Puneña No 2 for solo cello by Alberto Ginastera

One of the most important composers of the 20th century, Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) embraced both old and new in the creation of an original style rooted in Argentine folk and popular music while incorporating increasingly modernist techniques.

Commissioned in 1976 by the renowned Russian cellist, Mastislav Rostropovich, for the 70th anniversary of Swiss music impresario Paul Sacher, Ginastera composed a challenging two-movement piece for solo cello. Inspired by the Puna grasslands of the Andes mountains and the Quechua indigenous traditions, the work opens with the musical motif -SACHER- in which each letter represents a musical note.

The first movement Harawi is developed on a fantasia-like structure with highly lyrical sections in which Ginastera explores different techniques to recreate the sounds of the birds, wind and Andean flutes, such as the quena and the siku.

The second movement, Wayno Karnavalito, is fast and rhythmic and based on a traditional dance for religious practices in which the cello alternates between bowing and pizzicato (plugged) techniques to evoke the sound of the charango, a small Andean string instrument of the lute family.

A colourful and powerful musical composition deeply rooted in the folk imagination, this work is representative of Ginastera’s late instrumental style. In a program note, John Largess, the violist of the Miró Quartet, says that Ginastera’s music is a “sonic ritual” embodying the “spirit of magical realism” exemplified by Latin American writers such as Gabriel García Márquez.

I aspire to bring a balance of masterful technique and passion to Ginastera’s work. In this recording of Ginastera’s Puneña No. 2 “Hommage a Paul Sacher”, I explore both the instrument and a wide range of extended techniques.

Alcides Lanza, the renowned Argentinian/Canadian composer and a former student of Ginastera, was kind enough to write: “An energetic and vigorous version of this important work by Ginastera. In the hands of cellist Delgado, a rendition of a very high technical and musical quality. Brilliant.”

You can find the full work on Spotify, iTunes and on LeafMusic’s website.

Thank you for listening.