Publications

The «sophisticated» simple pianoforte designed and built in 1766 by Johannes Zumpe (1726-1790) was the true driver of the social, commercial and creative career of the piano. We refer, therefore, to a builder and a capital instrument in the history of the piano. The Museu de la Música de Barcelona keeps a copy dated on 1776, just 10 years after the beginning of this career. Thanks to a long process of research, study and restoration promoted by the Museu, and carried out by the organologist Kerstin Schwarz, this instrument has recovered its original beauty and expression, opening a new sound window to an era that established the foundations of culture and the modern society. This book places the instrument in its social context and describes the restoration process through the articles of specialists such as Michael Cole, Pablo Gómez Ábalos and Kerstin Schwarz. This new publication continues the specialized editions of the Museu de la Música, both in printed version and in electronic book, which began with the claviorgan of Lorenz Hauslaib. At the end of the printed book, there is a code for free access to the electronic version of tge book.

In several traditional Korean musical practices it is common to hear the percussionist or just an audience member cry out eolsiggu! (pronounced “oisshigo”). This expression is rich in meanings and difficult to translate exactly, but its aim is both to encourage the soloist and convey zeal for the performance. It is a term imbued with ambiguity not only in its definition but also in its use, being both expressive and vibrant in the context of musical practices. These were the qualities that led us to choose eolssigu as the emblem of the venture into the Korean sonic universe we hereby introduce.

This publication accompanies the exhibition of the same name, which has been created jointly by the National Gugak Center of Seoul and the Museu de la Música de Barcelona, and held at the latter from October 2017 to June 2018. Meanwhile, it also seeks to compensate for the general absence of publications in the Catalonian and Spanish languages on the musical instruments, music, and especially the classical/traditional musical practices of Korea.

Wide selection of works and versions of Miquel Llobet that Stefano Grondona gives us in a unique interpretation. Grondona is one of the most recognized contemporary guitarists, and probably the person who knows every corner of Llobet's music and life, to whom he has dedicated a good part of his work as interpreter and scholar. We are not only facing some works for guitar, but an exceptional music that we have to rediscover regularly.

The Museu de la Música de Barcelona houses an extraordinary collection of guitars, considered one of the best in the world for its quality and range. Among the initiatives undertaken to promote and preserve this valuable heritage, it is to mention a special research and recovery program that has allowed many of these guitars recover their original sound to the point of being able to be used musically.

One of the results is the recording of the CD La Guitarra dels Lleons with some of the most relevant items of the collection with the help and collaboration of Xavier Díaz-Latorre, a Catalan eminent specialist in historical plucked string instruments. This selection of guitars offering unique and captivating sounds includes the notable Lion Guitar, built around the year 1700 and known like this because of the decoration on its front table. The CD includes works by composers Isaac Albéniz, Ferran Sor, Santiago de Murcia, Gaspar Sanz and Francesc Guerau.