Enrique Granados
Encyclopedia
Enrique Granados y Campiña (27 July 1867 – 24 March 1916) was a Spanish pianist and composer
of classical music. His music is in a uniquely Spanish style and, as such, representative of musical nationalism. Enrique Granados was also a talented painter in the style of Francisco Goya
.
, Spain, the son of Calixto Granados, an army captain, and Enriqueta Campiña. As a young man he studied piano in Barcelona
, where his teachers included Francisco Jurnet and Joan Baptista Pujol. In 1887 he went to Paris to study. He was unable to become a student at the Paris Conservatoire
, but was able to take private lessons with a conservatoire professor, Charles-Wilfrid de Bériot
, whose mother, the famed soprano Maria Malibran
, was of Spanish ancestry. Bériot insisted on extreme refinement in tone production, which strongly influenced Granados’s own teaching of pedal technique. He also fostered Granados's abilities in improvisation. Just as important were his studies with Felip Pedrell. He returned to Barcelona in 1889. His first successes were at the end of the 1890s, with the zarzuela
Maria del Carmen
, which attracted the attention of King Alfonso XIII
.
In 1911 Granados premiered his suite for piano Goyescas
, which became his most famous work. It is a set of six pieces based on paintings of Francisco Goya
. Such was the success of this work that he was encouraged to expand it. He wrote an opera based on the subject in 1914, but the outbreak of World War I forced the European premiere to be canceled. It was performed for the first time in New York City on 28 January 1916, and was very well received. Shortly afterwards, he was invited to perform a piano recital for President Woodrow Wilson
. Prior to leaving New York, Granados also made live-recorded player piano
music rolls for the New-York-based Aeolian Company
's "Duo-Art
" system, all of which survive today and can be heard – his very last recordings.
The delay incurred by accepting the recital invitation caused him to miss his boat back to Spain. Instead, he took a ship to England, where he boarded the passenger ferry Sussex
for Dieppe
, France. On the way across the English Channel
, the Sussex was torpedoed by a German U-boat
, as part of the German World War I policy of unrestricted submarine warfare
. In a failed attempt to save his wife Amparo, whom he saw flailing about in the water some distance away, Granados jumped out of his lifeboat, and drowned. Ironically, he had a morbid fear of water for his entire life, and he was returning from his first-ever series of ocean voyages. Ironically too, the ship broke in two parts and only one sank (along with 80 passengers); the other part of the ship where his cabin was did not sink and was towed to port, with most of the passengers on board. Granados and his wife left six children: Eduard (a musician), Solita, Enric (a swimming champion), Víctor, Natàlia, and Francesc.
(a piano quintet
, a piano trio, music for violin and piano), songs, zarzuelas, and an orchestral tone poem based on Dante's Divine Comedy. Many of his piano compositions have been transcribed for the classical guitar: examples include Dedicatoria, Danza No. 5, Goyescas.
Granados was an important influence on at least two other important Spanish composers and musicians, Manuel de Falla
and Pablo Casals
. He was also the teacher of composer Rosa García Ascot
.
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
of classical music. His music is in a uniquely Spanish style and, as such, representative of musical nationalism. Enrique Granados was also a talented painter in the style of Francisco Goya
Francisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
.
Life
He was born in LleidaLleida
Lleida is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital city of the province of Lleida, as well as the largest city in the province and it had 137,387 inhabitants , including the contiguous municipalities of Raimat and Sucs. The metro area has about 250,000 inhabitants...
, Spain, the son of Calixto Granados, an army captain, and Enriqueta Campiña. As a young man he studied piano in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, where his teachers included Francisco Jurnet and Joan Baptista Pujol. In 1887 he went to Paris to study. He was unable to become a student at the Paris Conservatoire
Conservatoire de Paris
The Conservatoire de Paris is a college of music and dance founded in 1795, now situated in the avenue Jean Jaurès in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, France...
, but was able to take private lessons with a conservatoire professor, Charles-Wilfrid de Bériot
Charles-Wilfrid de Bériot
Charles-Wilfrid de Bériot was a French pianist, teacher and composer.He was born in Paris in 1833, the son of the violinist Charles Auguste de Bériot and his then common-law wife, the famed soprano Maria Malibran Charles-Wilfrid de Bériot (12 February 183322 October 1914) was a French pianist,...
, whose mother, the famed soprano Maria Malibran
Maria Malibran
The mezzo-soprano Maria Malibran , was one of the most famous opera singers of the 19th century. Malibran was known for her stormy personality and dramatic intensity, becoming a legendary figure after her death at age 28...
, was of Spanish ancestry. Bériot insisted on extreme refinement in tone production, which strongly influenced Granados’s own teaching of pedal technique. He also fostered Granados's abilities in improvisation. Just as important were his studies with Felip Pedrell. He returned to Barcelona in 1889. His first successes were at the end of the 1890s, with the zarzuela
Zarzuela
Zarzuela is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular song, as well as dance...
Maria del Carmen
María del Carmen (opera)
María del Carmen is an opera in three acts composed by Enrique Granados to a Spanish libretto by José Feliú i Codina based on his 1896 play of the same name. It was Granados's first operatic success and although largely forgotten today, he considered it to be his best opera...
, which attracted the attention of King Alfonso XIII
Alfonso XIII of Spain
Alfonso XIII was King of Spain from 1886 until 1931. His mother, Maria Christina of Austria, was appointed regent during his minority...
.
In 1911 Granados premiered his suite for piano Goyescas
Goyescas
Goyescas, Op. 11, subtitled Los majos enamorados , is a piano suite written in 1911 by Spanish composer Enrique Granados. This piano suite is usually considered Granados's crowning creation and was inspired by the paintings of Francisco Goya, although the piano pieces have not been authoritatively...
, which became his most famous work. It is a set of six pieces based on paintings of Francisco Goya
Francisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
. Such was the success of this work that he was encouraged to expand it. He wrote an opera based on the subject in 1914, but the outbreak of World War I forced the European premiere to be canceled. It was performed for the first time in New York City on 28 January 1916, and was very well received. Shortly afterwards, he was invited to perform a piano recital for President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
. Prior to leaving New York, Granados also made live-recorded player piano
Player piano
A player piano is a self-playing piano, containing a pneumatic or electro-mechanical mechanism that operates the piano action via pre-programmed music perforated paper, or in rare instances, metallic rolls. The rise of the player piano grew with the rise of the mass-produced piano for the home in...
music rolls for the New-York-based Aeolian Company
Aeolian Company
The Æolian Company was a manufacturer of player organs and pianos.- History :It was founded by New York City piano maker William B. Tremaine as the Æolian Organ & Music Co. to make automatic organs, and, after 1895, as the Æolian Co. automatic pianos as well. The Æolian Company was a...
's "Duo-Art
Duo-Art
Duo-Art was one of the leading reproducing piano technologies of the early 20th century, the others being American Piano Company , introduced in 1913 too, and Welte-Mignon in 1905. These technologies flourished at that time because of the poor quality of the early Phonograph...
" system, all of which survive today and can be heard – his very last recordings.
The delay incurred by accepting the recital invitation caused him to miss his boat back to Spain. Instead, he took a ship to England, where he boarded the passenger ferry Sussex
Sussex (French passenger ferry)
Sussex was a cross-channel passenger ferry, which was built in 1896 by William Denny and Brothers, Dumbarton for the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway . She became the focus of an international incident when she was torpedoed by a German U-Boat in 1916. Although severely damaged, she was...
for Dieppe
Dieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
, France. On the way across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
, the Sussex was torpedoed by a German U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
, as part of the German World War I policy of unrestricted submarine warfare
Unrestricted submarine warfare
Unrestricted submarine warfare is a type of naval warfare in which submarines sink merchantmen without warning, as opposed to attacks per prize rules...
. In a failed attempt to save his wife Amparo, whom he saw flailing about in the water some distance away, Granados jumped out of his lifeboat, and drowned. Ironically, he had a morbid fear of water for his entire life, and he was returning from his first-ever series of ocean voyages. Ironically too, the ship broke in two parts and only one sank (along with 80 passengers); the other part of the ship where his cabin was did not sink and was towed to port, with most of the passengers on board. Granados and his wife left six children: Eduard (a musician), Solita, Enric (a swimming champion), Víctor, Natàlia, and Francesc.
Music and influence
Granados wrote piano music, chamber musicChamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
(a piano quintet
Piano quintet
In European classical music, a piano quintet is a work of chamber music written for piano and four other instruments, most commonly piano, two violins, viola, and cello . Among the most frequently performed piano quintets are those by Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms, César Franck, Antonín Dvořák...
, a piano trio, music for violin and piano), songs, zarzuelas, and an orchestral tone poem based on Dante's Divine Comedy. Many of his piano compositions have been transcribed for the classical guitar: examples include Dedicatoria, Danza No. 5, Goyescas.
Granados was an important influence on at least two other important Spanish composers and musicians, Manuel de Falla
Manuel de Falla
Manuel de Falla y Matheu was a Spanish Andalusian composer of classical music. With Isaac Albéniz, Enrique Granados and Joaquín Turina he is one of Spain's most important musicians of the first half of the 20th century....
and Pablo Casals
Pablo Casals
Pau Casals i Defilló , known during his professional career as Pablo Casals, was a Spanish Catalan cellist and conductor. He is generally regarded as the pre-eminent cellist of the first half of the 20th century, and one of the greatest cellists of all time...
. He was also the teacher of composer Rosa García Ascot
Rosa García Ascot
Rosa García Ascot was a Spanish composer and pianist. She was the only woman in the famed Group of Eight, whose members also included Julián Bautista, Ernesto Halffter and his brother Rodolfo, Juan José Mantecón, Fernando Remacha, Salvador Bacarisse and Jesús Bal y Gay. She married Bal y Gay in 1933...
.
Some important works
- 12 danzas españolas (1890) for piano. The contents of the four volumes are: Vol. 1: Galante (or Minueto), Orientale, Fandango (or Zarabanda); Vol. 2: Villanesca; Andaluza (or Playera); Rondalla aragonesa (or Jota); Vol. 3: Valenciana; SardanaSardanaThe sardana is a type of circle dance typical of Catalonia, Spain. The dance was originally from the Empordà region, but started gaining popularity throughout Catalonia during the 20th century....
(or Asturiana); Romántica (or Mazurca); Vol. 4: Melancólica (or Danza Triste); Zambra; Arabesca. - María del CarmenMaría del Carmen (opera)María del Carmen is an opera in three acts composed by Enrique Granados to a Spanish libretto by José Feliú i Codina based on his 1896 play of the same name. It was Granados's first operatic success and although largely forgotten today, he considered it to be his best opera...
(1898), opera - Allegro de concierto (1903)
- Escenas románticas (1903) for piano. The individual "scenes" are: Mazurca; Berceuse; Allegretto; Mazurka; Allegro appassionato; Epílogo
- Dante (1908), symphonic poemSymphonic poemA symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music in a single continuous section in which the content of a poem, a story or novel, a painting, a landscape or another source is illustrated or evoked. The term was first applied by Hungarian composer Franz Liszt to his 13 works in this vein...
- Tonadillas al estilo antiguo, H136 (1910) for voice and piano, settings of a group of poems by Fernando Periquet. Titles of individual songs in the collection are: 1.Amor y odio; 2.Callejeo; 3.El majo discreto; 4.El majo olvidado; 5.El majo tímido; 6.El mirar de la maja; 7.El tra-la-la y el punteado; 8.La maja de Goya; 9.La maja dolorosa I (Oh muerte cruel!), II (Ay majo de mi vida!), y III (De aquel majo amante); 10.La currutacas modestas (duet).
- Canciones españolas for voice and piano. Titles of individual songs in the collection (perhaps in the right order) are: Yo no tengo quien me llore; Cantar I; Por una mirada, un mundo; Si al retiro me llavas...; Canción; Serenata; Canto gitano.
- Cançons catalanas for voice and piano. Titles of individual songs in the collection (perhaps in the right order) are: L'ocell profeta; Elegia eterna; Cançó de Gener; Cançó d'amor; Cançoneta; La boira.
- GoyescasGoyescasGoyescas, Op. 11, subtitled Los majos enamorados , is a piano suite written in 1911 by Spanish composer Enrique Granados. This piano suite is usually considered Granados's crowning creation and was inspired by the paintings of Francisco Goya, although the piano pieces have not been authoritatively...
(1911), suite for piano, subtitled "Los majos enamorados". It consists of 6 pieces in 2 books. Movements are: Book 1: Los requiebros; Coloquio en la reja; El fandango de candil; Quejas ó La maja y el ruiseñor; Book 2: El amor y la muerte; Epilogo (Serenata del espectro). El pelele, although not published as part of the Goyescas, is usually appended to it. In performance it is played as the seventh and last piece. It is based on the music of the opening scene of the opera Goyescas, in which a "pelele" is being tossed in the air by the "majas." - Bocetos (1912) which contains: Despertar del cazador; El hada y el niño; Vals muy lento; La campana de la tarde
- Colección de canciones amatorias (1915) for voice and piano. Titles of individual songs in the collection are: Descúbrase el pensamiento de mi secreto cuidado; Mañanica era; Llorad, corazón, que tenéis razón 'Lloraba la niña'; Mira que soy niña; Iban al pinar 'Serranas de Cuenca'; Gracia mía.
- GoyescasGoyescas (opera)Goyescas is an opera in one act and three tableaux, written in 1915 by the Spanish composer Enrique Granados. Granados composed the opera to a Spanish libretto by Fernando Periquet y Zuaznabar with melodies taken from his 1911 piano suite, which was also called Goyescas...
, opera, 1916 - 6 Estudios expresivos
- 6 Piezas sobre cantos populares españoles, which include: Añoranza; Ecos de la parranda; Vascongada; Marcha oriental; Zambra; Zapateado
- Madrigal, for cello and piano
- 8 Valses Poéticos, for Piano, including No 6 Vals Poético
- Trio, for piano, violin, and cello.
Media
External links
- Biography and images
- www.kreusch-sheet-music.net – Free Scores by Granados
Recordings by Granados
- Goyescas, Part 1, Los Requiebros as recorded by Granados on piano roll, c. 1913, Paris (Info)
- L'escola pianística catalana (Enregistraments històrics) (la mà de guido , LMG3060)
- Enrique Granados today playing his 1913 interpretations (The Welte Mignon Mystery Vol. I)
- Enrique Granados: Composer as Pianist (Pierian Recording Society, PIR0002)
- Masters of the Piano Roll: Granados Plays Granados (Dal Segno Records, DSPRCD008)
- The Catalan Piano Tradition (VAI Audio, 1001)
- Rollos de Pianola (Obras de Albéniz, Granados, Turina, Ocón, Chapí, Alonso y Otros) (Almaviva, DS – 0141)
- Piano Rolls (The Reproducing Piano Roll Foundation)