Valseana by Marc Teicholz

Valseana is GSI's own CD: Marc Teicholz plays 18 waltzes on 18 classical guitars built between 1867 and 2004 – from Antonio de Torres, Santos Hernández and Hermann Hauser I to Daniel Friederich and Edmund Blöchinger – recorded at GSI in Santa Monica, California.

18 Waltzes on 18 Guitars

Voted one of the Essential Acoustic Albums of 2011 by Acoustic Guitar magazine.

This CD features 18 waltzes played by Marc Teicholz, performed and recorded on 18 different guitars built between 1867 and 2004, all supplied by GSI, and recorded here at the GSI facility in Santa Monica, CA.

The 24-page booklet includes notes and commentary from both producer David Collett and performer Marc Teicholz, which provide historical and anecdotal details on each instrument as well as insight into the selection process – how each guitar was "paired" with its piece of music.

From the Liner Notes

"As a buyer and seller of fine guitars, I have always wanted to have faithfully recorded audio 'snapshots' of their beautiful voices. While there have been several fine books (and websites) that have displayed elegant photographs of these great instruments, capturing the sounds of these masterpieces has been an elusive and difficult task. This is what we set out to accomplish with this project."

– DAVID COLLETT, Executive Producer

"Prior to this recording, I confess that my knowledge and even interest in the subtle differences of guitars and guitar building was minimal. I thought a guitar simply had to be 'good enough.' While such a principle may be practical and even true, I am now far too corrupted to hold to it. Repeated exposure to the cornucopia of delights that these treasures offer has terminally weakened my resistance. I felt like a Hollywood casting director who could choose any actor for any role. We picked guitars with big distinctive and contrasting personalities: earthy, pure, robust, tender, lyrical, punchy, bright, brooding. So many colors, so many choices – so much fun. I've been dissatisfied ever since!"

– MARC TEICHOLZ, Guitarist

Track Listing: the Waltzes and Their Guitars

Each track is listed with its composer, title, guitar and length. Linked guitars have their own page in the GSI museum, with photos and the full story.

1. Agustín Barrios Mangoré: Vals, Op. 8, No. 4 – 1995 Miguel Rodríguez "Centenario" (4:27)
2. Roland Dyens: Valse en Skaï – 1921 Santos Hernández (4:16)
3. Nikita Koshkin: Usher Waltz – 1961 Robert Bouchet (6:51)
4. Dušan Bogdanović: Esmeralda's Waltz – 1959 Miguel Rodríguez (3:23)
5. Claude Nougaro: Île de Ré – 2004 Edmund Blöchinger "Llobet" (5:39)
6. Gilbert Biberian: November Leaves – 1958 Hermann Hauser II No. 616 (2:38)
7. Frédéric Chopin: Grande Valse Brillante, Op. 18 – 1970 Daniel Friederich (6:22)
8. Sergei Prokofiev: Pushkin Waltz No. 2 – 1937 Hermann Hauser I with tornavoz (4:12)
9. Antonio Lauro: Vals venezolano No. 3 "Natalia" – 1958 Hernández y Aguado (1:40)
10. Miguel Llobet: Scherzo-Vals – Enrique García (3:32)
11. Manuel Ponce: Valse – 1967 Ignacio Fleta e hijos (2:31)
12. Paulo Bellinati: Um Amor de Valsa – 1927 Domingo Esteso (3:23)
13. Heitor Villa-Lobos: Valsa-Chôro – 1951 Marcelo Barbero (4:51)
14. Scott Joplin: Pleasant Moments – Ragtime Waltz – 1867 Antonio de Torres with tornavoz (4:18)
15. Sérgio Assad: Valseana – 1936 Hermann Hauser I (ex Manuel López Ramos) (2:42)
16. William Walton: Bagatelle No. 2 – 1967 "Jose" David Rubio (3:25)
17. Aníbal Augusto Sardinha "Garoto": Desvairada – 2003 Pepe Romero (3:52)
18. Johannes Brahms: Waltz, Op. 39, No. 15 – 1888 Antonio de Torres "La Itálica" (SE 116) (2:16)

Marc Teicholz on Video at GSI

Marc also plays some of these guitars, and other great GSI instruments, in videos on our site: Mendelssohn on the 1921 Santos Hernández at his "Valseana Live" concert at GSI, Bellinati's "Um Amor de Valsa" on a 1930 Domingo Esteso, and Assad's "Valseana" on an 1867 Antonio de Torres (FE 27B).