Born:
May 29, 1860
Birthplace:
Camprodón, Spain
Died:
May 18, 1909 in Cambo-les-Bains, France
Also Known As:
Spanish composer and pianist, one of the first Spanish composers that gained international recognition and harbinger of the Spanish nationalist school.
Type of Compositions:
Albeniz is most known for his piano music.
Influence:
Albeniz was a prodigy who made his debut at age 4, went on a concert tour at age 8 and entered the Madrid Conservatory at age 9. However, he left the conservatory a year later and ran away from home a couple of times. He started composing seriously at around 30 years old and studied with Felipe Pedrell. Composers who influenced him include
Paul Dukas and Vincent d’Indy. His works in turn influenced composers like
Ravel and
Debussy.
Notable Works:
His notable works include "Iberia" (a collection of piano pieces), "Cantos de España," "Suite española," "Piano Concerto," "Navarra," "Rapsodia Espanola" and "Tango in D Major."
Interesting Facts:
Albeniz ran away from home twice; he first travelled to Castile where he supported himself as a pianist. Then in 1872, he snuck into a boat headed for South America. He returned to Spain a year later and studied at the Leipzig Conservatory from 1875 to 1876. Afterwards, due to a scholarship, he went to Brussels to further his studies. By 1883 he was in Barcelona where he taught, got married and had three kids. He moved to Paris 10 years later and taught piano at the Schola Cantorum.
Related Video:
Listen to John Williams perform "
Sevilla" (or Sevillana( from Isaac Albeniz' "Suite española" courtesy of YouTube.
