Month: January 2018

1836: Texas denies vote to Mexicans.

After revolting from Mexico in 1836, the short-lived Republic of Texas denies citizenship (and the right to own property) to anyone who had not supported the revolution. All non-Anglos are assumed to be part of that category — even those who had fought for the revolution.When Texas is admitted to the union as a slave state in 1845, the Mexicans remaining in Texas are granted U.S. citizenship and property rights by the Federal government — in theory. But Mexican-Americans who try to independently vote face widespread beatings, burnings, and lynchings — except in cases where large landowners force their employees to vote as a group under supervision of their foremen who ensure that they all vote for the owner’s preferred candidates.

After the Civil War, the methods used in Texas and other southern states to deny voting rights to Blacks are also applied to Mexican-Americans.

1848: Mexican-Americans are denied voting rights in the southwest.

Under the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo which ends the Mexican-American war, Mexicans who remain in the new territories conquered by the U.S. are supposed to become full U.S. citizens according to legislation that Congress is supposed to pass.For California that legislation takes the form of admitting it to the union as a free state in 1850. While technically U.S. citizens, Mexican-Americans in both Texas and California are denied the vote through violence and state “voter eligibility” laws. (In other words, in regards to voting there are similarities between the situations faced by Mexican-Americans and “free” Blacks.)

The territories of Arizona and New Mexico, however, are not admitted to the union as states until 1912. During the 64 years between the signing of the treaty and statehood, Mexican-Americans in those territories are held in a kind of noncitizen legal limbo without the vote and where their civil rights can be (and often are) easily violated. During this period, all laws, claims, and disputes related to land, water, and livestock are enacted by politicians and resolved by judges who are elected only by the white settlers who are disputing grants and deeds dating back to the Mexican and Spanish eras. In some cases settlment of these disputes take generations, and many Mexican-Americans believe that the long delay in granting them voting rights is directly connected to the fortunes at stake.

1848-1920: Women’s Suffrage Movement.

In 1848 the first Women’s Rights Convention is held in Seneca Falls, NY. It demands that women be granted all rights as full citizens including the right to vote.For the next 72 years women — and some male supporters — speak out, petition, lobby, sue, protest, march, and engage in civil-disobedience, for the right to vote. They brave beatings, mob attacks, rape, jail, seizure and destruction of property, forced divorce (and consequent loss of children), forced feeding of hunger strikers, and murder, to fight for their right to be full citizens.

1850: Asian immigration.

With the California gold rush, Asian immigration becomes significant for the first time, mostly in the American West. Under the “whites-only” clause of the 1790 Naturalization Law, Asian immigrants cannot be citizens — but what about their children born in America? Government officials try to avoid this “problem” by preventing Asian women from coming ashore. Many are sent back, but some avoid detection and manage to get off the ship. And some Asian men marry women of other races — some of whom are citizens — what happens when their boys reach age 21?

1856: Property restrictions removed.

The last state to finally eliminate the property qualification is North Carolina in 1856.

1861-1865: Civil War and Emancipation.

The struggle against slavery eventually leads to bloody Civil War. 360,000 Union soldiers — Black and white — die to defeat slavery. That is 130 out of every 10,000 persons in the Northern states. (For comparison, deaths in the Vietnam War numbered 3 out of every 10,000.)The Emancipation Proclamation (1863) and the 13th Amendment (1865) eventually end slavery as a legal concept (though the actual treatment of sharecroppers, tenant farmers, and plantation laborers continues to closely resemble slavery in all but the legal formalities).

But it is still left to individual states to determine who is eligible to vote. Some Northern states extend the vote to Blacks — but most states do not.

1867: 14th Amendment extends citizenship to Blacks.

Under the 14th Amendment all states are required to recognize Black (and white) males as citizens.But for the first time women of all races are explicitly excluded in the Constitution from full citizenship in regards to voting.

1868: Women petition that womens’ suffrage be included in the draft 15th Amendment.

The men of Congress deny their petition.

1870: 15th Amendment extends vote to Blacks.

Adoption of the 15th Amendment in 1870 extends voting rights to Black males — in theory.In reality, there is massive resistance to the intent of the 15th Amendment, particularly in the Southern states, but also in the North and Midwest. Violence and economic reprisal are used to intimidate and prevent Black men from voting.

The 15th Amendment does not apply to Native-Americans or Asians because they cannot be citizens. Similarly, it does not apply to Mexican-Americans in New Mexico and Arizona because they live in territories that are not yet states. While legally eligible to vote in Texas and California, Mexican-Americans are still denied the vote through violence and economic retaliation.

1867-1877: Reconstruction.

During the Reconstruction period, hundreds of thousands of Black men risk their lives and property to vote, and many are elected to office. In fact, for a period in the late 1860s, more African-Americans are registered to vote than whites in the states of the former Confederacy.

1877: End of reconstruction, abandonment of 15th Amendment.

Because of widespread cheating on both sides, the vote count and outcome of the 1876 presidential election between Hayes the Republican and Tilden the Democrat is bitterly disputed — particularly the count in the state of Florida. In the end, all disputed counts are resolved by a special committee appointed by Congress. Republicans outnumber Democrats on the committee by 8 to 7. All disputes are decided in favor of the Republicans by a vote of 8 to 7. Hayes is declared the winner even though most impartial observers believe that Tilden won the popular vote.It is widely understood that there’s a backroom deal with the Democrats who represent the overwhelming majority of white voters in the South. In return for the Democrats accepting Hayes’ victory, the Republicans promise that Hayes will remove the troops and officials who have been providing at least some limited protection to Blacks in the South. And that the new Hayes administration will cease enforcing the 15th Amendment and other civil rights laws. This deal becomes known as the “Compromise of 1877.” The “compromise” being that the Republicans retain power in Washington while white racists throughout the country are given free reign to oppress and persecute non-whites.

Hayes takes office, the troops and officials are removed. Civil rights enforcement ends:

• Reign of terror. The Ku Klux Klan and other racist terrorist organizations increase their attacks against African-Americans. Blacks are expelled from office. African-American males who try to vote are fired from their jobs, evicted from their homes, beaten, and in many cases brutally lynched. Black property owners are burned out, Black businesses destroyed, entire African-American towns are wiped out.
• Legal disenfranchisement. New state laws are passed to sabotage and render ineffective the 15th Amendment. Among these are the so called “Literacy Tests” that make it impossible for non-whites to register, and “Grandfather clauses” that restrict voting rights to those men whose grandfathers had been eligible to vote — a requirement that descendants of slaves cannot possibly meet.
• Poll taxes. Many states impose taxes on voting. Anyone — Black or white — who cannot afford to pay the tax cannot vote. Since the taxes are high and have to be paid in cash, voting is thus limited to affluent white males. In effect, this restores a property requirement for voting.
• Segregation laws. Laws mandating separation of the races in education, government services, public facilities & accommodations, restrooms, transportation, drinking fountains and so on are passed throughout the South and Midwest. Known as the “Jim Crow” system, their goal is to force African-Americans into feudal-like subserviency, a form of semi-slavery. The many Blacks who resist are beaten, jailed, and murdered. Similar systems are imposed in Western states against Latinos, Native-Americans, and Asians.

Within a few years most Blacks are removed from the voter registration rolls and denied the right to vote. All African-Americans who hold elected office are driven out. In Louisiana, for example, by 1900 fewer than 5,000 African-Americans are registered to vote, down from a high of 130,000.

The Digital Guitar Archive has published an authoritative edition of Huerta titled “A. T. Huerta Life and Works”. This edition is over 180 pages, including biographical information, photos, and around 25 compositions – the entire surviving guitar works extant at time of publication. As more works may yet surface, future volumes may be forthcoming. The printing is clear, bold, and urtext – highly recommended.

Bibliography: James Radomski, “Trinidad Huerta y Caturla: First Spanish Virtuoso Guitarist to Concertize in the United States,” Inter-American Music Review, vol. 15 (Summer-Fall 1996), no. 2, pp. 103-121.Bio from Harmonicorde.com:”Trinidad Huerta was acclaimed during his lifetime as “the Paganini of the guitar.” He was highly praised by Hector Berlioz and Victor Hugo. A music critic for La revue musicale declared that Huerta was the best guitarist he had ever heard—even while Fernando Sor and Dionisio Aguado were performing in Paris. The Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung went further and claimed Huerta to be the greatest living guitarist. Yet Huerta is completely unknown to classical guitar audiences today. This probably resulted from a decline in his later years that brought him to die in poverty in Paris, forgotten there as well as in his native Spain.Nonetheless, Huerta’s achievements were considerable. Paris music critic Arthur Pougin (1834-1921) claimed that he wrote the “Himno de Riego,” formerly the Spanish national anthem. Huerta was the first classical guitarist to concertize in the United States (1825) and he toured Spain, Portugal, England and France, and even traveled to the Middle East with Louisa de Rothschild. Contemporary critics were astounded by his technique and simultaneously applauded and criticized his trying to make the guitar a symphonic instrument. A century before Segovia, Huerta did much to overcome the stereotype of the guitar as an inferior instrument, only useful for strumming accompaniments to parlor songs. Berlioz, in his Grand Traité d’Instrumentation, advised “If one wants to get an idea of what virtuosos are able to achieve…, the compositions of such famous guitar players as Zanni de Ferranti, Huerta, Sor, etc. should be studied.”Judging from existing opus numbers, Huerta composed at least 64 works. Most of these, unfortunately, have been lost.“Note: GFA Soundboard carried a recent article about Huerta – including evidence of Huerta’s birth date of 1800, not 1804. More details coming soon.

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Ivan Klinger ( 1815 – 1897 )

– Klinger was a Russian general in the Czar’s army, and a talented composer-arranger. Most of Klinger’s pieces are written for an 8-string guitar, with 7th=D, 8th=A, and otherwise conventional 6-string tuning. All of his works from opus 1-12 are for normal 6-string guitar, with 8-string notes appearing in opus 13 when presumably the composer began using an 8-string guitar. All of the works are playable on a 6-string instrument by raising the octaves of these notes, often written as 8va. There are arrangements of Western European pieces like Schubert, as well as distinctly Russian-sounding works, somewhat in the style of Tchaikovsky or “Pictures at an Exhibition”. These are late romantic, most similar to Regondi and Coste. Klinger’s pieces are mostly intermediate to advanced, but not awkward. The fingerings are clever; they are innovative and different from the typical “Carulli patterns” found in so many pieces, and they demonstrate a thorough use and knowledge of the fingerboard. A write-up of Klinger can be found in the preface to the Regondi Ten Etudes published by Editions Orphee. It was Klinger who hand-copied the Regondi etudes, which became the sole known surviving copy of these pieces. Klinger also produced hand manuscripts of pieces by Mertz, and the famous Mertz Elegy was possibly arranged in its present form by Klinger, and indeed it shows the characteristic Drop D and Drop A notes but no other extended notes. In addition to arrangements, Klinger was a superb composer in his own right. Klinger was associated with Makaroff and the guitar society in St. Petersburg, a hub of guitar where Sor and Pettoletti among others stayed for years. Free music in printed and hand-written manuscript is available from REX, and a significant number of works in Boije.

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Joseph Kuffner ( 1776 – 1856 )

Kuffner was a prolific composer and arranger for guitar, and large amounts of chamber music. Kuffner’s music is targeted toward amateur players. Having read through stacks of his material, my assessment is that the music is of mediocre, but not bad, quality.

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Luigi Legnani, 1790 – 1877

Biographical Information:Legnani was a virtuoso composer, arranger, violinist, guitarist, and opera singer. Legnani ranks as one of the best and foremost virtuoso guitarist composers of the 19th century. While most of his peices had gone out of print and were almost forgotten in the mid to late 20th century, these works are beginning to be re-discovered by a new generation of guitarists and are appearing more frequently in concert programs. Thanks to the internet and the generous policies of the libraries who are stewards of these compositions, on-line free PDF access to much of the material can be found in REX and Boije. Publishers are also starting to release modern critical editions of these works (including works not found online), such as the excellent UT Orpheus editions from Italy and others.Guitarists often tell stories about Legnani and Paganini playing together in concert. I have heard this story handed down nearly every time a guitarist plays something by Legnani in concert or in master classes, and it is part of the guitar’s folklore. Professor Gazzelloni in the introduction to Chanterelle’s opus 60 publication cites a contract whereby Paganini and Legnani were to play 3 concerts together in 1836, but the contract was cancelled, and no evidence exists of a joint concert actually being performed. However, we cannot discount word of mouth handed down, and such stories often have a basis in fact. Given the evidence of the contract to perform together, obviously they must have played together at some point, as it is very likely that other contracts existed but were lost, or perhaps private performances were given. Lack of documentation is not proof that something did not occur.Legnani was very involved with luthiers, as evidenced by the “Luigi Legnani” models by Staufer and Ries, and an instrument claimed to be his own guitar (see the Builders page). Professor Gazzelloni also states that Legnani retired to Ravenna around 1850 and made stringed instruments including guitars and violins.There appears to be two phases of Legnani’s publishing career. The first phase produced opus works 1-87, and the second phase started anew with opus 201.A portion of Legnani’s compositions are lost based on gaps in opus numbers. Perhaps they are among the works without opus numbers but remain to be identified, or perhaps they are buried in private collections or a library, or perhaps they have completely disappeared. It is possible that some of the missing opus numbers include vocal works. The missing works in the first phase are opus numbers: 9, 13-15, 17, 33, 35-39, 41-59, 65-86. Thus 38 works have been found, and 49 works are missing; overall this is 44% found and 56% missing.During phase 2, the opus number gaps are: 205-221, 225-236, 239-249. Only 9 works survive in phase 2 (op. 201-250) – an 18% survival rate.There are claims that the opus numbers between 100 – 200 are lost. It is my strong belief that Legnani did not publish any works with opus numbers from 100-200. No opus number between 100-200 has surfaced in any collection, publication, catalog reference, or library to my knowledge. It is statistically improbable that over 100 works in a row could be lost, based on 44% found between 1-87, and 18% found between 201-250. I do not know the reason for this gap. We can only speculate at the reasons: perhaps there were publishing issues and a clean break was needed to distinguish the numberings, or perhaps Legnani took a long break from publishing and wanted to cleanly distinguish the old from the new. It appears there is a gap in time; for example op. 60 dates to ~ 1829, op. 64 to ~ 1832, while opus 222 is estimated at 1846.The 36 Caprices (op. 20) are the most widely available and well-known. Although musically superb, these pieces were technical etudes along the lines of Pagani’s caprices. Most of Legnani’s other music is superb, and should be given a closer look. Some publishers, such as UT Orpheus, Ricordi, and Araniti Editions have published a few pieces. I am always trying to get my hands on as much as possible, and a new modern complete works edition is long overdue.There are no known portraits of Legnani known to have survived. If anyone has one, please email me.See also The Italian Guitar in the 19th-Century: Sixty biographies – Sixty biographies of Italian guitarist composers of Nineteenth century in alphabetic order (edited by Marco Bazzotti).Biographical notes by George C. Krick.Difficulty Level and Scope:Legnani wrote mostly for solo guitar, with some output for other instruments such as flute and guitar. As was common practice, Legnani composed mostly arrangements or fantasies of operas or folk songs, in addition to a few original themes, and many theme & variation pieces. Operatic music, particularly Italian opera such as Rossini, comprises much of his output.In addition to the solo guitar, and guitar & flute works, Professor Gazzelloni cites the existence of vocal works and “a concerto for guitar and orchestra of which only the guitar part has survived” (Chanterelle op. 60 introduction).The compositional quality of Legnani’s output varies. The best of his works are gems of the repertoire. Difficulty levels vary considerably. Other works can be a bit tedious, and emphasize flash over substance, being obtusely difficult. I have read through nearly all of Legnani’s surviving solo guitar works several times, and selected my recommendations below. This is purely editorial.Certain trademark techniques are found in several pieces. One of them is holding the barre at the 9th fret and 10th fret, playing fast notes in patterns from the 9th to 12th frets (for example as in op. 19, 32.) – here you pull down the elbow a bit. Arpeggios were a common feature. It is often said that Giuliani is known for the octave passages – I would say Legnani uses them even more so. Patterns: as with many guitar composers, Legnani used clever patterns to get the most sound from the guitar and to impressive effect, making it sound harder than it is. Recitivo / ad lib: these are borrowed from operas, where in dramatic sections of the opera, the singer is solo and gives more of a recital than a melody, which Legnani mimics on the guitar. Where marked ad lib, it means literally at liberty: the tempo can be varied, stopping and starting, varying the tone and punctuation, and generally improvising the delivery. It is possible that the performer of the era would give an extended improvised cadenza here.Legnani did not write much easy music for beginners. The Etudes are challenging pieces, very advanced, and comparable to the Paganini violin etudes, which are commonly performed in concert programs by virtuoso concert artists today. Given the difficulty level of many of Legnani’s concert pieces, he must have been an amazing performer of remarkable ability. Written accounts of Legnani from Vienna indicate that even in a city accustomed to such virtuosos as Giuliani, Legnani dazzled his audiences. Today, selected pieces by Legnani are often chosen by performing concert artists to showcase their ability and dazzle audiences. That being said, not all his music is impossible to play, though much of it requires the technique of Eliot Fisk and is certainly beyond my ability or that of most amateurs. Several pieces are accessible, with effort and practice, to advanced amateur players. Other pieces are beyond the ability of most intermediate players. A nice set of 3 pieces with intermediate technique requirements is the “Tre Balli Nazionali” or “3 National Dances” available from REX. Even though many pieces may be difficult, they are high quality compositions and well worth the effort to study. They are not difficult just for the sake of being difficult, but rather because the composer held high standards for the guitar and demanded the execution and skill of a classically trained violinist or pianist.

Biographical Information: Carulli was a prolific composer, an early pioneer who pre-dated Sor and Giuliani, and was considered by many to be the father of the modern 6-string guitar. Some of his best pieces are exceptional, and are among the finest works of this era. In many ways, Carulli is under-rated as a composer and should be re-examined. Carulli’s compositional abilities are demonstrated in the many large-scale works for guitar with violin, flute, piano, and many fine guitar duets. Despite this, very little Carulli material is in print: and unfortunately, like Carcassi, only the beginner pieces for amateurs by Carulli can be found in print today, which leaves the mistaken impression that this was the extent of Carulli’s capabilities. Today, this situation is starting to be corrected by available free facsimiles from REX, and a few fine recordings of these serious, extended works by Saracino and Savino, among others.It is often stated, and I agree, that Carulli’s output varies in quality considerably, varying from masterpiece gems to tired formulas. However, I believe a composer should be judged by the quality of the concert pieces, not of the pieces published expressly for beginners. I have found upon examining dozens of original facsimile manuscripts and listening to recordings of Carulli’s works for guitar with violin/flute/piano, that in general, Carulli made a clear distinction in his publications between beginner pieces and concert pieces. The beginner pieces were clearly indicated as such, and thus they are more limited to the first positions on the guitar, lesser difficulty, and simpler musical ideas, to allow development of the amateur player. The concert pieces are more developed, more difficult, and musically more complex. I also share the firm belief of Richard Savino and others, that Carulli was a top-tier 19th century guitar composer, and vastly under-rated. With a little patience and access to many scores, the gems in Carulli’s repertoire are worth the search.Stylistically, Carulli follows the classical period mold in the style of Mozart and Haydn – it sounds like the late 18th-century style, fast and light with appropriate “affect” and interpretation. In that style, emotions and moods were called “affects” and were confined to a section of a piece. The “affect” did not change until a new section: thus, in accordance with most “classical” period music, individual variations would be major or minor, and consistent in their “affect” – resolute, sad, joyful, etc.. In the later romantic period, “affects” changed frequently and flowed capriciously. In the year 1810, Carulli was already 40 years old – and clearly in 1810, published music followed the classical style. Carulli was very active as a composer from 1800-1820: a true “classical” guitarist. The “romantic” period did not start until at least 1820-30, and we do find evolution in Carulli’s later opus numbers to change with the times somewhat. While modern guitarists sometimes think of this music as “cliché” – it must be noted how early this music was published, and as Richard Long points out, Carulli invented many effects and portions of the guitar’s language that were new and innovative at the time, and widely copied to the point that today they seem clichés. Another point of interpreting Carulli, is that the pieces will surely sound dull if you play it dull. In other words, add dynamics, phrasing, color, intensity, and emotion to bring out the music. Carulli’s writing was not confined to solo guitar. In fact, solo guitar was the smallest percentage of Carulli’s output. Carulli’s serious works for guitar duet are among the finest in the entire repertoire (one such duo was recorded by John Williams and Julian Bream), and there are many suites to choose from. Carulli’s works for piano and guitar were recently recorded by Leopoldo Saracino (guitar) and Massimo Palumbo (piano): these works comprise fully 8 CD ROM’s! Carulli also recorded numerous duos for guitar and flute, guitar and violin, and Guitar Trio (e.g. for Guitar, Flute, and Violin – not for 3 guitars), in addition to various other combinations, including chamber works. In those days, Carulli’s vision was to treat the guitar just like any other orchestral instrument, and ensemble playing was a huge part of its purpose.

Biographical notes by George C. Krick. See also The Italian Guitar in the 19th-Century: Sixty biographies – Sixty biographies of Italian guitarist composers of Nineteenth century in alphabetic order (edited by Marco Bazzotti).Mario Torta’s book about Carulli is a catalog which lists the complete Carulli works and their location: http://www.lim.it/cataloghi/musicalia003torta.htmWikipedia Article listing Carulli’s opus numbers and their year: Carulli Compositions List Difficulty Level and Scope: Carulli was a capable composer who was able to write many large scale works for other instruments in addition to solo guitar pieces. As was common practice, Carulli composed mostly arrangements or fantasies of operas or folk songs, in addition to a few original themes, and many theme & variation pieces. Like most guitarists of this era, Carulli’s music can be classified into 2 categories: virtuoso concert works, and amateur pieces. Carulli also gave us a third category, that of “intermediate” pieces for good amateur players – as no doubt there was a sizeable number of classical guitarists in Paris looking for good and playable music. Many of Carulli’s virtuoso works are superb concert pieces and real gems of the repertoire. The difficulty level varies considerably; the concert works are usually Medium difficulty, but several works require very advanced technique to play at full speed with the intended interpretation. The music was written idiomatically to the guitar. Carulli also published many short and easy pieces for beginners, including pieces for first year students. Given the variety of output (concert solos, concert duets, beginner duets, beginner solos, concert chamber works, beginner chamber works), Carulli wrote compositions to appeal a wide audience. I firmly believe that Carulli should be elevated in status as one of the finest principal composers for the guitar. Available Repertoire: Around 45 Works by Carulli are available for free PDF download from REX. Tuscany Guitar Publications has a few pieces of Carulli. The GFA Archives also has a few Carulli pieces, including a number of flute, violin, viola, and guitar duets. A large collection of extended operatic fantasies is available from Donald Sauter in the Guitar music in the Library of Congress. Orphee Editions has 2 Carulli editions not available elsewhere (Solo and Variations on Nel cor più, Op. 107), and (Raccolta di Sonate Diverse) – both newly engraved: Orphee Editions (Carulli Page link).