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Ricard Lamote de GRIGNON (1899-1962) Goya – Sis peces desagradables per a 10 solistes (Six unpleasant pieces for 10 soloists): Mala noche (A bad night); ¡Que viene el coco! (Here comes the bogey-man!); El de la rollona (Nanny’s boy); Bellos consejos (Wonderful advice); Se repulen (They spruce themselves up); Las rinde el sueňo (Sleep overcomes them) Melodia for double bass and piano Impromptu for violoncello and piano Bagatel les de final de segle for violin and piano – Elegia, Cançó, Serenata Tocata for flute Barcino Ensemble, director Adolf Pla Recorded 15th-16th July 2000 at l’auditori Eduard Toldrá del Conservatori Superior de Musica de Barcelona LA MA DE GUIDO LMG2040 [42:15] UK Re-release

Ricard Lamote de Grignon y Ribas, to give him his full name, was a Catalan musician who lived through the most difficult period of recent Spanish history, namely the fascist rule of Franco. His father, Joan, in whose footsteps Ricard followed, is in fact the more famous musician of the two. Like many artists, Ricard suffered terribly at the hands of Franco – living and working in Barcelona, he had been ‘purged’, imprisoned and his life threatened by the regime. The main work on this CD, Goya, is a product of his experiences of this time. The sub-title – Six Unpleasant Pieces - is, of course, engagingly ironic, and reflects a Catalan preoccupation with the relationship between beauty and ugliness in artistic work, something that can be seen strikingly, for example, in the work of the architect Antonio Gaudi, which nobody who has visited Barcelona can either fail to notice or ever forget. The Peces Desagradables are scored for an ensemble of ten instruments which are either bass instruments or ones capable of dark tone – clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, ’cello, double bass, two pianos, timpani and two percussion – and are a wonderfully apt musical counterpoint to the strange Goya etchings which inspired them (and which are helpfully reproduced in the booklet). It goes without saying is that they are not ‘unpleasant’ at all; many of the textures are strangely beautiful, and make their impact with gentle, understated colours such as high bassoon or soft percussion. I was often reminded of the Alban Berg of the Three Orchestral Pieces, especially as the musical language is, like Berg, broadly atonal yet with occasional hints of tonality. The fourth movement, Bellos consejos –Good Advice - appears to refer to the famous Sailor’s Hornpipe – pa-pa pom pom pom – but I think this is just fortuitous, unless of course the two women in the related Goya etching are discussing the merits of English seamen. Doubt it. The piece is played with restraint and imagination by the Barcino Ensemble under director Adolf Pla. The other pieces – for double-bass, ’cello and flute, are much more conventional, and presumably written for members of the Barcelona Municipal Orchestra, where de Grignon was assistant musical director for some years. These are attractive but unremarkable music, and the only drawback is the noisy sniffing of ’cellist Josep Pazos. Why do ’cellists sniff such a lot more than other string players? Answers on a post-card please. An unusual and highly enjoyable disc, this. Goya is really worth hearing, and my only quibble is the short measure – 42 minutes is pretty miserable value. Gwyn Parry-Jones Advertising Rates Visitor stats MusicWeb International has over 40,000 Classical CD reviews on offer Discs received Having a problem Donating? Gerard Hoffnung Concerts & The Bricklayer Story MusicWeb can now offer you discs from the following catalogues: Prices include postage There will be NO VAT Rises [Acte Préalable £13.50] [Arcodiva £12.00] [Avie from £6.25] [British Music Society £12.00] [CDACCORD from £13.50 ] [ClassicO £12.50] [Hallé from £11] [Heritage £10] [Hortus £14.99 ] [Lyrita ONLY £11.75 ] [Nimbus Special prices] [Northern Flowers £13.50] [REDCLIFFE £11 ] [Sheva £11] [Tactus £11.50 ] [Talent from £12.00 ] [Toccata Classics £10.50 ] Musicweb Special Offers Monthly Best Buys   New Releases New Releases   MusicWeb sells the Polish catalogue CDAccord £10.50 post free W-W MusicWeb sells the Arcodiva catalogue £12.00 post free W-W £11.75 post-free world- wide     Google Ads - for information about privacy matters, click here.  Amazon Musicweb International is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com

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