The MHS reissue of this useful set once again ensures the longevity of some unique repertoire in the face of, shall we say, questionable catalog management by EMI. Joaquin Rodrigo probably was the last (and least) of the important Spanish nationalist composers, a line that began with a bang in the form of Falla, Granados, and Albeniz, and ended with a whimper at Rodrigo’s death in 1999 at the age of 98. Not that is wasn’t an attractive whimper. Famous for a single work, the Concierto de Aranjuez for guitar and orchestra (almost never performed live because the solo is inaudible unless heroically amplified), it seems to me that Rodrigo’s more interesting music lies elsewhere: in the lovely Concierto serenata for harp, the Concierto heroico for piano, and in some of the evocative orchestral works, particularly A la busca del más allá (In Search of the Beyond), a NASA commission (I kid you not) that deserves much more frequent exposure. All of these works receive thoughtful, attractive, and idiomatic performances here, even if the guitar concertos (and there are four of them) have been better served by the likes of John Williams or the Romeros (on Philips). Good sound rounds out this useful collection.
