Lourdes Saraiva | Four Poems for Guitar

Four Poems for Guitar was written originally in 2011 for a composers’ workshop given by Swedish classical guitarist and composer, Stefan Östersjö at Rymer Auditorium, The University of York. A decade later, the piece was revised in collaboration with Brazilian guitarist, Luiz Mantovani, resulting in the work’s world premiere. As the title suggests, it is a four-movement piece, each movement reflecting a narrative stage: the introductory first movement, “De un caminante enfermo que se enamoró donde fue hospedado” (About an ill wayfarer who fell in love where he was lodging); followed by a transitional movement, “El peregrino” (The pilgrim); a climactic and impulsive movement, “Quantic leap”; and a conclusive and quiet movement, “A cherry tree in the autumn”. The first and second movements were based on a sixteenth-century Spanish poem; the third and fourth were based on musical gestures I selected from the first movement but were also associated with everyday life situations I experienced during the composition.

Lourdes Saraiva