Falla's friend Pahissa provides an account of the development of the composer's musical life through a series of anecdotal descriptions of their encounters. Each of Falla's most significant works receives an independent, if brief, descriptive analysis, in which Falla's change from an evocative Spanish idiom to a more severe, abstract universal idiom is noted. The use of folksong quotations (which are mentioned without documentation) changes in accord with style changes. In earlier works, folksongs and folk sounds are used for their picturesque qualities. In the later works, they are subjected to classical developmental techniques.

Works: Falla: Four Spanish Pieces (50-53), Seven Popular Songs (76-79), El amor brujo (87-91), Nights in the Gardens of Spain (93-96), The Three-Cornered Hat (98-104), Hommage pour le tombeau de Debussy (112-13), El retablo de maese Pedro (126-29), Harpsichord Concerto (137-38), Homenajes (145-47).

Index Classifications: 1800s, 1900s

Contributed by: Amy Weller