Scoreload

Bartolomé Calatayud was a highly influential Spanish guitarist, composer, and teacher from Mallorca, celebrated for preserving, arranging, and popularizing the island's traditional folk music.Born in Palma de Mallorca, Calatayud became a pivotal figure in 20th-century Spanish guitar music.He dedicated his life to collecting, transcribing, arranging, and performing traditional Mallorcan folk songs and dances for the guitar.A renowned teacher, he educated generations of guitarists, including notable figures like Miguel Llobet.His compositions and arrangements are central to the repertoire preserving Mallorca's musical heritage.He continued performing and teaching until his death in Palma.

• Calatayud played a crucial role in saving many traditional Mallorcan melodies from obscurity by meticulously transcribing them and creating guitar arrangements, effectively acting as an ethnomusicologist before the term was widely used.
• Despite achieving significant recognition in Spain and influencing guitar pedagogy, Calatayud never pursued an extensive international concert career, choosing instead to focus on teaching in Mallorca and preserving its local culture.
• He suffered from blindness during the last years of his life but remarkably continued to teach guitar lessons by ear, demonstrating his deep musical intuition and dedication.
• His death on July 10, 1973, in his hometown of Palma marked the end of an era for Mallorcan folk music, though his legacy lives on through his published works and students.