Book Description

The great Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) began composing in his teens. He gained a reputation for an innovative style and for championing other experimental composers and bringing them to Latin America. His grand opera Don Rodrigo (1963-64) incorporating serialism, structural symmetry, microtones, and extended vocal techniques brought him international attention and regular commissions. After completing his second opera, Bomarzo (1966-67), he experienced a troubled period of little productivity. A marriage to cellist Aurora Nátola and subsequent move to Switzerland fuelled a creative burst in his last twelve years including the composition of his monumental work Turbae ad passionem gregorianam (1974) and a significant body of cello works. Over 200 commercial recordings of his work are currently available.

Given Ginasteras importance, this research guide on him and his music is overdue. It examines all published and unpublished writing by Ginastera, the scholarly secondary materials and the important collections. The complete catalogue of Ginasteras works with an inventory of the source materials quoted, prove an invaluable resource since much of the composers work is in manuscript form or out-of-print.