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Spanish inspiration

What do Miles Davis, Led Zeppelin, Chick Corea and Deep Purple have in common with Spanish composer Joaquin Rodrigo? The jazz and rock legends all referenced Rodrigo’s masterpiece, the magnificent “Concierto de Aranjuez” for classical guitar and orchestra.

“It’s a legendary piece for every guitar player,” says renowned classical guitarist Benjamin Verdery, who will perform “Concierto” with the Maui Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Robert E. Wills, at the Historic Iao Theater in Wailuku on Saturday and Sunday.

“It’s probably the most popular concerto for any instrument in the 20th century,” Verdery says. “I interviewed legendary guitarist Pepe Romero for my Guitar Talks series in New York, and Pepe has probably played it more than anyone else. He said he thinks it’s played once a day somewhere in the world. I’m thrilled to play it.”

Composed in 1939, the “Concierto de Aranjuez” was inspired by the exquisite gardens at Spain’s Palacio Real de Aranjuez, the royal palace built by Philip II in the last half of the 16th century and rebuilt in the middle of the 18th century by Ferdinand VI.

The work attempts to transport the listener to another place and time through the evocation of the sounds of nature, with Rodrigo once describing it as capturing “the fragrance of magnolias, the singing of birds, and the gushing of fountains” at the gardens of Aranjuez.

Featuring three movements, it’s the extraordinarily beautiful second movement – representing a dialogue between guitar and solo instruments – that has captured the imagination of so many musicians.

“It’s really profound, and it has touched musicians of all genres, including Miles Davis and Chick Corea,” Verdery explains. “I think all the off-spins of the middle movement are fascinating.”

Jazz great Davis interpreted it on his Grammy-winning album “Sketches of Spain.” Corea used the beginning of the second movement as an introduction to his signature composition “Spain.” Rockers Deep Purple referenced it on their “Orange Juice Song,” and Led Zeppelin keyboardist/bassist John Paul Jones incorporated parts of the music on “No Quarter” during the band’s 1977 tour. Even the British instrumental group the Shadows recorded its own mini version in 1979, and trumpeter Herb Alpert made a disco version of the famous adagio.

“So what is it about the work?” Verdery wonders. “There’s a certain gravitas and lightheartedness which is extraordinary. The second movement is just so well written for the guitar, the guitar just says, ‘I love this.’ There’s a melody on the first and second strings that we all die for, but then it’s got a lower register like a cello. It covers the range of the guitar unbelievably. You get the entire range of the guitar with arpeggios and single lines. Guitarists love it because it stretches them.”

The guitar professor at the Yale School of Music, Verdery has performed worldwide and has recorded with such diverse artists as Andy Summers, Jessye Norman, Paco Pena and John Williams. Hailed for his innovative and eclectic musical career, Verdery was praised by the The New York Times as “one of the guitars grand individualists.” He has released more than 15 CDs, ranging from his “Bach’s Cello Suite #6” debut to his latest “Happy Here,” with guitarist Ben Coulter, which featured “spirited and exceptional arrangements of popular tunes” (Acoustic Guitar). The acclaimed guitarist most recently collaborated with New York hip-hop artist Billy Dean Thomas to record an innovative version of the blues classic “Hoochie Coochie Man,” to be included on the EP “Hooks and Books.”

Verdery will return to Maui in July to conduct his 17th annual master guitar class, joined by guest teacher David Leisner, co-chairman of the guitar department at the Manhattan School of Music.

Having played the “Concierto de Aranjuez” a number of times over the years, this guitar virtuoso recalls one memorable moment at a festival in Danbury, Conn., with the Orchestra New England.

“I remember getting nervous because watching me play the Concierto was Chick Corea,” Verdery says. “I went off stage and he said something complimentary, and I told him the first time I heard it was on his record ‘Spain,’ because I was into Chick before I was into classical guitar.”

Verdery says many great guitar concertos have been composed over the years, but none is as distinguished as Rodrigo’s.

“It’s so brilliantly orchestrated,” he says. “He wrote it so the guitar doesn’t battle with the orchestra, it’s very clever, a stroke of genius. He was blind and would just sing what he wanted instruments to do.”

Describing the piece as a challenging work for guitarists, he says, “There’s a lot of it that most of us can’t play. It’s like Salieri says in ‘Amadeus,’ there are just too many notes. Most guitarists will drop out a couple of notes. One of the most extraordinary versions is by (Spanish flamenco master) Paco de Lucia. He played the notes exactly, everything. We were all astounded. We all bow to his technical virtuosity.”

The Maui Chamber Orchestra concerts will also feature Russian composer Mikhail Glinka’s Spanish Overture No. 2, “Souvenirs of a Summer Night in Madrid,” composed in 1849, after he visited Spain, and Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 102 in B flat major.

*****

We’ve seen tributes to Elvis and Roy Orbison at Lahaina’s Maui Theatre, and now get ready for a homage to the Beatles with the Fourever Fab show opening Wednesday night.

Fourever Fab is composed of seasoned look- and sound-alike musicians who have been performing the timeless hits of the Beatles around the world for many years.

The show kicks off with the famous “black-and-white” period, with the band performing songs that 70 million Americans saw in 1964 as they watched “The Ed Sullivan Show” – songs like “All My Loving,” “A Hard Day’s Night,” “Help” and “Twist and Shout.”

The “Shea Stadium” period follows, recapturing the energy and excitement of that historic concert performance with “Day Tripper,” “Nowhere Man,” “Can’t Buy Me Love” and “Yesterday.” It then progresses to the band’s most creative “Sergeant Pepper” period, and finally enters “Abbey Road,” as the Beatles perform some of the greatest songs from the later part of their career, including “Get Back,” “Come Together,” “Hey Jude,” “Here Comes the Sun” and “Let it Be.”

The group includes Andrew Hill as Paul McCartney and Joe Gallo as John Lennon. The show will also include a tribute to George Harrison, who had a home in Nahiku.

* The Fourever Fab show is presented at 7 p.m. Wednesdays at the Maui Theatre. Ticket prices for adults range from $59.99 to $129. 99 for Royal seats, which include meet-and-greet prior to the show (6 to 6:30 p.m.), souvenir T-shirt and souvenir photo. Diamond ($99.99) seats include logo souvenir and photo. Kamaaina discounts are available for some seats. For reservations, call (808) 365-7535.

*****

Anyone who loves classic honky-tonk country, vintage rockabilly, the plaintive songs of Hank Williams, or a dash of Chuck Berry should check out Girls Guns and Glory coming to the Maui Arts & Cultural Center on April 8.

Lead singer Ward Hayden recalls the croonings of Chris Isaak and Buddy Holly, while the group’s sound features an “elegant take on classic country-and-western and pre-Beatles, Roy Orbison-meets-Everlys pop,” noted a Boston Globe review of the album “Sweet Nothings.” And Rolling Stone praised this Boston-based band for its “soulful lyrics paired with a beat you can dance to.”

* Girls Guns and Glory will perform at 7:30 p.m. April 8 in McCoy Studio Theater at the MACC. Tickets are $30 (plus applicable fees) and are available at the box office, by calling 242-7469 or by visiting www.mauiarts.org.

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