As part of the European tour of the musicianand researcher John Doan, associate professor at the Willamette University in Salem (Oregon, USA), the Sor Society of Barcelona (SSB) has organised, in conjunction with the Barcelona Museum of Music, a seminar (conference and recital) on Fernando Sor and his decisive role in the evolution of the guitar and other plucked string instruments.

The Catalan Fernando Sor (Barcelona 1778 – Paris 1839), besides being one of the leading composers in Spain during the transitional period between Classicism and Romanticism, was the musician who, thanks to his works and performances, raised the guitar to the category of concert instrument in the “cultured” world of international music. What is less known is that Sor also played a decisive role in the technical development of the guitar, through his contacts with the most important luthiers of his epoch.

In addition, Sor also composed for an instrument invented at that time: the harpolyre (a guitar with three necks and 21 strings). After the conference we will be able to listen to these pieces for the first time in Europe after almost a century of neglect, thanks to the arrangements made by John Doan.

A well known figure on the Celtic music scene today, John Doan will also play some pieces on the harp guitar, his usual instrument.
For further information on the session at the Museum of Music >

Related posts:

1. Fernando Sor, beyond the guitar