Andrés Segovia

Musician

Forclassical guitar enthusiasts, students, music historians
1 Reviews 3 Definitions 2 Charts

The Profile

Andrés Segovia (1893–1987) was a Spanish classical guitarist credited with popularizing the classical guitar as a concert instrument and expanding its repertoire.

Born in Linares, Jaén, Spain (21 February 1893), died 2 June 1987. Widely credited with legitimizing the classical guitar on concert stages and commissioning/arranging works for the instrument.

The reviews praise Segovia as the missionary who elevated the guitar to the concert stage, highlighting recordings of Bach, Sor and Spanish repertoire. Reviewers emphasize his historical role and emotional commitment. Sound quality on some archival recordings is noted as imperfect but tolerable.

Notable Quotes

❝ “They laughed when Andrés Segovia sat down and started to play the guitar. The audacity of the man, bringing a flamenco instrument into the sacred spaces of concert halls. This foolish young man is making futile attempts to change the guitar—with its mysterious, Dionysian nature—into an instrument worthy of Apollo. The guitar responds to the passionate exaltation of Andalusian folklore and not to the precision, order, and structure of classical music.”