Jesús Guridi facts for kids
Jesús Guridi Bidaola (born September 25, 1886 – died April 7, 1961) was a famous Basque composer from Spain. He played a very important part in Spanish and Basque music during the 20th century. His music style was like the late Romantic period, similar to Richard Wagner's work, but it also had a strong influence from Basque culture.
Some of his most well-known pieces include the zarzuela El Caserío (a type of Spanish musical play), the opera Amaya, the orchestral work Ten Basque Melodies, and his organ music, especially the Triptych of the Good Shepherd.
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About His Life
Jesús Guridi was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, a city in Spain. His family was very musical! His mother, Maria Trinidad Bidaola, played the violin, and his father, Lorenzo Guridi, played the piano.
He started his early studies with religious schools. Later, he moved to Madrid and then to Bilbao, where he continued learning music. He took violin lessons and studied harmony, which is about how musical notes fit together. On January 28, 1901, when he was just 14, he performed his first public concert in Bilbao.
When he was 18, he went to the Schola Cantorum in Paris, France. There, he studied organ, how to compose music, and advanced music techniques like fugue and counterpoint. He became good friends with another composer named Jose Maria Usandizaga during this time.
After Paris, he studied in Brussels and Cologne to learn even more. In June 1912, he became the director of the Bilbao Choral Society, a choir group. Sadly, his friend Usandizaga passed away that same year.
In 1922, Guridi married Julia Ispizua. They had six children together: María Jesús, Luis Fernando, María Isabel, Ignacio, Julia, and Javier. In 1944, he started teaching at the Madrid Conservatory, a famous music school. Years later, he became its director.
Jesús Guridi died suddenly on April 7, 1961, in his home in Madrid. He was 74 years old.
His Musical Style
Jesús Guridi was greatly inspired by the German composer Richard Wagner and other musicians from the late Romantic period. However, he also found a lot of ideas in the traditional sounds of Basque folklore. This mix of influences gave his music a special body and soul.
Guridi wrote a lot of music in many different styles. He composed:
- Chamber music (for small groups of instruments, like string quartets).
- Vocal and choral music (for singers and choirs).
- Orchestral works (for large orchestras).
- Music for church services and concerts, especially for the organ.
- Operas (like Mirentxu and Amaya).
- Zarzuelas (Spanish musical plays, like El Caserio and La Meiga).
Some of his well-known works include: El Caserio (1926), Diez melodias Vascas (Ten Basque Melodies, 1940), Amaya (1920), and the Pyrenean Symphony (1945).
His Works
Even though Guridi was very busy as an organist, choir director, and teacher, he spent most of his time composing music. He wrote many different kinds of pieces, from symphonic music to film scores, operas, chamber music, choral works, songs, and even music for children.
Guridi's music is known for being clear in its structure, having strong and rich harmonies, and featuring inspiring melodies. He was one of the main creators of musical nationalism in the Basque Country and Spain, meaning he used local traditions and sounds in his music.
Here are some of his most important works:
Operas
His most famous opera is Amaya. It was first performed in Bilbao in 1920. Another important opera is Mirentxu, which was also first performed in Bilbao in 1910.
Zarzuelas
El Caserío (The Farmhouse) is probably his most famous zarzuela and one of his best-known works overall. It was first performed in Madrid in 1926.
Other notable zarzuelas include La Meiga, La Cautiva (The Captive, 1931), Mandolinata (1934), and Mari-Eli (a Basque operetta, 1936). He also wrote La bengala (The Flare, 1939), Peñamariana (1944), and Acuarelas vascas (Basque Watercolours, 1948).
Orchestral Music
For orchestral music, his most famous piece is Ten Basque Melodies (1940). He also composed Basque Legend in 1915, the symphonic poem An Adventure of Don Quixote (1916), and En un barco fenicio (In a Phoenician ship) in 1927. In 1945, he wrote his Pyrenean Symphony. In 1956, he composed Tribute to Walt Disney Fantasy for piano and orchestra.
Choral Music
Guridi also wrote a lot of music for voices and choirs. His Six Castilian Songs, composed in 1939, are very well-known.
Other choral works by Guridi include:
- So the children sing (1915), for choir and orchestra.
- Euskal folkloreko XXII Abesti (22 Basque popular songs, 1932).
- Basque Songs (1956).
- Traditional Basque songs like Boga boga (1913) and Anton Aizkorri (1913).
- Christmas Eve Song Ator, ator mutil (1920).
- Religious pieces like Mass in honor of the Archangel Gabriel (1955), Mass in honor of San Ignacio de Loyola (1922), Requiem Mass (1918), and Te Deum (1937).
- Other sacred songs such as Ave Maria (1907), Hail (1916), and Tantum ergo (1915).
- Basque Folk Songs for mixed voices (1913–1923).
Piano and Chamber Music
Guridi also created music for films and many pieces for solo piano. These include Old Dances (1939), 8 Notes For Piano (1954), and Vasconia (1924).
He also wrote chamber music, which is for small groups of instruments. He composed two string quartets: Quartet in G major (1934) and Quartet in A minor (1949), which he dedicated to the cellist Juan Ruiz Casaux.
Organ Music
The organ was probably Guridi’s favorite instrument. He was a great organ player and teacher. He was also very good at improvising music on the spot and played the organ until the end of his life.
In 1922, Guridi became a professor of organ and harmony at the Institute of Music of Bizkaia. In 1944, he won a national competition to become the organ professor at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid, where he later became director in 1956. For many years, he was also the organist at the Church of San Manuel and San Benito in Madrid.
In 1909, when he was still young, he won a Gold Medal for his Fantasy for great organ, a piece he composed between 1906 and 1907. He performed this piece himself. In 1909, he also wrote an Interlude, and in 1917, another Fantasy called Prelude and Fantasy.
In 1922, he composed Cuadros vascos (Basque scenes) for choir and orchestra. He also arranged a traditional Basque dance called Espatadantza from this work for solo organ. In 1953, he arranged Four Cantigas of Alfonso el Sabio for organ.
In 1948, he composed Variations on a Basque theme. This piece has nine variations based on the popular song Itsasoa laino dago (There is fog on the sea).
In 1951, Guridi put together twenty short and easy organ pieces for teaching. He called this collection Spanish School of Organ. It included pieces like Introduction, Capriccio, Hymn, Improvisation, and Tocata.
In 1953, he wrote his beautiful Triptych of the Good Shepherd. This piece, which includes "The Flock," "The Lost Sheep," and "The Good Shepherd," is considered his masterpiece for the organ. It won first prize in a competition for the opening of a new organ at the Good Shepherd Cathedral in San Sebastián. Guridi himself performed his "Triptych" there on January 20, 1954.
Shortly before he passed away in 1961, he composed a Final for organ. This piece has a strong character, similar to the style of the French master Louis Vierne.
See also
In Spanish: Jesús Guridi para niños
- Conservatory Jesús Guridi
