DOREMI’s second CD dedicated to the artistry of the legendary duo of Ida Presti and Alexandre Lagoya provides a fascinating panorama of the development of...

DOREMI’s second CD dedicated to the artistry of the legendary duo of Ida Presti and Alexandre Lagoya provides a fascinating panorama of the development of the classical guitar in the middle decades of the twentieth century through the lens of two of its greatest exponents. There is a poignancy to each panel of this musical triptych—the 13-year-old prodigy on the verge of a great career suspended and delayed by the Second World War; the globe-trotting Duo at the height of their achievement, unaware of Presti’s imminent passing; and Lagoya’s first steps at reinventing himself as a concert soloist after his wife’s unexpected death two years earlier. This selection of hitherto unreissued performances affords a unique insight into their unparalleled artistry. It opens with three newly remastered and restored 78 recordings made by Ida Presti between 1937 and 1942, revealing her precocious musical insight and matchless virtuosity. There follows Alexandre Lagoya’s first solo LP, made two years after Presti’s passing, recorded at the Orford Arts Centre in 1969. It includes two solos and unique performances with violinist Andrew Dawes of a Duo by Paganini and a Boccherini Quintet with the Orford Quartet. The programme concludes with the broadcast of a rare live performance of Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s Concerto for Two Guitars, identified by the announcer (but not independently verified) as the “création mondiale,” which took place in Toronto, Canada on December 4, 1962.