World music, compiled by Pieter de Rooij.
Episode: A selection of Spanish folk music and copla songs, performed by Concha Piquer
Music from Spain, from two albums that programme maker Pieter de Rooij discovered in his collection of music cassettes: One cassette, released in 1973, titled Musica de España, featuring a variety of Spanish folk music, ranging from flamenco to orchestral pieces. This album, filled with popular melodies, was especially popular among vacationers who had settled in Spain.
Another album, released in 1987 as part of the series Antología de la Canción Española (Anthology of Spanish Song), featuring recordings by famous Spanish singer and actress Concha Piquer. The vocal gems by Piquer are alternated with several pieces from the cassette mentioned before, Musica de España
Singer Concha Piquer was born in 1908 in Valencia and passed away in 1990 in Madrid. Her singing and acting talent was discovered at an early age, and as a teenager she moved to New York, where she performed on Broadway. In the 1920s, she also acted in the very first sound films in America, starring in the film From Far Seville and performing as a singer in the world-famous film The Jazz Singer.
After five years in America she returned to Spain, where she acted in many films during the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. At the same time, Concha Piquer became one of the most prominent singers of the copla andaluza, a genre that gained popularity from the 1920s and remained popular until the 1950s.
Copla simply means stanza or verse, and the copla andaluza is a folk song form based on poetic texts with a specific metric structure. The lyrics are often sung with a certain quaver in the voice, frequently telling stories about characters who have fallen on hard times, entangled in extramarital affairs or other romantic troubles. As a genre, the copla serves as a social barometer, indicating the boundaries of what is acceptable or not concerning moral issues.
One can look back at the popularity of copla music during the time when General Franco was in power in Spain in different ways. On one hand, the genre was used for his propaganda and nationalist purposes. On the other hand, performers like Concha Piquer also infused it with subversive and contrary elements. Moreover, Concha Piquer did not conform to the imposed standard of a dutiful Catholic housewife. She was a strong, independent woman and a long-time single mother—she chose her own path and deviated from the desired norm.
When Franco‘s ultra-conservative regime in Spain ended with his death in 1975, the copla song was long associated with that difficult, bygone era and was labeled as old-fashioned music. However, since the 1990s, there has been a gradual resurgence of interest in Spain, and the copla genre has once again become a source of inspiration for the current generation of musicians.
Playlist:
1. Title: Farruca
Performed by: Los Macarenos
Composer: not stated
Album: Musica De España
Label and year: EMI 1 J 228-20.659, 1973
2. Title: La Guapa, Guapa!
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Ochaita / Valeria / Solano
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
3. Title: Eugenia De Montijo
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Ochaita / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
4. Title: Los Piconeros
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Perelló / Ostazo
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
5. Title: Verdiales De Gibralfaro
Performed by: Emma Maleras Y Su Ballet Español
Composer: Campoleón
Album: Musica De España
Label and year: EMI 1 J 228-20.659, 1973
6. Title: Te Quiero
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Valverde / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
7. Title: A Ciegas
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Quintero / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
8. Title: Doña Luz
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
9. Title: La Niña De Puerta Oscura
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Quintero / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
10. Title: Zaragozana
Performed by: Emma Maleras Y Su Ballet Español
Composer: bewerking door Ginesillo
Album: Musica De España
Label and year: EMI 1 J 228-20.659, 1973
11.Title: Coplas De Pedro Romero
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: León / Quiroga
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
12. Title: Dolores La Petenera
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Quiroga / León / X. Valerio
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
13.Title: Me Da Miedo De La Luna
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Quiroga / León
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
14. Title: España Cañi
Performed by: Gran Orquesta De Profesores Solistas olv Alfredo Doménech
Composer: P. Marquina
Album: Musica De España
Label and year: EMI 1 J 228-20.659, 1973
15. Title: Ya No Te Quiero
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Valverde / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
16. Title: Doña Sol
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Valverde / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
17. Title: Carcelera
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Valverde / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
18. Title: Amanecer Granadino
Performed by: Emma Maleras Y Su Ballet Español
Composer: M. & F. Ruiz Arquelladas
Album: Musica De España
Label and year: EMI 1 J 228-20.659, 1973
19. Title: Vengo A Entregarme
Performed by: Concha Piquer
Composer: Quintero / León / Quiroga
Album: Conchita Piquer, Vol.2 – Antologia De La Cancion Española
Label and year: EMI 256-122.1904, 1987
