Susana Gaspar - Fernando Lopes Graca: Songs to Poetic and Folk Texts

The Portuguese composer Fernando Lopes Graca (1906-94) was one of the thousands of victims of Salazar's right-wing dictatorship: his works were confiscated, and he was prohibited from teaching. He responded in music, with a prolific output inspired by both folk-music and the evolving musical language of his European contemporaries, marrying tradition and modernism. His songs for voice and piano set texts from both popular and 'high' culture, unified by his ardent humanist outlook and the dignified manner in which he expressed it.