Italian guitarist Francesco Molmenti plays the historic Antonio de Torres 1884 guitar from the 'Carlo Carutti Collection, ' located at the Ala Ponzone Civic Museum in Cremona. Antonio de Torres Jurado (Almeria, 13 giugno 1817 - 19 novembre 1892) stands as a central figure in the history of guitar making. His contribution was crucial in defining the dimensions, shape, design, and construction technique of the modern classical guitar. Thanks to his work, the instrument acquired the features that still distinguish it today. Torres' training most likely took place in Granada. This formative period coincided with what is known as the first era of his activity, which ended in 1869. During these years, the technical and artistic level achieved by the Spanish luthier was particularly high, confirming him as one of the greatest makers of his time. After a break of several years, Torres began in 1875 what is defined as the second era of his production. This phase, which continued until his death in 1892, was characterised by a perfect balance between shape, proportions, weight, and dimensions, elements that made his guitars models of reference for generations of luthiers. The more than one hundred known guitars built by Torres were admired and often imitated: over the years, many instruments were attributed to him, even if they were fakes, sometimes made by renowned and skilled luthiers. A representative example of Torres' work is the guitar preserved in the Carlo Alberto Carutti collection. Built in Almeria, the instrument features a label with the date 1884 and progressive number 59, placing it in the 'second period' of the luthier's creative activity. This era was characterised by the use of more economical woods such as cypress and mahogany, which Torres alternated with finer materials such as maple and Brazilian rosewood intended for top-end instruments. Different options that did not affect the sound quality of the guitars made by the Almeria luthier. Two elements give coherence and unity to the programme of this recording. First, all the selected pieces share the presence of a female name in their title; moreover, almost all the composers are of Spanish origin (with the exception of Claude Debussy) and lived during the period in which Antonio de Torres (Almeria, 1817-1892) built his guitars. It is known that Julian Arcas, Francisco Tarrega, Miguel Llobet, and Antonio Jimenez Manjon played instruments crafted by Torres. Of the other composers, fewer biographical details are known, but the aesthetics of their works perfectly match the timbre and sensitivity of the nineteenth-century guitar. The programme also includes two compositions by non-guitarist composers: La maja de Goya by Enrique Granados and La fille aux cheveux de lin by Claude Debussy. The former, in Miguel Llobet's transcription, is ideally connected to the selection of Catalan songs; the latter, conceived as a 'bonus track, ' is a poetic homage to the French composer and to his ideal dialogue with Spain - a country he never visited, yet deeply evoked, as in La soiree dans Grenade.

This is not a historical recording. Yet mysteriously the music is performed in an interpretation which is historically authentic down to the last detail. The key to this mystery is: The original performer was present at the recent recording session, but not physically: The music is heard on a modern Steinway. Never has music stored in the Welte-Mignon system sounded so "right" or so good. Thanks to TACET's much-praised recording technique, and because the Welte-Mignon memory system and sound production mechanism have now been newly adjusted for the first time by the leading expert in the field - and are thus able to meet TACET's requirements. (Welte-Mignon was invented in 1904.) the Welte-Mignon mystery can now speak to US without distortion.

A couple of years ago, the Trio Campanella came out with a striking recording of Albeniz’s Iberia in an arrangement for three guitars. Although I did not review that recording, I have heard it many times and have found it one of the more enjoyable discs in my collection. With this recording of Goyescas, the trio, aided by Christophe Dejour’s marvelously idiomatic arrangements proves itself to be a musical force with which to be reckoned. To put it simply, this is the finest recording of music for guitars that I have ever heard.

To begin with, the material is beyond reproach. Granados’s musical renderings of Goya’s portraits of eighteenth century life in Madrid are amongst the finest compositions in the piano literature. Dejour has sensitively adapted the music for his ensemble, and none of the striking piano colors are lost. Too complicated for a single guitar, this ensemble idea fits the music like a glove, and the sound is divine.

Of equal importance is the quality of the playing. These three musicians play together with the perfection of a Swiss timepiece. The palette of tonal color that they achieve is almost orchestral.

Best yet, the recording is devoid of all the things that I hate in guitar recordings. There are no incessantly squeaking strings. I am told that guitarists often restring their instruments just before a recording session, and that the new strings tend to squawk with every change of hand position. Gone also is the maddening sniffing and snorting for which guitarists - and string quartets - are notorious.

What is left is a beautiful sound, warmly recorded and oh my, what splendid music! There are some purists who will fuss at the transcription idea, but there should be no reason to quibble here. The rich warm tone of the three guitars is perfectly suited to the vivid colors and sophisticated rhythms of the music. There is little to say other than “go buy this disc and enjoy it.” It makes me anxious to revisit their earlier recording of the Albeniz mentioned above (Naxos 8.557064), and anxiously to await what will come next from this outstanding ensemble.

-- Kevin Sutton, MusicWeb International

In the last of his three volume series devoted to Granados's orchestral music, two very different compositional strands are explored. The early Suite oriental reveals his sense of vivid orchestral color and melodic imagination, couched in the exotic language of the time. Written in a more pared-down style, the one-act "lyric poem" Liliana, a collaboration with the writer Apelles Mestres, is a four-movement suite in which Granados conjures up a vivid, mythical world. Elisenda is another impressionistic score, both emotive and ethereal, here performed in its arrangement for piano and chamber orchestra.

-----

REVIEW:

Pablo González and the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra respond, as they have throughout this series, with warmth and an attractively natural sense of how to turn a phrase. The woodwinds are the real stars, though: supple oboes with just a hint of nasal buzz.

– Gramophone

María del Carmen was Enrique Granados' first great operatic success and the stage work he held in highest regard. It was received with great acclaim at its premiere in 1898, admired for its refined and brilliant orchestral writing and for its prfound lyricism. Using the folklore, language and sounds of Murcia in south-eastern Spain alongside the influence of Wagnerian thematic techniques, the opera is set in a rural village where a water shortage and a love triangle inflame the mutual hatred between the peasant farmer Pencho and his wealthy rival Javier.

Pianist Charlotte Hu presents Goyescas, an album featuring Granados' monumental Goyescas alongside two Spanish Dances. A cornerstone of Spanish piano literature, Goyescas was inspired by the paintings of Francisco Goya and unfolds as a richly poetic suite where passion, tenderness, shadow, and light coexist across six vividly characterised movements. From the playful charm of "Los requiebros" to the lyrical intimacy of "La maja y el ruiseñor" and the profound emotional summit of "El amor y la muerte," Granados' masterwork reveals a world of dramatic contrasts and refined storytelling. Hu captures both the virtuosic brilliance and the deeply intimate narrative of the music, illuminating it's modern harmonic language and unmistakable Spanish spirit with freshness and reverence. Complementing the suite are two Spanish Dances: the hauntingly introspective No. 2, "Oriental," and the vibrant, guitar-inflected No. 5, "Andaluza." Together, they offer concentrated glimpses into Granados' expressive range - from quiet longing and poetic reflection to radiant joy and folkloric vitality. This release marks her second album on PENTATONE, following her debut, Liszt: Metamorphosis, released in 2024.