A la Memoria de Astor

Astor Piazzolla was first moved to compose for the classical guitar after hearing a live performance by the Argentine guitarist, Roberto Aussel. The result was the 'Cinco piezas', his only work for solo guitar, which he dedicated to Aussel and who performed the world premiere in 1980 at the Paris UNESCO auditorium, with the maestro in the audience. In 1981, with Piazzolla on bandoneon, Aussel subsequently shared the Parisian premiere of his 'Double Concerto for Bandoneon, Guitar and Orchestra'. With this programme Roberto Aussel pays hommage to the memory of Piazzolla with a cosmopolitan programme that celebrates the international spirit of the composer's artistic outlook. Together with Piazzolla's 'Cinco piezas' and arrangements of several of his more popular pieces, British and other Argentine works sit alongside 'Toru' by Spanish-Portuguese composer, Inés Badalo - an homage to the Japanese composer, Toru Takemitsu; as well as 'A la memoria de Astor' by Piazzolla's protégé, Saúl Consentino.

Saúl Cosentino (arr. R. Aussel): 'A la memoria de Astor'

Astor Piazzolla: 'Cinco piezas para guitarra' | 'Jacinto Chiclana' (arr. P. Enriquez) | 'El gordo triste' (arr. R. Aussel) | 'Retrato de Alfredo Gobbi' (arr. P. Uccelli)

Enrique Núñez: 'Tango Op. 7'

Richard R. Bennett: 'Impromptus'

Inés Badalo: 'Toru (Hommage à Takemitsu)'

Roberto Aussel (guitar)

'An extraordinary guitarist.' (The Guardian)

Born in La Plata, Argentina, Roberto Aussel is highly regarded as one of the world's finest classical guitarists. He enjoys an active career performing on concert stages across the world, alongside a permanent teaching post at the Musikhochschule of Cologne. His repertoire ranges from the Baroque to contemporary music and includes Latin American folk and popular music. He has edited guitar music collections for the publishers Editions Henry Lemoine and l’Empreinte mélodique, and has garnered First Prizes at some of the most prestigious international competitions, including Radio France, Porto Alegre (Brazil) and Alirio Díaz (Venezuela). In 1999 he won the prestigious Konex de Platino prize awarded by the Konex Foundation of Buenos Aires, and in 2016 he received the Honorary José Tomás Award by the Petrer Guitar Festival (Spain).

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Astor Piazzolla wrote only one piece for guitar duo, the virtuosic Tango Suite, dedicated to the Brazilian Assad Brothers. One of Piazzolla's finest chamber works, it is also one of his most neglected - its technical demands a deterrent to even the most adept of guitarists. The work is safe, however, in the assured hands of the Vickers-Bovey Duo - two star graduates of the Royal Academy of Music who have made this piece a cornerstone of their repertoire. The work is complemented by an arrangement of the foot-tapping chacarera, La oncena, by the young Argentine composer, Darío Barozzi, in this opening performance for Roberto Aussel.

Astor Piazzolla: 'Tango Suite'

Eduardo Lagos (arr. D. Barozzi): 'La oncena'

Vickers-Bovey Duo (classical guitars)

'Astounding exquisiteness.’ (Sunday Times)

The multi-award-winning Vickers-Bovey Guitar Duo have been described as performers ‘with truly uncanny unanimity’ (Ivan Hewett, Daily Telegraph). Julian and Dan first met studying at Birmingham Conservatoire where they both received First-Class Honours and the Principal’s Prize, continuing their studies with a joint Masters at the Royal Academy of Music, London, graduating with Distinction and the Performance Diploma in July 2016. Since going on to make their Wigmore Hall debut in February 2017, they have performed extensively internationally and around the UK including at St James’s Piccadilly, the Park Lane Group concert series at St John’s Smith Square, Courtauld Gallery, Kings Place (London Guitar Festival), The Sage (North-East Guitar Festival), The Lake District Summer Music Festival and Kings Lynn Festival, as well as being featured on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune and Late Junction.

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Presented by ILAMS as part of Echoes Festival 2021 in collaboration with the Instituto Cervantes and Pixaudio, with the kind support of the Embassy of Argentina

SNEAK PEEK! Roberto Aussel plays 'Compadre' from Piazzolla's 'Cinco piezas'

SNEAK PEEK! Vickers-Bovey Duo perform Castelnuovo-Tedesco's Prelude and Fugue in F# Minor