Federico Moreno Torroba WALTER AARON CLARK, SERIES EDITOR Nor-tec Rifa! Electronic Dance Music from Tijuana to the World Alejandro L. Madrid From Serra to Sancho: Music and Pageantry in the California Missions Craig H. Russell Colonial Counterpoint: Music in Early Modern Manila D. R. M. Irving Embodying Mexico Tourism, Nationalism, & Performance Ruth Hellier-Tinoco Whose Spain? Negotiating Spanish Music in Paris 1908–1929 Samuel Llano Silent Music: Medieval Song and the Construction of History in Eighteenth-Century Spain Susan Boynton Federico Moreno Torroba A Musical Life in Th ree Acts Walter Aaron Clark William Craig Krause Federico Moreno Torroba A Musical Life in Three Acts W ALTER A ARON CLARK W ILLIAM C RAIG KRAUSE 1 1 Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offi ces in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Th ailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and certain other countries. Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 © Oxford University Press 2013 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, by license, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reproduction rights organization. Inquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this work in any other form and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Clark, Walter Aaron. Krause, William Craig. Federico Moreno Torroba : a musical life in three acts / Walter Aaron Clark, William Craig Krause. p. cm.—(Currents in Latin American and Iberian music) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-19-531370-3 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Moreno Torroba, Federico, 1891–1982. 2. Composers—Spain—Biography. 3. Moreno Torroba, Federico, 1891–1982—Criticism and interpretation. I. Clark, Walter, 1952– Krause, William, 1953– II. Title. ML410.M7776C53 2012 780.92—dc23 [B] 2012019913 Publication of this book was supported in part by the John Daverio Endowment of the American Musicological Society. 1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2 Printed on acid-free paper For Judith Cline and Carlin Miguel Krause Cover art for the vocal score of Torroba’s 1932 masterpiece Luisa Fernanda . Courtesy of Unión Musical Ediciones FOREWORD Federico Moreno Torroba As We Knew Him It was a morning at the Hotel Suecia in Madrid. Our family was in the lobby after having breakfast when the great composer walked in looking for us. Upon meet- ing him, he ordered some tapas, and we immediately sealed a friendship that is eternal. It seemed surrealistic to us that the great genius of immortal melodies was embodied in such a friendly, totally personable, unassuming, humble man. He soon took out a small pad and wrote down all of the ideas, thoughts, and wishes each of us had. He wanted to know and understand all of us. Th e result of this unforgettable meeting was the tremendously fruitful collaboration we were to have until the end of his life. Everything he wrote in that little pad became part of a masterpiece, as the readers will fi nd out in this biography. Th e great composer wrote for each of us individually, and for the quartet he wrote many works that crowned his later years with glory. In a perfect parallel with our musical collaboration was an intimate friendship of our two families. Torroba, with his daughter Mariana and his son Fede, would visit us for extended periods in our Del Mar, California, house. As well, we spent long stays in his Madrid home and his summer residence in Santesteban. Torroba was the embodiment of the spirit of Spain. He was deeply touched by all that was around him and, through his gigantic poetic soul and his profound knowledge of his craft, he was constantly transforming his everyday experiences into music that glorifi ed Spain and humanity. Torroba lived for the beauty of the moment and always exhibited a balance between his sweet, beautiful, loving spirit and his magnifi cent mind. He was a problem-solver, giving himself completely to the task at hand with the goal of bringing comfort and joy to all. And with his presence he brought harmony, happiness, and peace. Celín, Pepe, and Ángel Romero This page intentionally left blank TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments xi Lists of Plates and Musical Examples xv About the Companion Website xxi Introduction: “The Eternal Tradition” 3 ACT I: 1891–1932 1. Scene i: 1898, The End 15 2. Scene ii: Madrileño , 1891–1932 43 3. S cene iii: Major Works of the Period 1920–32: La virgen de mayo , La marchenera , Luisa Fernanda ; S uite castellana, Sonatina , Piezas características (selections) 86 ACT II: 1932–1960 4. S cene i: 1936, Anarchy 119 5. Scene ii: Navarro , 1932–60 144