Gerardo Guevara

Gerardo Guevara (23 September 1930 – 23 December 2024) was an Ecuadorian composer. His work combines native and contemporary music.

Biography Born in Quito, Gerardo Guevara showed music ability at an early age. Because his father worked as a caretaker at the Conservatorio Nacional, Guevara used to eavesdrop on the music dictations that were being given to older children and sometimes ventured to shout the answer before running away. When he was fifteen he started studying composition with Luis H. Salgado. In 1952, while playing the piano in an orchestra in Guayaquil, he studied composition and the analysis of Bartok's music with the Hungarian musician Jorge Aq.

From 1959 onwards and thanks to a Unesco grant, Guevara studied composition with Nadia Boulanger at the École Normale de Musique de Paris where he graduated as a conductor. While in Paris, he also studied musicology at the University of La Sorbonne. After twelve years in France, he went back to Ecuador where in 1972 he formed the choir of the Central University of Quito. A year later, he created the Sayce (Society for the protection of musicians).

He acted as a conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra from 1974–75 and director of the Conservatorio Nacional (1980–88) where he taught composition and the history of Ecuadorian Music.

Mainly nationalist he nonetheless explored contemporary techniques, which led Robert Stevenson to write: "Guevara Viteri has drawn on European styles". More appropriately Béhague comments: "more advanced techniques of composition appeared in some of the works of Gerardo Guevara". A prolific composer, he has also written essays and articles on music. As a teacher he also had a profound influence on his students.

Guevara died on 23 December 2024, at the age of 94.

Works Inspiración for piano, 1950 (world premiere 2011 by Alex Alarcon Fabre) Despedida, pasillo, 1957 Apanny Shungo for piano, 1958 Yaguar shungo ballet for symphony orchestra and choir 1958 Geografía for baritone and piano (texts by Jorge Enrique Adoum), 1960 Tierras for baritone and piano (text by Jorge Carrera Andrade), 1960 First string quartet, 1960 El Hombre Planetario for baritone and piano (texts by Carrera Andrade), 1962 Tres preludios for piano: Recitativo, Albazo and Sanjuanito, 1963 Cantata de la paz for baritone, orchestra and choir 1963-64 Second string quartet, 1963–64 Atahualpa for choir, 1965 Indios for choir, 1965 Se va con algo mío, pasillo, 1967 Danzante del destino, for pinkillu, pan flute, harp, bombo, 2 guitars, contralto solo, choir, 1967 Danzante de la Ausencia, choir, 1967 Yaraví del desterrado, 1967 Tuyallay, 1967 Ismos for violin, viola, cello, oboe, clarinet and piano, 1970 Ecuador, orchestral suite, 1972 5 Miniaturas (Panecillo, Pichincha, La Compañía, Avenida Veinticuatro de Mayo, Quito Norte) for flute, French horn, oboe, clarinet and bassoon, 1973 Quito arrabal del cielo for choir (text by Jorge Reyes), 1974 Galería siglo XX de pintores ecuatorianos, orchestral suite, 1976 El Panecillo, (texts by Eloy Proaño), 1977 Solsticio de Verano, san juanito, 1977 Tres melodías para soprano y orquesta de cámara texts by (Iba a fugarme, Pasillo, Aquí me paro y grito), 1978 Tríptico for choir, 1978 El espantapájaros, Jaguay, vocal, 1980 Combate poético for baritone and piano, 1980 Otoño for voice and piano, 1980 Fiesta for piano, 1982 Diálogos for flute, piano (dedicated to Luciano Carrera), 1982 Recitativo and Danza for guitar, 1983 Juegos, 1983 Suite Ecuatoriana, for flute and piano, 1985 Cuaderno pedagógico for piano students, 1985–86 Et in Terra Pax Hominibus for baritone and orchestra, text by J. E. Adoum, 1987 Huayra Shina for soprano, baritone and orchestra, 1987 pasillo for piano, 1988 Historia for orchestra, 1990. Del maíz al trigo (tonada), 1993. De mestizo a mestizo for orchestra (in three movements), 1994

Discography Gerardo Guevara: Melodías y canciones. Galo Cárdenas, Baritone; Marie Renée Portais, piano. Fediscos Lp 5403, 1982. Música de nuestro tiempo, Ifesa (LP 301-0293) Gerardo Guevara: Et in Terra Pax Hominibus for baritone & orchestra, text by Jorge Enrique Adoum. other works by: M. Estévez, D. Luzuriaga, M. Maiguashca & A. Rodas Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional conducted by Alvaro Manzano Despedida, Ifesa Lp-CME. Guayaquil 1958. Piano: Gerardo Gevara. Se va con algo mío in: Beatriz Parra, Noche lírica en Canal 2, record no. 2, IFESA Lp-206-B. Guayaquil, 1973. Danzante del destino. Victor 45 rpm PB9027. Sweden, 1977. Grandes temas de Música Ecuatoriana Gerardo Guevara, El Espantapájaros other works by: Sixto María Durán, Benítez & Valencia, etc Piano, Marcelo Ortiz Souvenir de l'Amérique du Sud CD. Piano: Marcelo Ortiz Pasillo (pasillo) (Gerardo Guevara) Fiesta (albazo) (Gerardo Guevara) Tonada (tonada) (Gerardo Guevara) El espantapájaros (pasillo) (Gerardo Guevara) Apamuy Shungo (danzante) (Gerardo Guevara) Other works by: Luis H. Salgado, Enrique Espín Yépez, Sixto M. Durán, Miguel A. Casares Piano Music by Ecuadorian Composers CD. Piano: [Alex Alarcon Fabre] Pasillo (pasillo) (Gerardo Guevara) Fiesta (aire tipico) (Gerardo Guevara) Albazo (albazo) (Gerardo Guevara) Other works by: Luis H. Salgado, Claudio Aizaga, Corsino Durán, Juan Pablo Muñoz Sanz