Argentinian guitarist and composer Mariá Luisa Anido (1907-1996) incorporated various Argentinian folk music techniques in her playing and compositions, such as mixed meter (3/4 time in the bass and 6/8 time in the melody).
Aire Norteño
You can hear this upbeat style in her composition “Aire Norteño”, inspired by an Argententian festival dance form called the bailecito:
Barcarola
One of her Mariá Luisa Anido’s most beloved compositions is her first composition in 1927, a Barcarola, seen below:
Grande Dame of the Guitar
Anido studied guitar with Miguel Llobet in Spain, who praised her compositional style. She traveled and performed across Europe the 1950s receiving critical acclaim.
During this time she published many other compositions and suites, including Aire de Vidalita, Canción de Cuna, Impressiones Argentinas, Santiagueña, El Misachico, and Preludios Nostálgicos.
Each of these compositions includes a variety of rhythmic influences, left hand ornaments, and demanding right hand techniques like pizzicato.
You can hear many of these compositions on her album Grande Dame of the Guitar:
Concierto en Rusia
You can tell from her exquisite live performances that in addition to her compositions, Anido had a deep an impressive relationship with the guitar in a performance setting.
Despite gender prejudices of the time, Anido demonstrated that women deserve a rightful place on the world stage for classical guitar, and are equally masterful composers!
