Burle Marx: Saudade do Nosso Amigo

Burle Marx was a celebrated Brazilian composer of the generation after Villa Lobos. He wrote a large amount of solo guitar music for Segovia in the 1970’s, but Segovia declined to play it. I met the composer’s daughter, who asked me to edit and publish this music. It made an extraordinary book of guitar works, totaling over 40 minutes playing time. The pieces range from single, deep ballads, like this one, to light-hearted folkloric dances, to a massive theme and variations masterwork. I’ll post them all in this follow-the-score fashion, in the hopes that people will discover this rich heritage of authentic, high-quality Brazilian guitar music. The Saudade do Nosso Amigo is an exquisite, expressive ballad with rich harmonies, satisfying shape and brilliant, florid, cadenza-like breaks. It is a pleasure to play as it lies perfectly on the instrument and its melodies are darkly beautiful. The score to this work is included in the Complete Guitar Works of Burle Marx, published by Clear Note Pub