Dionisio Aguado y García

Biography

Dionisio Aguado y García (8 April 1784 – 29 December 1849) was a Spanish classical guitarist and composer of the late Classical and early Romantic periods.

Biography

Born in Madrid, he studied with Miguel García. In 1826, Aguado visited Paris, where he met and became friends with and for a while lived with Fernando Sor. Sor's duo Les Deux Amis ("The Two Friends") commemorated the friendship: one part is marked "Sor" and the other "Aguado."
Aguado's major work Nuevo Metodo Para Guitarra was a guitar tutorial published in 1843. As of 2011, it is still in print, with Tecla Editions releasing a reprint in 2005. In the Nuevo Metodo Aguado describes his use of fingernails on the right hand as well as his invention of a "tripodison": a device that held the guitar and thus minimized the damping effect of the player's body on the guitar's back and sides. Aguado's other works include numerous waltzes, minuets, and other light pieces. The more extended works require a virtuoso technique and left-hand stretches that are almost impossible on the longer string lengths of modern guitars. (See Frederick Noad, "The Classical Guitar")
Aguado returned home to Madrid in 1837 and died there aged 65.
Aguado's surname comes from the Spanish word for "soaked." (This is because an ancient relative of his, who was a knight, returned after a battle caked in mud. The nickname then eventually became the surname.)

Instruments used by Aguado y García

Of the instruments used by Aguado, two which were built by

Pierre René Lacôte, (Paris 1838) and
Etienne Laprevotte, (Paris 1838)
are held at the Museo Arqueológico Nacional in Madrid.
Aguado is known for having used a tripod to support his guitar.

List of works

Op. 1 : Douze Valses
Op. 2 : Trois Rondo Brillants
Op. 3 : Huit Petites Pièces
Op. 4 : Six Petites Pièces
Op. 5 : Quatre Andantes et Quatre Valses
Op. 6 : Nouvelle Méthode de Guitare (1834)
Op. 7 : Valses Faciles
Op. 8 : Contredanses et Valses Faciles
Op. 9 : Contredanses non difficiles
Op. 10 : Exercices Faciles et Très Utiles
Op. 11 : Les Favorites - Huit Contredanses
Op. 12 : Six Menuets & Six Valses
Op. 13 : Morceaux Agréables non difficiles
Op. 14 : Dix Petites Pièces non difficiles
Op. 15 : Le Menuet Affandangado
Op. 16 : Le Fandango Varié
Works without Opus number:

Allegro
Coleccion De Andantes, Valses Y Minuetos
Douze Walses, Une Marche Militaire, Et Un Theme Varie
Escuela de Guitarra (1825)
Gran Solo (Fernando Sor's Op.14, Arr. by Aguado)
Muestra De Afecto Y Reconocimiento (Seis Valses)
Valses Characteristiques
Variaciones
Variaciones Brillantes
Mazurka (Polish national song, Arr. by Dionisio Aguado)
Adante by Dionisio Aguado
Introducción y rondó

Album

Duo Imbesi Zangarà, Tocando en Dos works by Julian Arcas, Francisco Tarrega, Dionisio Aguado, performed by Carmelo Imbesi e Carmen Zangarà, Classical Music 3.0, 2022

Sheet music

Rischel & Birket-Smith's Collection of guitar music 1 Det Kongelige Bibliotek, Denmark
Boije Collection The Music Library of Sweden
creativeguitar.org Archived 27 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine (sheetmusic largely compiled from the above primary sources)
Free scores by Dionisio Aguado y García at the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP)
Dionisio Aguado – Complete Works (Integrale) for Classical Guitar Classical Guitar Library