ballet, Op. 8a:
1. Los trabajadores agrícolas
2. Danza del trigo
3. Los peones de hacienda

4. Danza final (Malambo)

Harp Concerto, Op. 25:
5. Allegro giusto
6. Molto moderato
7. Liberamente capriccioso – Vivace

8. Creole Faust Overture, for orchestra, Op. 9

Variaciones concertantes, for chamber orchestra, Op. 23:
9. Tema per violoncello ed arpa
10. Interludio per corde
11. Variazione giocosa per flauto
12. Variazione in modo di scherzo per clarinett
13. Variazione drammatica per viola
14. Variazione canonica per oboe e fagotto
15. Variazione ritmica per trombe e trombone
16. Variazione in modi di moto perpetuo per vio
17. Variazione pastorale per corno
18. Interludio per fiati
19. Ripresa dal tema per contrabasso
20. Variazione finale in modo di rondo per orch

Magdalena Barrera  - harp
Jacopo di Tonn – cello
Orquesta Ciudad de Granada
Josep Pons – conductor

This is a great CD. Why? Because these are probably the Argentinian composer Alberto Ginastera's four most accessible pieces, the sound is clear and cool, and Pons and his smallish orchestra play with finesse. This is, in my opinion, the best harp concerto written in the last hundred years, and the Variaciones concertantes Op. 23 is a masterpiece. You can certainly find bigger, splashier versions of the Estancia ballet suite: if that's your main interest, look for Gisele Ben-Dor's LSO version of the complete ballet (with the complete Panambi) on a hard to find Conifer CD. And Howard Hanson's old Rochester recording of the Creole Faust Overture is much more earthy. Nevertheless, Pons lays it all out beautifully before us, and avoids the slow tempi that characterize some of his other performances (the Bizet Symphony, for instance). Make no mistake, this is music to be savoured. --- philvscott, amazon.com

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Estancia, Op. 8
1. Scene 2: Los Trabajadores Agricolas		2:52
2. Scene 2: Danza del Trigo		3:07
3. Scene 3: La Doma		2:01
4. Scene 3: Idilio Crepuscular		2:49	
5. Scene 5: Danza Final: Malambo		3:27	

Suite de danzas criollas, Op. 15 (arr. S. Cohen for orchestra)
6. I. Adagietto pianissimo		1:55
7. II. Allegro rustico		0:38	
8. III. Allegretto cantabile	1:54
9. IV. Calmo e poetico		1:43
10. V. Scherzando - Coda: Presto ed energico	2:59

Panambi, Op. 1
11. Danza de los Guerreros		1:56	
12. Juego de las Deidades del Agua		2:09	
13. Invocacion a los Espiritus Poderosos		1:16
14. Danza del Hechicero	2:10
15. El Amanecer		4:57

Ollantay, Op. 17
16. I. Paisaje de Ollantaytambo		4:10
17.. Los Guerreros		3:05
18. III. La Muerte de Ollantay		5:11

Popol vuh, Op. 44
19. I. La Noche de los Tiempos		5:33
20. II. El Nacimiento de la Tierra		4:32
21. III. El Despertar de la Naturaleza	5:01
22. IV. El Grito de la Creacion		0:25
23. V. La Gran Lluvia		3:10
24. VI. La Ceremonia Magica del Maiz		2:28
25. VII. El Sol, la Luna y las Estrellas		1:35
26. VIII. El Amanecer De La Humanidad		1:15

London Symphony Orchestra (Estancia, Panambí)
Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra (Suite de Danzas Criollas)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales (Ollantay, Popol Vuh)
Gisèle Ben-Dor – conductor

To the best of my knowledge, this is the second recording of Ginastera’s final and unfinished orchestral essay, Popol Vuh: The Mayan Creation, op. 44, originally commissioned by Eugene Ormandy for his Philadelphia Orchestra. The composer worked on it piecemeal over the last eight years of his life, leaving eight of its proposed nine sections complete and fully orchestrated when he died. Unfortunately, the unwritten ninth section was to represent the end of the process of the world’s creation, as outlined in ancient Mayan mythology. (The mythological tale was recorded by an unknown Dominican missionary in the 1550s. That text, the Popol Vuh or Council Book, is now the most detailed source material we have concerning the Mayan civilization.) Nevertheless, the eight extant sections form a satisfying work in their own right, as Leonard Slatkin realized when he received the score and premiered it in 1989, six years after the composer’s death. Slatkin went on to record the work with the St. Louis Symphony.

I do not have Slatkin’s disc at hand for comparison, but Gisèle Ben-Dor and the well-regarded BBC Orchestra of Wales give a tremendous performance in this new recording. As you might imagine, there is a certain amount of subterranean brooding in the early sections (such as the first movement, “The Everlasting Night”), broken by shattering fortissimo explosions of sound and energy. The second and third movements, titled “The Birth of the Earth” and “Nature Awakes” respectively, recall earlier musical depictions of prehistoric activity, most notably Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring and Max Steiner’s score for the 1933 movie King Kong . When human beings appear in the form of native Indians, from the sixth movement on (“The Magic Ceremony of Indian Corn”), the composer revisits his early ballet music, employing accented dance rhythms. The final movement, “The Dawn of Humankind,” is a brass chorale surrounded by swirling woodwind figuration. While not very long, it is decisive enough to act as an appropriate conclusion, so the work does not feel incomplete. Ginastera’s orchestral imagination and expertise are evident throughout, and the textures are superbly captured in the vivid Naxos recording.

The symphonic triptych Ollantay (1946) is a precursor to the later work, inspired by Inca mythology. Opening with diatonic fanfares, the music builds to a vigorous war dance before reaching a peaceful conclusion. Like the other works on this disc, it is written in the composer’s nationalistic style: strongly rhythmic in the fast moments, coolly impressionistic elsewhere.

The two ballet scores that made Ginastera’s reputation were Panambí and Estancia , both set around the plains of Argentina. The orchestral suites Ginastera subtracted from these scores are well known and, in the case of Estancia , oft-recorded. However, that is not what we have here. Ben-Dor and the London Symphony Orchestra made a recording of the complete ballets, originally released on the Conifer label in 1998 and subsequently reissued by Naxos. (See James Miller’s review in Fanfare 30:5.) Here she gives us what are termed extended suites from the two works. They might more accurately be called selections, as they seem to be extracts from the complete ballet recordings. (The session dates are the same.)

New to me—and I think to disc—is the orchestral version of a piano work, the Suite de Danzas Criollas , op. 15. The arrangement by Shimon Cohen, commissioned by Ben-Dor to perform with the Jerusalem orchestra, is sometimes splashy in a way that the composer’s own orchestrations are not. Note, for instance, the doubling of xylophone and violins in the final presto . Nonetheless, it is exciting and vibrant on its own terms.

Recording quality is full and clear, despite the fact that this program was recorded in different venues and at different times. The London performances, as I said, have been issued before, but I can find no evidence of a previous incarnation of the Danzas Criollas, Ollantay, or Popol Vuh , which were recorded in 2006 and 2001 respectively. Once again, we owe Naxos a debt for making these colorful performances available. ---FANFARE: Phillip Scott, arkivmusic.com

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Popol Vuh, for orchestra, Op. 44
1	1. La noche de los tiempos (The Everlasting Night)			
2	2. El nacimiento de la tierra (The Birth of the Earth)		
3	3. El despertar de la naturaleza (Nature Wakes)			
4	4. El grito de la creacion (The Cry of Creation)		
5	5. La gran lluvia (The Grand Rain)			
6	6. La ceremonia magica del maiz (The Magic Ceremony of Indian Corn)		
7	7. El sol, la luna, las estrellas (The Sun, the Moon, the Stars)

Cantata for Magic America, for soprano & percussion orchestra, Op. 27
8	1. Preludio y canto a la aurora (Prelude and Song of Dawn)			
9	2. Nocturno y canto de amor (Nocturne and Love Song)			
10	3. Canto para la partida de los guerreros (Song for the Warriors)		
11	4. Interludio fantastico (Fantastic Interlude)		
12	5. Canto de agonia y desolacion (Song of Agony and Desolation)			
13	6. Canto de la profecia (Song of Prophecy)

Rayanne Dupuis – soprano
Ensemble S
Schlagzeugensemble der Musikhochschule Köln
Bugallo-Williams Piano Duo
Stefan Asbury - conductor

Alberto Ginastera left his massive orchestral piece Popol Vuh, which had been commissioned by Eugene Ormandy, unfinished at his death in 1983, and it was only after it was discovered by pianist Barbara Nissman that it had its premiere in 1989, with Leonard Slatkin and Saint Louis Symphony. A musical reimagining of Mayan creation mythology, it's a monumental piece that viscerally evokes a primitive world using both folk elements and sophisticated modernist techniques. The composer wrote that he was aiming for a "reconstitution of the transcendental aspect of the ancient pre-Columbian world," and the piece is fully successful at capturing that vision with music that is powerfully primal, strange, and darkly beautiful. Although Ginastera never composed the final movement, The Dawn of Mankind, the seventh, The Sun, the Moon, and the Stars, makes a magnificent finale, so the whole work seems integrated and satisfyingly complete. Stefan Asbury leads WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln in a performance that captures both the work's gravity and its dazzling explosiveness.

Ginastera wrote Cantata para América Magica, scored for soprano, 13 percussionists and 2 pianos, in 1960, during the period when his music was largely influenced by serialism and postwar European trends. The pre-Columbian texts are similar in tone to those on which he drew for Popol Vuh, but this work is clearly modernist, and in spite of its colorful use of a massive percussion ensemble, is less emotionally communicative and packs nowhere near the punch of the orchestral work. Soprano Rayanne Dupuis manages the solo part, but she doesn't have a particularly sensuous instrument and lacks the assurance and vocal heft to bring it fully to life. Schlagzeugensemble der Musikhochschule Köln, Ensemble S, and the Bugallo-Williams Piano Duo, led by Asbury, play with astonishing virtuosity. The sound of Neos' SACD is clear and clean, but in the cantata, doesn't always succeed in managing the tricky balance between the soloists and the massive arsenal of percussionists. --- Stephen Eddins, Rovi

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Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 36 
1. I. Adagio Molto Appassionato
2. II. Presto Sfumato
3. III. Assai Mosso Ed Esaltado - Largo Amoroso

Cello Concerto No. 2, Op. 50 
4. I. Metamorfosi Di Un Tema
5. II. Scherzo Sfuggevole
6. III. Nottilucente
7. IV. Cadenza E Finale Rustico

Aurora Natola-Ginastera (Cello)
Castille and Leon Symphony Orchestra
Max Bragado-Darman – conductor

Argentinean Alberto Ginastera was among the most successful mid-twentieth century composers in retaining the populist accessibility of his early works while incorporating elements of serialism as his style developed. His later works may not have the hummable melodies or propulsive rhythmic drive of his early period, but they have a comparable dramatic logic and emotional directness, which give them an immediate appeal. His two cello concertos, written in 1968 and 1981, are clearly "modernist" works of his late period, but they are warmly lyrical, intensely dramatic, and orchestrated with intriguing inventiveness. In their slow sections, they are also prime examples of the mysterious, gorgeously evocative atmospherics of which Ginastera was a master throughout his career. The performances here have the additional interest of being performed by the composer's widow, Aurora Nátola-Ginastera, who clearly has an intimate familiarity with the music's emotional content, as well as the refined technique and musicianship to put the concertos across with complete assurance. Although she is not well known in the U.S., Casals called her "one of the most outstanding cellists of her generation," and she received similar accolades from Rostropovich. These concertos are works that deserve broader exposure, and these performances are fully persuasive. Max Bragado Darman leads Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León in energetic and nuanced readings of the scores. The recorded sound isn't absolutely clean by the highest modern standards, but the ear quickly adjusts as the music begins to weave its spell. --- Stephen Eddins, Rovi

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