Miguel Ángel Coria
Encyclopedia
Miguel Ángel Coria Varela (born October 24, 1937) is a Spanish composer of classical music. His early work showed affinities to the music of Anton Webern
, but he became increasingly influenced by Impressionism
. From 1973 he entered his post-modern
period where his compositions were marked by "attempts to evoke the spirit of the music of the past, but without literal allusions". In addition to his instrumental music, he also composed an opera, Belisa, which premiered at the Teatro de la Zarzuela
in 1992. Coria served as the Adminstrative Director of the RTVE Symphony Orchestra and Chorus
in the 1980s and was a co-founder of ALEA, Spain's first laboratory for electronic music
.
in 1937 and began his musical studies in 1952. His early mentors were Antonio Iges, Angel Arias, Pedro Lerma and most importantly Gerardo Gombau with whom he studied composition at the Madrid Royal Conservatory. Coria won the Conservatory's Fugue Prize in 1961. He also showed an early interest in electroacoustic music
and in 1964 joined Luis de Pablo
and Carmelo Alonso Bernaola in founding ALEA, Spain's first laboratory for electronic music. A grant from the Gaudeamus Foundation
in 1965 allowed him to pursue further studies with Roman Haubenstock-Ramati
and Iannis Xenakis
. The following year, he received a grant from the Juan March Foundation to study with Gottfried Michael Koenig
at the Institute of Sonology
in Utrecht, during which time he composed Collage (1967) and Joyce's Portrait (1968). His early work showed affinities to the music of Anton Webern
, but became increasingly influenced by French Impressionist music
. However, the Spanish composer and writer, Tomás Marco
, has concluded that Coria's work ultimately "stands out as a completely personal statement", adding that "those who have tried to follow him have been unable to reproduce the most original aspects of his music on the same level."
1973 marked the beginning of Coria's postmodernist
period, exemplified by works in homage of past composers, although typically without literal allusions to their music. These include: Ravel for President, composed in 1973 and dedicated to the pianist Pedro Espinosa, who premiered the work; Falla Revisited, premiered in the Teatro Real
by the RTVE Symphony Orchestra
in 1977; Ancora una volta, premiered in 1979 by the Orquesta Nacional de España
; and J'ai perdu ma plume dans le jardin de Turina (I lost my pen in Turina's garden), composed for the centenary of Joaquín Turina
in 1982. Coria's ballet music Seis sonatas para la Reina de España (Six sonatas for the Queen of Spain), based on six harpsichord sonata
s by Domenico Scarlatti
, was premiered in 1985 at the Festival dei Due Mondi
in Spoleto
in a production choreographed by Ángel Pericet for the Spanish National Ballet. At the age of 55, he ventured into opera with Belisa, set to a libretto
by Antonio Gallego adapted from García Lorca
's play Amor de Don Perlimplín con Belisa en su jardín. The work premiered on May 15, 1992 at the Teatro de la Zarzuela
in Madrid.
Coria has not been a particularly prolific composer compared to some of his contemporaries, and his works tend to be small-scale—even his opera Belisa lasts only 30 minutes. His composing career proceeded in parallel with private teaching (one of his students was Miguel Roig-Francolí
) and various adminstrative posts in the musical life of Spain. He was one of the founders of the Asociación de Compositores Españoles, an organization dedicated to promoting the music of contemporary Spanish composers, and has worked as a consultant to Spain's Ministry of Culture. He also served as the Adminstrative Director of the RTVE Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in the 1980s, and for many years was Technical Director of the Fundació de Música Ferrer Salat (Ferrer Salat Music Foundation).
in 1991. (Unless otherwise indicated, the dates represent date of composition.)
, En rouge et noir, on an album of the same name originally released on LP in 1976 by the Italian label Cramps in their Musica nuova series, and re-released on CD by the same company in 2004. His piano pieces, Ravel for President (1973) and Frase (1965), performed by the Spanish pianist, Pedro Espinosa, appear on the CD Anthology of Contemporary Spanish Music, released by EMEC Discos (Editorial de Música Española Contemporánea) in 1994.
Anton Webern
Anton Webern was an Austrian composer and conductor. He was a member of the Second Viennese School. As a student and significant follower of Arnold Schoenberg, he became one of the best-known exponents of the twelve-tone technique; in addition, his innovations regarding schematic organization of...
, but he became increasingly influenced by Impressionism
Impressionist music
Impressionism in music was a tendency in European classical music, mainly in France, which appeared in the late nineteenth century and continued into the middle of the twentieth century. Similarly to its precursor in the visual arts, musical impressionism focuses on a suggestion and an atmosphere...
. From 1973 he entered his post-modern
Postmodern music
Postmodern music is either simply music of the postmodern era, or music that follows aesthetical and philosophical trends of postmodernism. As the name suggests, the postmodernist movement formed partly in reaction to modernism...
period where his compositions were marked by "attempts to evoke the spirit of the music of the past, but without literal allusions". In addition to his instrumental music, he also composed an opera, Belisa, which premiered at the Teatro de la Zarzuela
Teatro de la Zarzuela
The Teatro de la Zarzuela is a theatre in Madrid, Spain. The theatre is today mainly devoted to zarzuela , as well as operetta and recitals. In the past, in the city's long absence of an opera theatre , this was Madrid's theatre where most major opera performances were shown...
in 1992. Coria served as the Adminstrative Director of the RTVE Symphony Orchestra and Chorus
RTVE Symphony Orchestra
The RTVE Symphony Orchestra , also known as the Spanish Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra is a Spanish radio orchestra servicing RTVE, the Spanish national broadcasting network....
in the 1980s and was a co-founder of ALEA, Spain's first laboratory for electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
.
Life and career
Miguel Ángel Coria was born in MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
in 1937 and began his musical studies in 1952. His early mentors were Antonio Iges, Angel Arias, Pedro Lerma and most importantly Gerardo Gombau with whom he studied composition at the Madrid Royal Conservatory. Coria won the Conservatory's Fugue Prize in 1961. He also showed an early interest in electroacoustic music
Electroacoustic music
Electroacoustic music originated in Western art music during its modern era following the incorporation of electric sound production into compositional practice. The initial developments in electroacoustic music composition during the mid-20th century are associated with the activities of composers...
and in 1964 joined Luis de Pablo
Luís de Pablo
Luis de Pablo is a Spanish composer.He was born in Bilbao, living in Madrid from age six and starting to compose aged 12. Although he received composition lessons from Maurice Ohana and Max Deutsch, he was essentially an autodidact in composition...
and Carmelo Alonso Bernaola in founding ALEA, Spain's first laboratory for electronic music. A grant from the Gaudeamus Foundation
Gaudeamus Foundation
The Gaudeamus Foundation and Contemporary Music Center is a renowned center for contemporary music. The Gaudeamus Foundation organizes and promotes contemporary musical activities and concerts both in the Netherlands and abroad...
in 1965 allowed him to pursue further studies with Roman Haubenstock-Ramati
Roman Haubenstock-Ramati
Roman Haubenstock-Ramati was a composer and music editor who worked in Kraków, Tel Aviv and Vienna.Haubenstock-Ramati studied composition, music theory, violin and philosophy in Kraków and Lemberg from 1937 to 1940. Among his teachers were Artur Malawski and Józef Koffler. From 1947 to 1950 he was...
and Iannis Xenakis
Iannis Xenakis
Iannis Xenakis was a Romanian-born Greek ethnic, naturalized French composer, music theorist, and architect-engineer. He is commonly recognized as one of the most important post-war avant-garde composers...
. The following year, he received a grant from the Juan March Foundation to study with Gottfried Michael Koenig
Gottfried Michael Koenig
Gottfried Michael Koenig is a contemporary German-Dutch composer.-Biography:Koenig studied church music in Braunschweig, composition, piano, analysis and acoustics in Detmold, music representation techniques in Cologne and computer technique in Bonn. He attended and later lectured at the...
at the Institute of Sonology
Institute of Sonology
The Institute of Sonology is an education and research center for electronic music and computer music based at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague in the Netherlands.-Background:...
in Utrecht, during which time he composed Collage (1967) and Joyce's Portrait (1968). His early work showed affinities to the music of Anton Webern
Anton Webern
Anton Webern was an Austrian composer and conductor. He was a member of the Second Viennese School. As a student and significant follower of Arnold Schoenberg, he became one of the best-known exponents of the twelve-tone technique; in addition, his innovations regarding schematic organization of...
, but became increasingly influenced by French Impressionist music
Impressionist music
Impressionism in music was a tendency in European classical music, mainly in France, which appeared in the late nineteenth century and continued into the middle of the twentieth century. Similarly to its precursor in the visual arts, musical impressionism focuses on a suggestion and an atmosphere...
. However, the Spanish composer and writer, Tomás Marco
Tomás Marco
Tomás Marco Aragón is a Spanish composer and writer on music.-Life and work:Marco studied violin and composition in Madrid while at the same time pursuing the study of law...
, has concluded that Coria's work ultimately "stands out as a completely personal statement", adding that "those who have tried to follow him have been unable to reproduce the most original aspects of his music on the same level."
1973 marked the beginning of Coria's postmodernist
Postmodern music
Postmodern music is either simply music of the postmodern era, or music that follows aesthetical and philosophical trends of postmodernism. As the name suggests, the postmodernist movement formed partly in reaction to modernism...
period, exemplified by works in homage of past composers, although typically without literal allusions to their music. These include: Ravel for President, composed in 1973 and dedicated to the pianist Pedro Espinosa, who premiered the work; Falla Revisited, premiered in the Teatro Real
Teatro Real
The Teatro Real or simply El Real , is a major opera house located in Madrid, Spain.-History:...
by the RTVE Symphony Orchestra
RTVE Symphony Orchestra
The RTVE Symphony Orchestra , also known as the Spanish Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra is a Spanish radio orchestra servicing RTVE, the Spanish national broadcasting network....
in 1977; Ancora una volta, premiered in 1979 by the Orquesta Nacional de España
Orquesta Nacional de España
The Orquesta Nacional de España is a symphonic orchestra based in Madrid, Spain.-History:Although working since in 1937 during the Spanish civil war, the orchestra was legally founded in 1940, by the merging of the Perez Casas' Filarmónica and the Orquesta Sinfónica of Arbós...
; and J'ai perdu ma plume dans le jardin de Turina (I lost my pen in Turina's garden), composed for the centenary of Joaquín Turina
Joaquín Turina
Joaquín Turina was a Spanish composer of classical music.-Biography:Turina was born in Seville but his origins were in northern Italy . He studied in Seville as well as in Madrid...
in 1982. Coria's ballet music Seis sonatas para la Reina de España (Six sonatas for the Queen of Spain), based on six harpsichord sonata
Sonata
Sonata , in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata , a piece sung. The term, being vague, naturally evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms prior to the Classical era...
s by Domenico Scarlatti
Domenico Scarlatti
Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti was an Italian composer who spent much of his life in the service of the Portuguese and Spanish royal families. He is classified as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical style...
, was premiered in 1985 at the Festival dei Due Mondi
Festival dei Due Mondi
The Festival dei Due Mondi ' is an annual summer music and opera festival held each June to early July in Spoleto, Italy, since its founding by composer Gian Carlo Menotti in 1958...
in Spoleto
Spoleto
Spoleto is an ancient city in the Italian province of Perugia in east central Umbria on a foothill of the Apennines. It is S. of Trevi, N. of Terni, SE of Perugia; SE of Florence; and N of Rome.-History:...
in a production choreographed by Ángel Pericet for the Spanish National Ballet. At the age of 55, he ventured into opera with Belisa, set to a libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
by Antonio Gallego adapted from García Lorca
Federico García Lorca
Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca was a Spanish poet, dramatist and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27. He is believed to be one of thousands who were summarily shot by anti-communist death squads...
's play Amor de Don Perlimplín con Belisa en su jardín. The work premiered on May 15, 1992 at the Teatro de la Zarzuela
Teatro de la Zarzuela
The Teatro de la Zarzuela is a theatre in Madrid, Spain. The theatre is today mainly devoted to zarzuela , as well as operetta and recitals. In the past, in the city's long absence of an opera theatre , this was Madrid's theatre where most major opera performances were shown...
in Madrid.
Coria has not been a particularly prolific composer compared to some of his contemporaries, and his works tend to be small-scale—even his opera Belisa lasts only 30 minutes. His composing career proceeded in parallel with private teaching (one of his students was Miguel Roig-Francolí
Miguel Roig-Francolí
Miguel Ángel Roig-Francolí is a Spanish/American composer, music theorist, and pedagogue. His 1980 Cinco piezas para orquesta , commissioned by Radio Nacional de España and written in a postmodern, neotonal style, won first prize in the National Composition Competition of the Spanish Jeunesses...
) and various adminstrative posts in the musical life of Spain. He was one of the founders of the Asociación de Compositores Españoles, an organization dedicated to promoting the music of contemporary Spanish composers, and has worked as a consultant to Spain's Ministry of Culture. He also served as the Adminstrative Director of the RTVE Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in the 1980s, and for many years was Technical Director of the Fundació de Música Ferrer Salat (Ferrer Salat Music Foundation).
Works
The following list includes Coria's principal works, the majority of which are published by Editorial de Música Española Contemporanea. A complete catalogue of his compositions was published by the Sociedad General de Autores de EspañaSociedad General de Autores y Editores
Sociedad General de Autores y Editores is the main collecting society for songwriters, composers and music publishers in Spain. It is similar to ASCAP. The composer and performer Teddy Bautista is the Chairman of the Board of Directors. The SGAE was founded in 1941 as General Society of Authors of...
in 1991. (Unless otherwise indicated, the dates represent date of composition.)
Orchestra
- Lúdica I, 1968-9
- Lúdica III, 1969
- Ancora una volta (One more time), 1978, premiered 1979, Madrid
- Una modesta proposición para que los compositores pobres de España no constituyan una carga para sus padres ni su pais y sean útiles al público (A modest proposal so that poor Spanish composers do not constitute a burden on either their parents or the nation and are useful to the public), homage to Antonio SolerAntonio SolerAntonio Francisco Javier José Soler Ramos, usually known as Padre Antonio Soler, known in Catalan as Antoni Soler i Ramos was a Spanish Catalan composer whose works span the late Baroque and early Classical music eras...
, composed 1979, premiered 1980, Madrid - Intermezzo, 1981
Chamber ensemble/solo instrument
- Juego de densidades (Game of densities), piano, 1962
- Estructura, string trio, 1963
- Frase, piano, 1965, revised 1968
- Secuencia, violin, 1966
- Vértices, chamber ensemble, 1966
- Volúmenes, chamber ensemble, 1966
- Lúdica IV, chamber ensemble, 1970
- Falla Revisited, homage to Manuel de FallaManuel de FallaManuel 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....
, chamber ensemble, 1973, premiered 1977, Madrid - Ravel for President, homage to Maurice RavelMaurice RavelJoseph-Maurice Ravel was a French composer known especially for his melodies, orchestral and instrumental textures and effects...
, piano, 1973 - Música de septiembre, chamber ensemble, 1975
- En rouge et noir (In red and black), piano, 1976
- J'ai perdu ma plume dans le jardin de Turina (I lost my pen in Turina's garden), composed for the centenary of Joaquín TurinaJoaquín TurinaJoaquín Turina was a Spanish composer of classical music.-Biography:Turina was born in Seville but his origins were in northern Italy . He studied in Seville as well as in Madrid...
, piano, 1982
Vocal
- Joyce's Portrait, homage to James JoyceJames JoyceJames Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
, premiered by Isabel Rivas, 1968, Madrid - Arietta no.3: Verrá la morte (Death will come), set to a text by Cesare PaveseCesare PaveseCesare Pavese was an Italian poet, novelist, literary critic and translator; he is widely considered among the major authors of the 20th century in his home country.- Early life and education :...
, 1984 - Arietta no.1: Canción de Belisa (Belisa's song), set to a text by García LorcaFederico García LorcaFederico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca was a Spanish poet, dramatist and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27. He is believed to be one of thousands who were summarily shot by anti-communist death squads...
, 1985-6 - Arietta no.2: La chevelure (Hair), set to a text by BaudelaireCharles BaudelaireCharles Baudelaire was a French poet who produced notable work as an essayist, art critic, and pioneering translator of Edgar Allan Poe. His most famous work, Les Fleurs du mal expresses the changing nature of beauty in modern, industrializing Paris during the nineteenth century...
, 1988 - Seis canciones españolas (Six Spanish songs), set to texts by Rafael AlbertiRafael AlbertiRafael Alberti Merello was a Spanish poet, a member of the Generation of '27....
, published 1995
Ballet
- Variaciones vascas (Basque variations), choreographed by Ángel Pericet, premiered 1965, Teatro de la ZarzuelaTeatro de la ZarzuelaThe Teatro de la Zarzuela is a theatre in Madrid, Spain. The theatre is today mainly devoted to zarzuela , as well as operetta and recitals. In the past, in the city's long absence of an opera theatre , this was Madrid's theatre where most major opera performances were shown...
, Madrid - Seis sonatas para la Reina de España (Six Sonatas for the Queen of Spain), after ScarlattiDomenico ScarlattiGiuseppe Domenico Scarlatti was an Italian composer who spent much of his life in the service of the Portuguese and Spanish royal families. He is classified as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical style...
, choreographed by Ángel Pericet, premiered 1985, Festival dei Due MondiFestival dei Due MondiThe Festival dei Due Mondi ' is an annual summer music and opera festival held each June to early July in Spoleto, Italy, since its founding by composer Gian Carlo Menotti in 1958...
, Spoleto
Opera
- Belisa, libretto by Antonio Gallego adapted from García Lorca's Amor de Don Perlimplín con Belisa en su jardín, premiered May 15, 1992, Teatro de la Zarzuela, Madrid
Recordings
Coria himself can be heard playing his composition for prepared pianoPrepared piano
A prepared piano is a piano that has had its sound altered by placing objects between or on the strings or on the hammers or dampers....
, En rouge et noir, on an album of the same name originally released on LP in 1976 by the Italian label Cramps in their Musica nuova series, and re-released on CD by the same company in 2004. His piano pieces, Ravel for President (1973) and Frase (1965), performed by the Spanish pianist, Pedro Espinosa, appear on the CD Anthology of Contemporary Spanish Music, released by EMEC Discos (Editorial de Música Española Contemporánea) in 1994.
External links
- Works by and about Miguel Ángel Coria on WorldCatWorldCatWorldCat is a union catalog which itemizes the collections of 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories which participate in the Online Computer Library Center global cooperative...