Andrés Segovia Präludium Und Allegro Prelude And Allegro

Andrés Segovia Torres, 1st Marquis of Salobreña[a] (21 February 1893 – 2 June 1987) was a virtuoso Spanish classical guitarist from Linares, Spain. Many professional classical guitarists today were students of Segovia, or students of his students. Segovia's contribution to the modern-romantic repertoire not only included commissions but also his own transcriptions of classical or baroque works. He is remembered for his expressive performances: his wide palette of tone, and his distinctive musical personality, phrasing and style.

What if Vivaldi’s famous Quattro Stagioni, performed in Paris in 1728, had been preceded by those of Guido, the star violinist of the Parisian orchestras of Louis XIV’s maturity ? Here, at last, are these two works reunited: to the well-known virtuosity of Vivaldi’s work, of extraordinary impact, Guido’s Seasons oppose a mixture of Italian features and a thousand facets worthy of the French Court, with an infectious ardour! A mysterious Neapolitan who arrived in Paris around 1702 as Music Master to Philippe d’Orléans, Guido was close to the financier Crozat, who in 1716 commissioned Watteau to produce four paintings on the theme of the Seasons: he set them to music around 1717 with his Scherzi armonici sopra le Quattro Stagioni dell’anno.

I can remember watching a recording of this production and being somewhat put off by the staging, the light show during the opening prelude and the modern staging and dress. It made the star-struck lovers seem more like a frumpy middle-aged couple on a cruise than people passionately in love, especially in their apparent lack of intimacy. They seldom touched each other. It just did not sit well with me, but that was my personal point of view. Even so, I was quite taken with the sound of the production and by strong performances by all the protagonists.

Considering the `boom' period of what would later become referred to as the `Neo Prog' sound was the early Eighties and encompassed such groups as Pendragon, I.Q, Twelfth Night, Marillion and others, there's earlier examples of groups that were already playing in a classic-period Genesis manner, a band all those above mentioned groups used as a starting point…