Rodrigo, Joaquín

b. 1901, Sagunto

   Composer

   Joaquín Rodrigo characterized his compositional aesthetic by drawing a comparison between his Concierto de Aranjuez (1938–9) and a graceful move of the torero's cape in the bullring, thus linking his most succesful piece to a quintessentially Spanish image. As Rodrigo has been blind from the age of three, the reference to the cape's movement through the air must be understood not visually but metaphorically, an indication of his attraction towards traditional values in vogue during the later part of the nineteenth century and revived by the Franco regime as an intrinsic part of the nationalist spirit. From the time of this composition onwards, his style was fixed. Rodrigo first studied music in Valencia with Eduardo Lopez Chararri, who may have transferred his enthusiasm for folk music to his pupil. He went on to study composition with Paul Dukas at the Ecole Normale de Musique in Paris. As with many composers before him, the role Paris played in his development is of great importance, for it was there that Rodrigo strengthened his resolve to write music rooted in Spanish tradition. He has written only one composition that has a definite regional character, the symphonic poem Per la flor del lliri blau (By the Flower of the Blue Lily) (1934) which is based on a Valencian folk song, otherwise Rodrigo's music is far more concerned with a centralized image of the nation. The Concierto de Aranjuez was intended to evoke the spirit of a mythical and glorious past, and made the composer a leading exponent of the Nationalist movement. Its success led him to repeat the formula again and again, though without achieving the same results until Fantasia para un gentilhombre (Fantasy for a Gentleman), composed in 1954. This piece, based on music by Gaspar Sanz (1640–1710), also tended towards a nationalist outlook. After Falla's death, Rodrigo was acknowledged to be Spain's foremost living composer and was honoured with a number of medals including the Grand Cross of the Order of Alfonso X in 1953. His major works include ballets, opera, chamber music and compositions for guitar, piano, voice and orchestra. Rodrigo settled in Madrid after the Civil War, where he not only composed and wrote musical criticisms, but was attached to the national radio and became professor of musical history at the university. In 1996 he became the first composer ever to be awarded the Prince of Asturias Prize for the Arts.

   See also: Francoist culture

   Further reading

   - Kamhi de Rodrigo, V. (1992) Hand in Hand with Joaquín Rodrigo: My Life at the Maestro's Side, trans. E.Wilkerson, Pittsburgh (a personal biography by his pianist wife).

   - Marco, T. (1993) "Nationalism and Casticismo", in C.Franzen (trans.) Spanish Music in the Twentieth Century, Harvard, MA: Harvard University Press (an excellent overview, which takes into account the impact of national culture on composition).

   JESSAMY HARVEY