Alexandre Lagoya (29 June 1929 – 24 August 1999) was a French

classical guitar The classical guitar (also known as the nylon-string guitar or Spanish guitar) is a member of the guitar family used in classical music and other styles. An acoustic wooden string instrument with strings made of gut or nylon, it is a precursor o ...

ist and composer. His early career included boxing and guitar, and as he cites on the sleeve of a 1981 Columbia album, his parents hoped he would outgrow his predilection for both.

Life and career

] Lagoya was born in Alexandria, Egypt, to a Greek father and an Italian mother. By 1955, when he married the French guitarist

Ida Presti Ida Presti (31 May 1924 – 24 April 1967) was a French classical guitarist and composer. She first came to prominence as a child prodigy, before maturing into what Alice Artzt has called "the greatest guitarist of the 20th century, and possibly o ...

, his career had already begun. On the sleeve of his 1981 record with Columbia, Lagoya pays deep tribute to Presti and admits that after her premature death he was unable to play for years. He returned to the guitar as a teacher, tutoring among other famous guitarists the Canadian virtuoso

Liona Boyd Liona Maria Carolynne Boyd, (born 11 July 1949) is a classical guitarist often referred to as the First Lady of the Guitar. Music career Early years Boyd was born in London and grew up in Toronto. Her father grew up in Bilbao, Spain, and her ...

(who claims in her autobiography that she was also his lover). In the early 1980s, aged 52, he burst back on the international scene with a record for Columbia and an international tour. Lagoya played a variety of works for guitar, performing concerts and recording albums, often collaborating with Presti and also with other musicians. Lagoya was also a successful teacher. He taught at the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

and, in Canada, and developed a new method of hand positioning which he believed helped people learn to play the guitar better. He also added the use of the little finger to plucking and claimed to have invented a method for maximizing the sound coming from the classical guitar. Concerning the right hand, Alexandre Lagoya preferred the technique of plucking from the right side of the nail, and he believed it gave a more powerful sound. A number of composers wrote works for Lagoya and the Presti-Lagoya Duo, including: *

Jean-Yves Daniel-Lesur Daniel Jean-Yves Lesur (19 November 1908 – 2 July 2002) was a French organist and composer. He was the son of the composer Alice Lesur. Biography Born in Paris, he entered the Conservatoire de Paris at age 11, studying solfège with Emile Schw ...

: ''Élégie'' (1956). * Pierre Petit: ''Tarantelle'' (1959); ''Toccata'' (1959). *

André Jolivet André Jolivet (; 8 August 1905 – 20 December 1974) was a French composer. Known for his devotion to French culture and musical thought, Jolivet drew on his interest in acoustics and atonality, as well as both ancient and modern musical influe ...

: ''Sérénade pour deux guitares' (1959). *

Joaquín Rodrigo Joaquín Rodrigo Vidre, 1st Marquess of the Gardens of Aranjuez (; 22 November 1901 – 6 July 1999), was a Spanish composer and a virtuoso pianist. He is best known for composing the ''Concierto de Aranjuez'', a cornerstone of the classical gui ...

: ''Tonadilla'' (1959). Rodrigo finished another piece for two guitars, the ''Concierto Madrigal'' (first named ''Concierto para una Virreina de España'', in 1966, but Presti died before she and Lagoya could perform it.

Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

and

Pepe Romero Pepe Romero (born March 8, 1944, in Málaga, Spain) is a classical and flamenco guitarist. Biography Early life Pepe Romero was born in Spain, the second son of celebrated guitarist and composer Celedonio Romero, who was his only guitar te ...

subsequently gave the first performance of it in Los Angeles in July 1970, 30 July. *

Pierre Wissmer Pierre Wissmer (30 October 1915 – 4 November 1992) was a 20th-century French classical composer of Swiss origin. Biography Formed at the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève, he received the advice of Robert Casadesus before perfecting his ma ...

: ''Prestilagoyana'' (1969). *

Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (3 April 1895 – 16 March 1968) was an Italian composer, pianist and writer. He was known as one of the foremost guitar composers in the twentieth century with almost one hundred compositions for that instrument. In ...

: ''Sonatina Canonica pour deux guitares'', Op. 196 (1961). * Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco: ''Les Guitares bien tempérées - 24 Préludes et fugues pour deux guitares'', Op. 199 (1962). * Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco: Concerto pour deux guitares et orchestre, Op. 201 (1962). * Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco: ''Fuga elegiaca pour deux guitares'', Op. postuma (1967). * Joaquín Rodrigo: ''Triptico para guitarra'' (1977).

Selected compositions

Guitar solo *''Six Études'' (Paris: Max Eschig, 1958) *''Caprice'' (Paris: Ricordi, 1959) *''Rêverie'' (Paris: Ricordi, 1959) Transcriptions *

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

: ''Gavotte et musette'' (from BWV 808) (Paris: Ricordi, 1959), for 2 guitars *Johann Sebastian Bach: ''Gavotte'' (from BWV 1012) (Paris: Ricordi, 1959), for solo guitar *

Georg Friedrich Händel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training ...

: ''Sarabande'' (Paris: Ricordi, 1959), for solo guitar *

Domenico Scarlatti Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti, also known as Domingo or Doménico Scarlatti (26 October 1685-23 July 1757), was an Italian composer. He is classified primarily as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the deve ...

: ''Sonata'' (Paris: Ricordi, 1959), for 2 guitars *

Georg Friederich Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training i ...

: ''Ciaccona, Fugue et Allegro '', for 2 guitars (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya, vol. 1) *Johann Sebastian Bach: ''Preludi e fughe dal Clavicembalo ben temperato'' (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya vol. 2) *Johann Sebastian Bach: ''Suites Inglesi e Francesi'' (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya, vol. 3) *Domenico Scarlatti: ''Six Sonatas'' (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya, vol. 4) *

AA.VV. The expression "various authors" is used to credit creative works which are the result of a collaboration. In English it is more common to describe the authors of such a compilation collectively, for example by saying for what occasion the texts wer ...

: ''12 Baroque Masterpieces'' (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya, vol. 5) *

: ''Œuvres originales pour deux guitares'' (ed. Olivier Chassain) (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya vol. 6) *

Niccolò Paganini Niccolò (or Nicolò) Paganini (; 27 October 178227 May 1840) was an Italian violinist and composer. He was the most celebrated violin virtuoso of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique. His 24 Caprices f ...

: ''Sonata Concertante'' (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya, vol. 7) *

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...

: ''Sonata Arpeggione'' (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya, vol. 8) *

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

: ''Andante con varaizioni - Adagio - Sonatina'' (Berben Edizioni, Collection Presti/Lagoya, vol. 9)

Recordings

L'Art de Alexandre Lagoya avec Ida Presti
(6-CD set) *Rodrigo - Concierto de Aranjuez - Fantasía para un gentilhombre - Antonio de Almeida, conductor - Philips
Some photos of LP covers
(Oviatt Library Digital Collections) *Bolling: Picnic Suite *Bolling: Concerto for Classic Guitar & Jazz Piano Trio

Articles

Obituary: Alexandre Lagoya
in: ''The Independent'', 1 Oct 1999, by Martin Anderson

in: ''The New York Times'', 26 August 1999, by Allan Kozinn

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by Paul Magnussen

Other

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Sources

*Élisabeth Presti, Anne Marillia, with the participation of Isabelle Presti, ''Alexandre Lagoya, La légende de la Guitare'', Lyon, Éditions Habanera, 2019.

References

External links

(www.deccaclassics.com)
Biography
(www.universalmusic.fr) {{DEFAULTSORT:Lagoya, Alexandre 1929 births 1999 deaths People from Alexandria 20th-century classical composers 20th-century classical musicians 20th-century French musicians 20th-century guitarists Composers for the classical guitar French classical guitarists French male guitarists Greek classical guitarists Conservatoire de Paris faculty 20th-century French male musicians