Description: Manuel Barrueco's 2004 solo recital at the Peabody Conservatory of Music is featured throughout the film. Also excerpts of a performance of Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez before an audience of twenty thousand in Antwerp, Belgium, and the premiere of Roberto Sierra's Folías with Víctor Pablo Pérez conducting the Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia.
Manuel shares his life journey from Santiago de Cuba and his first public performance at the age of eleven to his debut recital at Carnegie Hall and the international concert and recording career that followed. He also tells of his family fleeing the oppression of Castro's Cuba and arriving in America with only the cloths on their backs. It is an extraordinary and uplifting story of persistence and achievement in the face of enormous obstacles.
The documentary covers Manuel's openness to a wide variety of styles and his collaborations with non-classical guitarists like Andy Summers, formerly of The Police, and jazz guitarist Al Di Meola. David Tanenbaum tells of recording a duo arrangement of Lennon & McCartney's Penny Lane with Barrueco in the same Abbey Road Studio where the Beatles recorded the original.
Charming view into Barrueco's life and artistry ^ I'm a classical guitar enthusiast and have seen Barrueco in concert several times. This DVD is a terrific complement to his concerts and CDs. It paints a thoughtful portrait of Barrueco as a musician and as an exile from Cuba. There are nice clips from other guitarists, like Eliot Fiske, John Tannenbaum, and - my favorite - Barrueco playing a duet on his patio with one of the Assads.
Nice stuff.
Fantastic Film About The Best! ^ This is a marvelously-produced film about the greatest classical guitarist of the modern era. Fascinating background of his early life in Cuba and emigration to the US, with glimpses of his private life at home and with friends - several of whom, of course, are world-famous guitarists themselves. There are many scenes depicting him teaching and recording in various situations, and the amazing up-close camerawork of his performances offers guitar-lovers a rare privilege to witness the magic as never before. I was absolutely thrilled to learn about this documentary, and am indebtted to Michael Lawrence for creating a record and tribute to one of classical music's all-time virtuosos. As Odair Assad says about the evolution of the instrument: "We can say that, at one point, it's before Manuel and after Manuel Barrueco."
Expect interrupted performances ^ If you like great performances periodically interrupted by voice overs and cut short then this DVD's for you!!
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