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Carlos Guastavino (Argentina 1912-2000)
When I read poetry that touches me, I become very agitated, my whole body contorts, I vibrate totally, and tears appear in my eyes. It's very strong! I then take the manuscript paper and write the notes. The melody comes easily; everything is very quick; I cannot stop...it's as if I were possessed; suddenly, when I become aware that I found what I wanted, I stand, make gestures, walk, go in circles, laugh or cry, and give thanks to God. The music comes by itself. I am not responsible: one part of my brain has music. --Carlos Guastavino, in conversation with Carlos Vilo
Composer and pianist, Carlos Vicente Guastavino (4/5/1912 – 10/29/2000) was born and deceased in Santa Fe, capital city of the homonymous Argentinean province. He set out from there with the characteristic impulse of the provincial young, dazzled by the attractive cultural activity in Buenos Aires. An old man, he returned to Santa Fe to share his last years of existence with his native soil and definitely rest in the near nearby area of San José del Rincón, which is so intensely recalled in his song “Pueblito, mi pueblo”.
A descendant of Italian immigrants, his childhood was spent with a family that, like many at the outset of the XX century, had many a music aficionado. His parents, Amadeo Eusebio and Josefina, played guitar and mandolin, respectively. His uncle Pedro improvised on the clarinet, and his older brother, José Amadeo, on the piano. Spontaneity and musical intuition were among the young Carlos’ first ludic experiences, the third of six brothers who, being just four years old, a disciple of the pianist Esperanza Lothringer, made his debut at the municipal theatre playing a little composition of her own, a duet for violin and piano.
He learnt the popular music of the rural area spontaneously, being particularly fond of the cielito and the triste. In his last years, he used to repeat by rote in a heartfelt manner the verses that his uncle Pedro, a countryman from the province of Buenos Aires used to sing in his visits to Santa Fe.
Attracted by the Sciences since early adolescence, he began the career of Chemical Engineering at the Universidad Nacional del Litoral after completing his bachelor degree. Nevertheless, he did not abandon his activity as professional piano performer. In 1937 he met Héctor Ruiz Díaz, and his experience playing piano duets with him was key in his decision to dedicate his time entirely to music. With a scholarship from the Ministry of Public Instruction of Santa Fe, he pursued his studies in the Argentinean capital city, Buenos Aires.
Established in Buenos Aires, after a quick stay of a handful of months at the National Music Conservatory, he began to study privately with the composer and educator Athos Palma. With him, he systematized in a brief but intense period, all his empirical knowledge, especially in the disciplines of harmony, morphology and counterpoint.
He took a life of travels and intense artistic experiences during the 40’s and 50’s. Tournées through Argentina’s neighboring countries, two trips to London –one of them as part of an European Tour that included other cities, and the other by means of a scholarship of the British Council– and some touring months through the Soviet Union and China in 1956 contributed to build him a name as a distinguished composer-pianist oriented to a nationalist vocal and piano repertoire of chamber music.
Renowned classical and popular music interpreters like Concepción Badía, Victoria de los Angeles, Joan Manuel Serrat, Alfredo Krauss, José Carreras, Teresa Berganza, John Williams, Mercedes Sosa, José Cura, Rudolf Firkusny, Víctor Villadangos, Marcos Fink, Eduardo Falú, Gerard Souzay, among many others, have played or sung his music in concerts or recordings during the XXth century. His discography is currently very extensive and keeps on growing relentlessly. Some songs have been translated into other languages and may be heard in Indonesia, Japan, Australia, as well as Europe and the USA.
Thus, Guastavino is one of the few exponents of the Argentinean musical nationalism that enjoys an international acclaim. The Organization of American States (OEA) and the Inter-American Council of Music (CIDEM) acknowledged this in 1987, rendering him the homage of the highest distinction from that organism. He also received the award “Premio Consagración Nacional” from the National Secretary of Culture (1992), a distinction from the Argentinean Music Critics Association (1993), the acknowledgement of the town of San Pedro, in Buenos Aires, as “Illustrious citizen” (1993) for his song “El sampedrino” (in collaboration with the poet León Benarós) and the title of “Emeritus person of the Argentinean culture” by the Argentinean President (1999).
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The
possibility to publish his compositions from the very beginning with
Ricordi Music Publishers was certainly not a minor issue: this opened for
him an immense gateway to the international music world that afforded him
a vast divulgation of his works. His production is extensive in the field
of chamber and solistic repertoires: it includes vocal works with piano,
choral works a cappella, for instrumental ensembles, piano and guitar.
Some of these pieces reached a success that prompted ever new print runs
of the works. That was precisely the case for the songs “Pueblito, mi
pueblo” and “Se equivocó la paloma”, and the “Bailecito” for piano, which
notably continue to demand new reprint runs.