Argentinean guitarist Roberto Aussel continues his exploration of contemporary music on 20th Century Music. His previous recordings on the Circé label include Musiques D'Amerique Latine (music of Lauro, Piazzolla, Barrios and Brouwer—Circé 87101) and Musiques pour Flute and Guitare (music of Shankar, Takemitsu and Piazzolla—Circé 87103). 20th Century Music contains works written for the guitar by Kleynjans, Ponce, Tansman, Rodrigo and Ginastera. With the exception of the Kleynjans piece and one of the Rodrigo pieces, all have been recorded on CD previously.

    Francis Kleynjans has composed extensively for the guitar. Kleynjans dedicated A l'aube dernier jour (At dawn of the last day) to Aussel. A l'aube dernier jour is program music, written to portray the last moments of a man condemned to death. Images of ticking clocks, increasingly rapid heart beats, and a final sharp dry crack followed by silence all contribute to the eerie character of this piece. Alexandre Tansman's suite Cavatina is given an intensive interpretation by Aussel, in part due to his naturally heavy attack. It is interesting to contrast Aussel's performance of Cavatina with the one by Stephan Robinson on his recording Guitar (Centaur CRC 2056). Robinson's interpretation has a more mysterious flavor to it. I enjoy both, with my preference determined by my mood at the time.

     En los trigales is one of the small gems of the guitar literature, and Aussel's interpretation is very enjoyable. The other Rodrigo composition on this recording is Fandango. Fandango is the first of Rodrigo's Tres piezas españolas (Three Spanish Pieces). I prefer to hear the three pieces performed as a set, as Barrueco does on his EMI recording (CDC 7 49228 2). Both Aussel and Barrueco employ similar tempi in their interpretations of the Fandango. Barrueco gives the piece a more lively rhythmic bounce, which better captures the character of a Spanish dance in quick triple time. Aussel's performances of Manuel Ponce's Sonatina meridional and Alberto Ginastera's Sonata Op. 47 are both musically and technically superb, with careful attention to tone, phrasing and articulation. In general, Aussel's playing is always lively. Particularly impressive in the Scherzo movement of the Sonata is his ability to make the special effects in this movement (e.g., pizzicato, ribattente and glissando) seem a natural and integral part of the music. The only reservation I have about Aussel's technique is that his strong attack results in a relatively heavy articulation; in some pieces this is an asset, but in others it's a liability. The quality of the recording is good and the liner notes are adequate.

     Anyone interested in other CD's devoted to this style of twentieth century guitar music might also want to explore the following excellent recordings: Carlos Bonell, Twentieth-Century Music For Guitar (EMI CDC 7 49512 2), Raphaella Smits, Lyrical 20th Century Guitar Music (Accent ACC2 8966D) and Jan Wolf, Guitar (Partridge 1115-2).