The 19th-Century Guitar Gianluigi Giglio

• Fernando Sor (1778 - 1839):
• 1Introduction & Variations on "Malbrough s'en va-t-en guerre", Op. 2808:36
• 2Les folies d'Espagne & Minuet, Op. 15a04:34
• 3Introduction & Variations on a Theme by Mozart, Op. 908:40
• 4Easy Fantasy in A Minor, Op. 5809:28
• 6 Bagatelles, Op. 43 "Mes ennuis":
• 56 Bagatelles, Op. 43 "Mes ennuis": No. 3, Cantabile04:22
• 66 Bagatelles, Op. 43 "Mes ennuis": No. 5, Andante05:02
• Elegiac Fantasy in E Major, Op. 59:
• 7Elegiac Fantasy in E Major, Op. 59: Ia. Introduction - Andante largo08:36
• 8Elegiac Fantasy in E Major, Op. 59: Ib. March funèbre - Andante moderato07:30
• Fernando Sor:
• 9Capriccio in E Major, Op. 50 "Le calme"08:07
• Fernando Sor
• 1024 Progressive Lessons for Beginners, Op. 31: No. 23 in E Major, The Movement of a Religious Prayer03:39
• Total Runtime01:08:34

Info for The 19th-Century Guitar

The acclaimed Italian guitarist Gianluigi Giglio makes his debut on SOMM Recordings with The 19th Century Guitar, a scintillating recital of music by Fernando Sor, a pioneering champion of the guitar in the vanguard of raising its profile out of the tavern and into the concert hall.

Giglio’s wide-ranging recital explores Sor’s innate feeling for the guitar and charts the increasing demands he placed on the instrument in a body of work that transformed its standing with public and pundits alike.

From the early Op.9 masterpiece that charted a new and expressive landscape for the guitar – Introduction and Variations on a Theme by Mozart – to the late Elegiac Fantasy (Op.59) with its leanings towards newly-emerging Romanticism, this is a textbook display of the instrument’s many abilities given eloquent voice by a master guitarist.

Other notable pieces include the Introduction and Variations on ‘Malbrough s’en va-t-en guerre’ (Op.28), a deliciously knowing exercise in re-creating 18th-century style, the possibly unique programmatic caprice Le calme (Op.50) and the no less singular étude The movement of a religious prayer from the Op.31 24 Progressive Lessons for Beginners which is distinguished by its beautiful sense of polyphony.

Gianluigi Giglio plays a guitar made by the noted Parisian luthier René Lacôte in Paris in 1834.

SOMM’s previous recordings of Fernando Sor include Eros Roselli’s recital Studies for Guitar (SOMMCD 021) and 12 Seguidillas performed by Craig Ogden on a disc of Spanish Songs featuring soprano Patricia Rozario (SOMMCD 078). Commenting on the Seguidillas, Allmusic.com said: “With their juxtaposition of compact, melodramatic songs and comic numbers… they would entertain any crowd”.

Gianluigi Giglio, classical guitar

Gianluigi Giglio
studied at the San Pietro a Majella Conservatoire of Naples, where he earned a diploma in guitar performance with highest honours. He earned his Master’s degree with highest honours. While pursuing his music studies, he was also awarded a Master’s degree in Architecture at the University of Naples.

His repertoire ranges from Renaissance to contemporary music, including concertos for guitar and orchestra as well as a variety of chamber ensembles. In the contemporary music field, he has performed a complex composition by Pierre Boulez, Le Marteau sans maître, with the Freon Ensemble (Rome) and collaborated to release the monographic CD of the compositions by Franco Donatoni. His analyses of contemporary music (Ernst Krenek, Maurice Ohana, Manuel De Falla), critical articles and reviews, have been published in specialist magazines.

His performances have been broadcast by Rai, Rai Radio Tre and Rai Radio Filodiffusione (Italy’s national public broadcasting company).

For the last several years he has focused on early nineteenth-century guitar repertoire which he plays on a Fabricatore guitar, dating from 1817, and on a Lacôte dating from 1834.

He regularly performs in a trio consisting of flute, viola and guitar; their CD of Francesco Molino’s trios on the Tactus label was considered Best CD of 2009 by the English magazine Classical Guitar. In 2014, he was the artistic director of the Heartstrings Guitar Festival in Ravello. He is currently a professor of classical guitar at the Giuseppe Martucci Conservatoire in Salerno.

Booklet for The 19th-Century Guitar