Burle Marx: Sago Do Medievo

When Burle Marx wrote this work for Segovia in the 1970’s, it is probable he was well acquainted with the Bach Chaconne and Variations on La Folia and Fugue by Ponce. This work stands alongside those two as a masterful variations set, built on the “ground“ (bass line/chord sequence) known since the Renaissance as La Folia. Burle Marx writes no fewer than forty variations on the theme, and sets them off with an interlude (“Sphinx“) and a coda. He reveals a staggering range of harmonic and rhythmic invention, sometimes veering far from the theme, but always finding a way back. This is an important piece for guitarists. Burle Marx was a serious, celebrated composer, whose numerous orchestral, vocal and chamber works are often performed. At over 17 minutes, this piece is his most ambitious for solo guitar. The score to this work is included in the Complete Guitar Works of Burle Marx, published by Clear Note Publications, and can be found here: