Concerto Clasico

In July of 1930, while a member of the Cuarteto Clásico Universitario, Rafael Adame offered two recitals at the Anfiteatro de la Escuela Nacional Preparatoria, performing on both the guitar and the cello, and offering his own compositions as well as music by other composers. In the July 19 concert Adame performed his Concierto for guitar and orchestra, with the orchestral part reduced to a piano score by himself. In the second recital, Adame performed the Mexican premiere of the Sonata mexicana of 1923 by Manuel M. Ponce. The concerto was performed again in a well publicized concert on February 5, 1933, at the Anfiteatro de la Escuela Nacional Preparatoria. The historical importance of this concerto is that it precedes the Rodrigo and Castelnuovo-Tedesco guitar concerti by nine years, thus making it the first concerto for guitar and orchestra of the twentieth century.