Romance

"Romance Anónimo" (Anonymous Romance) , also known as "Estudio en Mi de Rubira" (Study in E by Rubira), "Spanish Romance", "Romance de España", "Romance de Amor", "Romance of the Guitar", "Romanza" and "Romance d'Amour" among other names is one of those guitar pieces that will make you fall in love with the sounds of the classical guitar.

Long revered as one of the most beautiful pieces ever written for the instrument, it is also a piece that carries a halo of mystery. To this day, its origin and composer remains unknown.

It is suspected of originally being a solo instrumental guitar work of the 19th century. It has variously been attributed to Antonio Rubira, David del Castillo, Francisco Tárrega, Fernando Sor, Daniel Fortea, Francisco Vicaria l Llobet, Antonio Cano, Vicente Gómez, and Narciso Yepes. Therefore, the Anónimo (anonymous) part of its name has been incorporated over the years due to this uncertainty.

As an interesting fact, the earliest recording of "Romance" is on a cylinder (from the "Viuda de Aramburo" label[3][4][5][6]) featuring guitarists Luis and Simon Ramírez, made in Madrid sometime between 1897 and 1901. The work in question is titled "Sort-Estudio para Guitarra por S. Ramirez".[7][8] It is highly likely that the name "Sort" — as it occurs on the cylinders's title — refers to Fernando Sor, as Sor's surname is sometimes also spelled "Sort" or "Sorts".[9][10][11] The recording may be heard on the Doremi CD release "Tarrega, His Disciples, and Their Students" (DHR-7996) and online at the UCSB Cylinder Audio Archive.

However, it was Narciso Yepes, and its intepretation of Romance as part of the soundtrack of René Clément's 1952 film Jeux interdits, that the piece gain worldwide recognition.

The style of the piece is that of the parlour music of the late 19th century in Spain, therefore, as a music storyteller, I decided to create my own parlor fantasy around the theme and what this music evokes in my imagination.Red, love, letters, and parlor guitar and timeless human emotions combine in this humble yet personal take on the classic. Enjoy!