The Romantic Guitar

In this recording, Fabio Zanon presents a representative overview of the guitar within the context of early European Romanticism. The program brings together works by 19th-century composer-guitarists — including Napoleon Coste, Johann Kaspar Mertz, Jan Nepomucen Bobrowicz, and Giulio Regondi — alongside transcriptions of central Romantic figures such as Robert Schumann, Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Liszt, and Franz Schubert.

The repertoire highlights the aesthetic dialogue between the guitar and the piano and chamber traditions of the period, reflecting the formal innovation, expanded expressiveness, and heightened subjectivity that define Romantic musical thought. Works such as Bobrowicz’s Grande Polonaise, poetic miniatures by Mertz and Regondi, and transcriptions related to Mendelssohn’s Songs Without Words illustrate the instrument’s integration into the broader artistic currents of the 19th century.

Through stylistic clarity and historically informed interpretation, Fabio Zanon reaffirms the guitar’s relevance in shaping the musical imagination of the Romantic era.

Tracklist

01 — NAPOLEON COSTE, La Source du Lyson, op.47 10’00”
02 — AUGUST HEINRICH VON WEYRAUCH* (transcribed by Francisco Tárrega/Fábio Zanon), Adieu! (Nach Osten) 2’02”
03 — GIULIO REGONDI, Introduction et Caprice, op.23 10’08”
04 — FELIX MENDELSSOHN (transcribed by Francisco Tárrega/Fabio Zanon), 2 Lieder ohne Wörte (Songs Without Words): Venezianisches Gondellied (Venetian Boat Song), op.19 No.6 3’11”
05 — FELIX MENDELSSOHN (transcribed by Francisco Tárrega/Fabio Zanon), 2 Lieder ohne Wörte (Songs Without Words): Consolation, op.30 No.3 2’42”
06 — JOHANN KASPAR MERTZ, Bardenklänge, op.13: Lied ohne Wörte (Song Without Words) 4’32”
07 — ROBERT SCHUMANN (transcribed by Julian Bream), KINDERSONATE (CHILDREN’S SONATA), OP.118: Allegro 2’29”
08 — ROBERT SCHUMANN (transcribed by Julian Bream), KINDERSONATE (CHILDREN’S SONATA), OP.118: Thema mit Variationen (Theme with Variations) 3’32”
09 — ROBERT SCHUMANN (transcribed by Julian Bream), KINDERSONATE (CHILDREN’S SONATA), OP.118: Puppenwiegenlied (Doll’s Cradle Song) 1’52”
10 — ROBERT SCHUMANN (transcribed by Julian Bream), KINDERSONATE (CHILDREN’S SONATA), OP.118: Rondoletto 3’27”
11 — JAN NEPOMUCEN BOBROWICZ, Prémière Grande Polonaise, op.24 10’02”
12 — FRANZ LISZT (transcribed by Fabio Zanon), Andantino, S.192 1’44”
13 — FRANZ LISZT (transcribed by Fabio Zanon), Nuages Gris (Gray Clouds), S.199 3’02”