MARIO ESCUDERO

MARIO ESCUDERO

The Glory of the Flamenco Guitar

Score Book + CD | Author: CLAUDE WORMS | A4 - 120 pages | Spanish - English - French

MARIO ESCUDERO - The Glory of the Flamenco Guitar

Mario Escudero is one of the great flamenco concert guitarists of all time. Nine of his most important compositions are published in this book, including the buleria Ímpetu which is widely regarded as a masterpiece of flamenco ahead of its time and which was recorded and brought to the international audience by Paco de Lucía. Escudero worked alongside the most outstanding artistes of his day - Vicente Escudero, Ramón Montoya, Tomás Pavón, Niña de los Peines and Mairena, among others. The CD also features an interview with him recorded for radio.

MARIO ESCUDERO'S BIOGRAPHY

Mario Escudero was born on 11 October 1928 in Alicante, Spain. His first concert took place in 1937 when he was nine years old in Bordeaux, France, at the Cinema Galia in a show presented by Maurice Chevalier. His Madrid debut came in 1944 in the Teatro Español with Vicente Escudero, Ramón Montoya, and Jacinto Almadén. From that time on he toured throughout Spain and accompanied Tomás Pavón, Niña de los Peines, Antonio Mairena, Canalejas de Puerto Real, Pepe de la Matrona and many more. He later travelled to Europe and America with the companies of Carmen Amaya, Vicente Escudero, and Rosario and Antonio. In the United States Escudero gained fame as a soloist, especially after his first performance in New York's Carnegie Hall in 1955. Some of his songs were orchestrated by the composer Moreno Torroba. His fame has spread throughout the world and he is generally considered one of the foremost flamenco concert guitarists. In 1984, he returned to Spain to give a concert at the Third ‘Bienal de Arte Flamenco Ciudad de Sevilla’. In 1994 he decided to move back to the States definitively. Escudero had a close, lifelong friendship with his relative and colleague Sabicas. Both lived in New York and sharing the highs of their artistic lives. They recorded several albums as a duet for which they received great acclaim. Mario Escudero passed away on 19 November 2004 in Miami (USA), the land that opened its doors to him and gave him absolute recognition.