Roberto Gerhard, Reappraising a musical visionary in Exile

Research output: Contribution to conferencePaper

Abstract

A visionary composer, Gerhard was able to create works of great richness that connect distant musical styles, extra-musical narratives, autobiographical references, and abstract musical concepts. The composer lived through extraordinarily tumultuous times, including the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War, as an exile in England. Away from his homeland, he
maintained a pacifist stance, firmly opposing Franco’s regime. It was Gerhard’s personal connection to the Civil War that may have prompted the BBC to commission him to write incidental music for adaptations of two important books set during the Spanish Civil War. In both compositions, The Revenge for Love (1957) and For Whom the Bell Tolls (1965), Gerhard decided to include the guitar, an instrument widely associated with Spanish and Catalan culture. This lecture will explore how Gerhard’s political views and experience of the Spanish Civil War influenced his approach to these two works, which also provided the basis for his most important compositions for guitar, Fantasia for solo guitar and the chamber work Libra. I also examine the complex genesis of the Fantasia, showing how Gerhard used material from The Revenge for Love to write two versions of the
composition, the first of which was rejected by Julian Bream, while the second reached publication and was premiered by John Williams.
Original languageEnglish (Ireland)
Publication statusPublished - 20 Jun 2023
EventResearch Track Lectures at the Guitar Foundation for America
International Convention and Competition
- Manhattan school of Music, New York, United States
Duration: 20 Jun 2023 → …

Conference

ConferenceResearch Track Lectures at the Guitar Foundation for America
International Convention and Competition
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityNew York
Period20/06/23 → …

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