Leo Brouwer

Leo Brouwer

Leo Brouwer , actually Juan Leovigildo Brouwer Mesquida (born March 1, 1939 in Havana ), is a Cuban conductor , guitarist , percussionist , composer , arranger and music teacher . He is one of the most important contemporary South American guitar composers. His works include chamber music , symphonies and instrumental concerts . He has also composed film scores for excellent films such as Bittersweet Chocolate (1992) and So Close to Heaven (1995). His sound creations sometimes reflect traditional African music . He worked with guitarists John Williams and Julian Bream . He was also widely recognized by Tōru Takemitsu and Hans Werner Henze . He has received numerous international awards, including becoming an honorary member of UNESCO in 2001 and the prestigious Ibero-American Tomás-Luis-de-Victoria Prize in 2010 .

biography

Youth, beginnings

He began playing the guitar at the age of 13, inspired by listening to flamenco music and encouraged by his father Juan Brouwer , who in addition to his profession as a doctor also played the guitar as an amateur himself, and his aunt Caridad Mezquida . After his parents divorced, he grew up with his grandmother, through whom he came into contact with his famous great-uncle Ernesto Lecuona . His first guitar teacher (from 1953 to 1954) was Isaac Nicola , who in turn had learned from Emilio Pujol . He later attended the Carlos Alfredo Peyrellade Conservatory in Havana.

First compositions

Leo Brouwer thus learned the traditional repertoire of a classical guitarist and made his first public appearance at the age of 17. At this point in time, his interest in composing was already evident, which he initially acquired self-taught . His first works include Music and Suite from 1954. The compositions Preludio (1956) and Fuga No. 1 (1959) were stylistically influenced by Béla Bartók and Igor Stravinsky .

He continued his education through scholarships in the USA, where he worked with Stefan Wolpe , Carl Bamberger and Vincent Persichetti at the Juilliard School of Music and with Isadore Freed , Joseph Iadone and Edward Diemente at the Hartt School of the University of Hartford (from 1959 to 1960 ) Studied composition. Brouwer also dealt with experimental trends. This can be seen, for example, in the Elogio de la Danza (homage to dance), which, in contrast to his earlier compositions, has a strongly dissonant character. Brouwer also largely refrained from using Cuban rhythms in this piece. The piece consists of two movements: a lento and a strongly rhythmically concise ostinato. Today it is one of the most popular pieces for guitar and dancers worldwide .

Further phases

In the next phase, compositions such as Canticum and Concerto No. 1 for Guitar and Orchestra , in which his preoccupation with serial music , twelve-tone music and modal music becomes clear. He was influenced by modern composers such as Luigi Nono and Iannis Xenakis .

In 1970 Brouwer played the guitar at the premiere of the recital for four musicians El Cimarrón at the Berlin Festival . Together with Morton Feldman , he received a scholarship from the DAAD in Berlin in 1972 .

The music from the third phase of his work makes a minimalist impression, which Leo Brouwer himself describes as the development of a modular system . These include compositions such as El Decamerón Negro (1981, dedicated to Sharon Isbin ) or Hika “In Memorium Toru Takemitsu” (1996).

For the guitar competition in Esztergom , Hungary , Leo Brouwer wrote the piece Blue Skies and Smile , which he performed with the Bálint Bakfark guitar orchestra, which consisted of 200 guitarists.

Other activities

Leo Brouwer (Havana 1998)

He has also written technical exercises for the guitar (the 20 Éstudios Sencillos , which are part of the guitar performance repertoire ), worked as an arranger and composed various film scores . In addition to his compositions for guitar, he wrote chamber music , choral works, a modern ballet , pieces for wind ensemble as well as orchestral works.

In addition, Leo Brouwer was Deputy Music Director at Radio Habana Cuba from 1960 to 1961 , Professor of Composition (from 1961 to 1967 at the National Conservatory in Havana), musical advisor for Cuban television and radio, and was a member of the jury at various musical competitions , has received several international prizes, was a lecturer at the Academy of the Arts in Berlin and became an honorary member of UNESCO in 1987 ; in the same year as Isaac Stern and Alain Daniélou . Yehudi Menuhin , Ravi Shankar , Herbert von Karajan and Joan Sutherland have already received this honor .

He was a founding member of the Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industria Cinematográficos , whose music director he has been since 1969. He belonged here, together with Silvio Rodríguez , Pablo Milanés , Sergio Vitier , to the group for clay experiments . It set standards in Latin American film and pop music. Brouwer composed 60 pieces himself, including La última cena (The Last Supper, 1976) directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea as well as Like Water for Chocolate (Bittersweet chocolate, 1993) and A Walk in the Clouds ( So Close to Heaven , 1995) des Director Alfonso Arau .

Brouwer has conducted orchestras all over the world. He has made guest appearances with the Berlin Philharmonic , the Royal Scottish National Orchestra , the BBC Chamber Orchestra, the National Symphony Orchestra of Mexico, the RAI Symphony Orchestra, the Orchester Philharmonique de Liège, the Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra Finland and the Istanbul State Symphony Orchestra. He chaired the Cuba's National Symphony Orchestra for ten years and founded and directed the Cordoba Orchestra in Spain from 1992 to 2001 .

He arranged the original compositions of Scott Joplin's Elite Syncopations and The Entertainer, as well as John Lennon's and Paul McCartney's Fool on the Hill .

Awards

• 1962 Corresponding member of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid, Spain
• 1982 Alejo Carpentier Medal, Cuba
• 1984 Order of Félix Varela, Cuba
• 1989 honorary member of the Instituto Italo-Latinoamericano in Rome, Italy
• 1997 La Chitarra con amore in Milan, Italy
• 1998 Manuel de Falla Prize, Spain and Cuba
• 1999 Felix Varela Order, First Class, Cuba
• 1999 National Prize for Music, Cuba
• 2001 Honorary Doctorate from the Instituto Superior de Arte , Cuba
• 2001 honorary member of UNESCO
• 2002 Grand Prix Cubadisco, Cuba
• 2003 winner of the Midem Classical Awards in Cannes, France
• 2005 Cubadisco Prize, Cuba
• 2007 Honorary Doctorate from the Universidad de Chile , Chile
• 2007 Order of Pablo Neruda in Santiago, Chile
• 2008 Premio Goffredo Petrassi de Composición in Zagarolo, Italy
• 2009 National Cinema Award, Cuba
• 2010 Tomás Luis de Victoria Prize , Spain
• 2019 Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters

Works for guitar

Guitar solo

• 1955 Suite No. 1 Antigua
• 1955 Suite No. 2
• 1956 Preludio
• 1957 Danza Característica "Quítate de la Acera"
• 1959 Fuga No. 1
• 1959 Tres Apuntes
• 1964 Danza del Altiplano
• 1964 Elogio de la Danza
• 1968 Canticum
• 1968 Un Dia de Noviembre
• 1971 La Espiral Eterna
• 1972 Estudios Sencillos (Nos. 1–5 and 6–10)
• 1973 Parábola
• 1974 Tarantos
• 1975 Cadences
• 1981 El Decamerón Negro
• 1981 Preludios Epigramáticos Nos. 1-6
• 1983 Estudios Sencillos (Nos. 11-20)
• 1984 Variations on a Theme of Django Reinhardt
• 1987 Paisaje Cubano con Campanas
• 1990 Sonata (composed for Julian Bream )

• Fandangos y boleros

• Sarabanda de Scriabin

• Toccata de Pasquini

• 1993 Rito de los Orishás
• 1996 Hika: "In Memoriam Toru Takemitsu"
• 1996 Hoja de album
• 1996 Paisaje Cubano con Tristeza
• 1999 An Idea (Passacaglia por Eli)
• 2000 Viaje a la Semilla
• 2001 Nuevos Estudios Sencillos Nos. 1-10
• 2004 Omaggio a Prokofiev
• 2004 La Ciudad De Las Columnas
• 2008 Paisaje Cubano con fiesta
• Canción triste
• Cantilena de los bosques dedicata a Roberto Fabbri
• Dos aires populares cubanos

• Guajira criolla

• Zapateado

• Exaedros 1
• Paisaje Cubano con lluvia
• Paisaje Cubano with rumba
• Piezas sin títulos Nos. 1-3
• Variants
• Variations on a Piazzolla Tango
• Dos temas populares cubanos

• Drume negrita, cancion de cuna (Berceuse) , based on a theme by Eliseo Grenet

• Ojos Brujos , based on a theme by Gonzalo Roig

Guitar groups

Guitar duo

• 1957-1958 Micropiezas. Homage to Darius Milhaud
• 1958 Micropiezas No. 5
• 1964 Música incidental campesina, (music for the play El fantasma )
• Per Suonare a Due
• Triptoco

Guitar quartet

• Canciones remotas
• Toccata para cuatro o más guitarras
• Toccata
• Paisaje Cubano Con Rumba

Guitar orchestra

• 1979 Acerca del cielo, el aire y la sonrisa

Guitar and string quartet

• Quintet for guitar and string quartet

Guitar and orchestra

• 1958 Tres danzas concertantes
• 1983 Retrats Catalans
• 1985 From Yesterday to Penny Lane
• 1995 Concierto Omaggio a Paganini (concerto for guitar and violin)
• 2001 Concierto Itálico (concert for guitar quartet and string orchestra)

Concerts for guitar / conciertos para guitarra

• 19 ?? Concierto pg No. 1
• 1981 Concierto pg No. 2 de Lieja
• 1986 Concierto pg No. 3 Elegiaco
• 1987 Concierto pg No. 4 de Toronto
• 1991 Concierto pg No. 5 de Helsinki
• 1997 Concierto pg No. 6 de Volos
• 1998 Concierto pg No. 7 "La Habana"
• 1999 Concierto pg No. 8 "Concierto Cantata de Perugia"
• 2002 Concierto pg No. 9 "de Benicassim"
• 2003 Concierto pg No. 10 "Book of Signs" (concert for two guitars)
• 2007 Concierto pg No. 11 "de Requim (In memoriam Toru Takemitsu)"

Other works

Solo cast

• 1960 Sonata para cello solo (cello)
• 1962 Variantes para un percusionista (percussion)
• Diary Of An Alien-Flute Solo (flute)

Ensemble / chamber music

String quartet

• Ballad for Flute and Strings
• 1961 Cuarteto de cuerdas No. 1, a la memoria de Bela Bartók
• Cuarteto de cuerdas No. 2
• Cuarteto de cuerdas No. 3
• Demeter Prelude

Other

• 1970 Sonata pian e forte (piano and recording tape)
• 1970 Per Suonare a Tre (for alto flute and guitar)
• 1983 Manuscrito antiguo found en una botella (piano trio)
• Canción de Gesta (chamber orchestra)
• Sonata por Cor et Piano (strings and piano)
• Pictures of Another Exhibition (strings and piano)
• La Region Mas Transparente (flute and piano)
• Basso Continuo I (2 clarinets)
• La Vida Misma (piano, violin, cello and percussion)
• 2009 Mitología de las Aguas (Sonata N ° 1 for flute and guitar) - Dedicated to Sef Albertz

Works for orchestra

• 1984 Canciones remotas (string orchestra)
• Symphony No. 1 (orchestra)
• Remembrances (orchestra)
• Anima Latina (orchestra)
• Cadence Quatuor en Ré (orchestra)

Orchestra with solo instruments

• 1972 Balada, concierto para flauta y orquesta de cuerdas (flute and string orchestra)
• 1972 Concierto para violín y orquesta (violin and orchestra)
• 1981 Cancion de Gesta (For the Boat Loaded with the Future) (Symphonic wind orchestra with piano)

Choir

• Canciones Amatorias (para coro mixto, sobre textos de Federico García Lorca y José Hernández ) (SATB choir)

Film music

• 1960: Historias de la revolución
• 1965: Vaqueros del cauto
• 1966: Papeles son papeles
• 1966: The death of a bureaucrat (La muerte de un burócrata)
• 1967: The Adventures of Juan Quin Quin (Las aventuras de Juan Quin Quin)
• 1968: LBJ
• 1968: Hanoi, martes 13
• 1968: Memorias del subdesarrollo
• 1968: Lucía
• 1969: Despegue a las 18:00
• 1971: The Battle of the Ten Million (La bataille des dix millions)
• 1972: Una pelea cubana contra los demonios
• 1973: El extraño caso de Rachel K
• 1973: El hombre de Maisinicú
• 1975: Abril de Vietnam en el año del gato
• 1975: Ustedes tienen la palabra
• 1976: One day in November (Un día de noviembre)
• 1976: La cantata de Chile
• 1976: La última cena
• 1977: Mi hermano Fidel
• 1977: Destino manifiesto
• 1978: Son o no son
• 1978: El recurso del método
• 1979: No hay sábado sin sol
• 1979: The Survivors (Los sobrevivientes)
• 1979: The widow of Montiel (La viuda de Montiel)
• 1980: La guerra necesaria
• 1982: Una y otra vez
• 1982: Cecilia Valdés
• 1983: Tiempo de amar
• 1983: Los refugiados de la cueva del muerto
• 1983: Alsino and the Condor (Alsino y el cóndor)
• 1983: The compass rose (La rosa de los vientos)
• 1983: Hasta cierto punto
• 1984: La segunda hora de Esteban Zayas
• 1985: Cuando una mujer no duerme
• 1985: Wild Dogs (Jíbaro)
• 1985: Amada - Young woman from Havana (Amada)
• 1986: Tiempo de morir
• 1992: Bittersweet chocolate (Como agua para chocolate)
• 1995: Un héroe se hace a patadas
• 1995: So Close to Heaven (A Walk in the Clouds)
• 1998: Mátame mucho
• 2002: Ficción sin ficción
• 2003: Memorias de Lucía
• 2004: Lucía y el tiempo
• 2004: La persistencia de la memoria
• 2005: Kordavision

Recordings

• De Bach a Los Beatles ( EGREM )
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. I. Brouwer por Brouwer. (EGREM)
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. II. Brouwer intérprete. (EGREM)
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. III. Re-creaciones. (EGREM)
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. IV. Conciertos para guitarra y orquesta. (EGREM)
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. V. Brouwer por los maestros Rey Guerra y Joaquín Clerch. (EGREM)
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. VI. Presencia en el Festival Internacional de guitarra ... (EGREM)
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. VII. Ensambles con guitarras. (EGREM)
• La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. VIII. Actuaciones memorables. (EGREM)
• Leo Brouwer Collection Vol. 1-6
• Antología selecta, vols. 1-3. (EGREM - Parnaso)

Trivia

The publisher Editions Max Eschig in Paris has published an extensive work edition .

The heavy metal guitarist Randy Rhoads cites the sixth of Estudios Sencillos as an introduction to "Diary of a Madman" on Ozzy Osbourne's eponymous album.

literature

• Hucky Eichelmann: Leo Brouwers "La Espiral Eterna". An analysis , nova giulianiad 3/84
• Maurice J. Summerfield: The Classical Guitar. Its Evolution, Players and Personalities Since 1800 . 5th Edition, Ashley Mark Publishing Company, Newcastle upon Tyne 2002, ISBN 1-872639-51-8 , pp. 70-73.

Web links

Commons : Leo Brouwer  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Works by and about Leo Brouwer in the catalog of the German National Library
• Leo Brouwer in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Leo Brouwer on Music Web (English)
• Biography of Leo Brouwer (Spanish)
• Leo Brouwer Article in the Cuban web encyclopedia EcuRed

Individual evidence

1. ^ ^{A b c} Richard M. Juang, Noelle Anne Morrissette: Africa and the Americas. Culture, Politics, and History . Volume 2, ABC-CLIO, 2008, ISBN 978-1-85109-441-7 , p. 206.
2. ^ William Luis: Culture and customs of Cuba . Greenwood Pub Group, 2001, ISBN 0-313-30433-5 , p. 143.
3. ^ Victor Coelho: The Cambridge companion to the guitar . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2003, ISBN 0-521-80192-3 , p. 197.
4. ↑ Leo Brouwer at Indopedia ( Memento of the original from March 11, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
5. ↑ schott aktuell - the journal 2/1999 online ( Memento of the original from November 18, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 462 kB) 
6. ↑ Leo Brouwer Mezquida at Cubacine  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
7. ^ Hannes Fricke: Myth guitar: history, interpreters, great hours. Reclam, Stuttgart 2013, ISBN 978-3-15-020279-1 , pp. 203 f.
8. ^ Don Michael Randel: The Harvard biographical dictionary of music . Harvard University Press, Cambridge 1996, ISBN 0-674-37299-9 , p. 111.
9. ↑ David M. Cummings, Melrose Press: International who's who in music and musicians' directory . Routledge, London 2000, ISBN 0-948875-53-4 , p. 84.
10. ↑ ^{a b} Richard M. Juang, Noelle Anne Morrissette: Africa and the Americas. Culture, Politics, and History . Volume 2, ABC-CLIO, 2008, ISBN 978-1-85109-441-7 , p. 207.
11. ^ Claudia Lightfoot: Havana. A Cultural and Literary Companion . Signal Books, Oxford 2002, ISBN 1-902669-33-9 , p. 208.
12. ↑ Leo Brouwer at AfroClassical.com
13. ^ Carlos Prieto, Elena C. Murray: The adventures of a cello . University of Texas Press, 2006, ISBN 0-292-71322-3 , p. 274.
14. ^ Leo Brouwer at The Music Web
15. ↑ Newly elected members 2019. American Academy of Arts and Letters, accessed May 30, 2019 . 
16. ^ Hannes Fricke: Myth guitar: history, interpreters, great hours. Reclam, Stuttgart 2013, ISBN 978-3-15-020279-1 , p. 203.
17. ↑ De Bach a Los Beatles (Spanish)
18. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. I. (Spanish)
19. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. II. (Spanish)
20. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. III. (Spanish)
21. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. IV. (Spanish)
22. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. V. (Spanish)
23. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. VI. (Spanish)
24. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. VII. (Spanish)
25. ↑ La obra guitarrística de Leo Brouwer. Vol. VIII. (Spanish)
26. ↑ Leo Brouwer Collection Vol. 1–6 (Frame) ( Memento of the original from June 25, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English)