José Brocá

José Brocá y Codina (in Catalan: Antoni Josep Mateu Brocà i Codina) (21 September 1805 – 3 February 1882) was a Spanish guitarist and composer of the Romantic period.

Life and music

Brocá was born in Reus, province of Tarragona. Mainly self-taught on the guitar, he also studied briefly with Dionisio Aguado. He was reputed to have been an excellent performer on his instrument.[1] As a teacher based in Barcelona, his best-known pupils included Felipe Pedrell and José Ferrer who both dedicated compositions to him (and vice versa). He was a friend to Julián Arcas.

In his teaching, Brocá used Aguado's method.[2] Brocá died in Barcelona.

Brocá composed around twenty works for the guitar; Bone (1914/54) singles out his opus 19 (Fantasia and Tone Poem) as his "principal guitar composition".[3] Brocá's music was praised for its elegance and its stylistic proximity to Tárrega's, despite being several decades older.

Compositions for guitar

Dates after online catalogue of Biblioteca Nacional de España.

  • El destino. Fantasía para guitarra (1864)
  • El cortesano. Schotisch (1864)
  • Andante sentimental (1870)
  • Andante (1885)
  • El catalán. Vals (1885)
  • Fantasía (1886)
  • Recuerdo triste. Melodía (1886)
  • Crepúsculos. Tres valses 81886)
  • El último canto. Fantasía con variaciones (1886)
  • Recuerdos juveniles. Tres valses (1886)
  • Tres piezas fáciles (1886)
  • Albores. Tres valses (1886)
  • El veloz. Vals (1886)
  • El elegante. Vals (1886)
  • El patinador. Schotisch (1886)
  • La amistad. Fantasía con variaciones (1886)
  • Fantasía (1886)
  • Una flor. Mazurka (1886)
  • Pensamiento español (1886)
  • El ay. Vals (1886)
  • Un adiós (1886)
  • Alegreto (1886)

References
  1. Philip J. Bone: The Guitar and Mandolin. Biographies of Celebrated Players and Composers (London: Schott & Co., 1914; second edition, 1954, p. 60.
  2. Hannu Annala & Heiki Mätlik: Handbook of Guitar and Lute Composers (Pacific, Missouri: Mel Bay, 2007), p. 58.
  3. Bone, as above, p. 60.
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