The 20th Century

The 20th century saw an unprecedented surge in the acceptance of the guitar as an instrument for serious artistic expression.

There are two basic reasons for the tremendous popularity of the guitar today. The first and more obvious one is rooted in phenomena that belong exclusively to the twentieth century. The revolutionary technological progress and the development of mass media communications and faster, more efficient modes of transportation are its more notable aspects. Radio, television, the recording industry, communications satellites, jet travel and so on have contributed to rapid global exposure of the instrument. Musicians are now able to give concerts all over the world in the course of one concert season. They are able to reach huge audiences - not only those actually present at a performance but those who view television, listen to broadcasts and to recordings of music, and now even reaching those using computers to access the internet. More people are, therefore, drawn into the circle of participants whether as composers, performers or listeners, and more opportunities are created to arouse interest in the guitar.

The second reason, though less dramatic, is not less significant. It is an extension, a natural consequence of the developments that have taken place in past centuries. We have seen that by the end of the nineteenth century, guitar technique had been brought by Tarrega to the point where it was truly fine art, ready for the next step into what we know as modern technique. The great guitar makers, most notably Torres, had developed an instrument which, with slight variations, retains to this day the classic form of the guitar. These crucial events simply had to lead to the full realization of the guitar's potential of the twentieth century.

Tarrega had many outstanding pupils but by far the most important was Miguel Llobet (1878-1937). Llobet was acknowledged a master and a supreme virtuoso of the guitar and gave concerts throughout Spain as well as in Paris, England, the United States, South America, Berlin, Vienna - in fact almost all the important cities of the Western World.

Andres Segovia

The giant of the twentieth century was Andres Segovia (1893-1987) a close friend of Miguel Llobet. Segovia felt compelled to teach himself the guitar. The technique he eventually developed was an improvement on Tarrega's and one of its most important aspects is precision in all matters particularly in regards to the right hand. Each year, for over half a century, he played concerts throughout the world as well as innumerable radio and television performances. He has recorded practically his entire repertoire.

Segovia's involvement with the guitar went beyond performance, and he inspired many 20th century composers to write for the instrument. Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco composed the first guitar concerto in 1939, and at the instigation of Segovia, Manuel Ponce of Mexico, Joaquim Rodrigo of Spain and Alexander Tansman of Poland have written for the guitar.

Segovia has directly taught generations of guitarists. Alirio Diaz was Segovia's outstanding pupil and became one of the world's leading players being particularly successful at interpreting Latin American music.

Narciso Yepes

Segovia's fellow Spaniard Narciso Yepes (1927-1997) was another player with impeccable technique. He gave his first public concert at the age of twenty and became a player with international reputation. He was noted for his use of the 10 string guitar. In addition to inspiring many composers to write for him, Yepes has also edited and annotated much music for the guitar.

Julian Bream

Julian Bream learned by listening to the radio and by watching other players. His formal training at the Royal College of Music was in piano, cello and composition. Bream's first London concert took place at the Wigmore Hall in 1951. Since then he has led the life of a busy and successful musician, dividing his time between his country residence, the recording studio, and concert hall. His musical tastes are varied and his fame as a lute player is as great as his reputation as a guitarist. His repertoire on the guitar ranges from the Bach Chaconne to works by contemporary composers. He has done a great deal towards promoting contemporary music on the guitar.

John Williams

John Williams Born in Australia in 1941, John Williams began learning the guitar from his father, founder of the Spanish Guitar Centre in London. In 1952, he was introduced to Segovia who took him on as a pupil. On Segovia's advice he entered the Academia Musicale Chigiana at Siena. Back in England, he studied piano and musical theory from 1956 to 1959. His London debut at the Wigmore Hall took place in 1958 and it his name soon became a byword in England and abroad.

Today, John Williams is one of the most skilled classical guitar players with an outstanding fluent technique. His repertoire varies from transcriptions of early lute music to works of South American composers and contemporaries, and has played works of Bach, Scarlatti, Villa-Lobos and Albéniz. He has also ventured into the electric guitar and pop fields.