CD REVIEW: ANTON GARCIA ABRIL Orchestral Works (Marco Polo)

 

Viewing my CD collection in an
alphabetical order, Abril was the very first name.

ANTON GARCIA ABRIL

Orchestral Works

Madrid Symphony Orchestra

Enrique Garcia Asensio (Conductor)

Marco Polo 8.223849

I must have bought this disc during the height of Tower Records @ Pacific Place on Scotts Road during the mid-1990s, when almost every single recording was available under one roof. Oh, how I miss those halcyon days. And the joy of discovering musical rarities. Just the mere appearance of the words Piano Concerto on the cover must have caught my attention, and one by a Spanish composer unknown to me. And I wasn’t disappointed.

Anton Garcia Abril (1933-2021) was a well-regarded creator and Madrid-based pedagogue, whose music was largely conservative, so there is nothing here that sounds more radical than the Granados, de Falla or Turina which we love. The three orchestral works on this album were recorded live in concert in December 1994.

Soler was more than a Scarlatti imitator.

Three Sonatas for orchestra (1984) is a homage to Padre Antonio Soler, composer of short single-movement keyboard sonatas which rivalled those of Scarlatti. This Soleriana is short and pleasing, in the fast-slow-fast form. 

The far more ambitious Hemeroscopium (1969-1972) is a single-movement concerto for orchestra that plays for some 23 minutes. The title refers to a watch tower that presides over old towns and cities, and this rhapsodic work with Spanish idioms and rhythms does not overstay its welcome. The lush orchestration is reminiscent of Respighi’s or Villa-Lobos', which the orchestra masters with comfortable aplomb.

Guillermo Gonzalez is Spain's
best pianist not named Larrocha.

Finally the Piano Concerto (1966, revised 1994) is a half-hour three-movement enjoyable ride with many virtuoso flourishes for the keyboard. The flashy solo part is well realised by veteran pianist Guillermo Gonzalez, best known for his Albeniz Iberia recording on Naxos. Iberian rhythms rule in the festive opening Allegro and Allegro deciso finale, while the central Corale has the concerto’s most reflective and beautifully lyrical moments. Given its easy accessibility on the ears, there should be no excuse why this isn’t as popular as Falla’s Nights in the Gardens of Spain or Albeniz’s Piano Concerto. Pianists with an adventurous streak can further widen their repertoire here.