ABOUT JUAN MANUEL RUIZ PARDO
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"It is as if he had taken styles of the stature of Peter Meier, Ottmar Liebert, Gordon Giltrap, Tommy Emmanuel and Leo Brouwer and upgraded them to " Pardo - Class "
Steve Marsh (Classical Guitar Magazine)
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“In the Billie Jean version, I thought I had“ recorded ”with three guitars; or at least two. When he said it was a single guitar, no tricks ... I had to see it, it couldn't be that. Yes, it was so "
Chema Sáiz
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“A great feat of arrangement and interpretation”
Classical Guitar Magazine
"Juan Manuel Ruiz Pardo's is the multiple guitar, with a deployable voice, like a singer capable of singing the lyrics and at the same time accompanying himself in the choirs"
Alexia Salas ("The Truth")
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"In this album he turns around the concept that many have of the classical guitar"
Julia Albaladejo ("The Opinion")
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“This incredible guitarist is a real find”
Charlie Faber (Radio 3 Sateli3)
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“When I put on this record, I don't hear only an interpreter; I hear a complete musician ”
Pablo Romero ("Sixth Order")
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“A magical and fascinating guitar”
Luis A. de Benito (“Radio Clásica”)
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PRESS RELEASES
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CD "RARA AVIS" (2.012)
[…] ”His pedigree is quite rich and the interpretations of this album well illustrate his very high capacities as a guitarist and composer / arranger.
Pardo's program delves into a wide variety of styles including flamenco, classical, blues, pop, jazz, country, and contemporary, and is highly adaptable to each genre with compelling performances throughout the CD. It is as if he had taken styles of the stature of Peter Meier, Ottmar Liebert, Gordon Giltrap, Tommy Emmanuel and Leo Brouwer and had promoted them to the “Category - Brown”. Each song is a gem in itself, there are no "fillers" on this very entertaining album.
Probably what sounds most ingenious here is Michael Jackson's colossal hit “Billie Jean,” in which Pardo's astonishing arrangement for solo guitar really leads one to believe that there are two, possibly three, instrumentalists playing. A great feat of arrangement and interpretation.
Other musicians (named on the cover) participate in five of the fourteen pieces playing guitar, percussion, and bass, and their inclusion adds interest to the album.
The recording quality is very good and there is an elegant production script accompanying the CD. In short, a very good and outstanding launch of great talent. ”
(Steve Marsh, “Classical Guitar Magazine”)
"Juan Manuel Ruiz Pardo is a pure son of the modern Spanish guitar scene: trained in classical, grown up in flamenco, with his ears wide open and tuned to our world ... In short, a wonderful, versatile guitarist, always musical and innovative. Olé! Congratulations and keep that great feeling going! ” (Pierre Bensusan)
"A guitarist with a lot of talent" (Jesús Barroso, "World's Music" program - Canal Sur Radio).
"Be forewarned: Ruiz Pardo's guitar sometimes sounds like a harp, sometimes like a banjo and sometimes like two guitars" (Alexia Salas, "La Verdad" from Murcia)
“The CD has no waste, in each of the 14 songs we find different things. I especially liked Pre & Postludio and Murcia on my mind, although in general I still haven't gotten tired of listening to the entire CD. When I put on this record I don't hear only an interpreter, I hear a complete musician. Thanks to Juan Manuel Ruiz Pardo for taking this step. A CD recommended one hundred percent, which will surely continue to speak "(Pablo Romero," Sixth Order "Magazine)
"An instrumental delight" (Fnac Murcia)
"A magical and fascinating guitar" (Luis A. de Benito, "Music and meaning" - Radio Clásica)
“A very nice album, made with great pleasure” (José Miguel López, “Discópolis” - Radio 3)
CD “CHOPIN PARA GUITARRA” (2.004)
"A musician and performer of great honesty, his work transcribing Chopin on guitar is an example of imagination and seriousness." (Guillermo González).
"A highly recommended album" (Luis Ángel de Benito, Radio Clásica)
“This album is a necessary synthesis of the creative genius of Chopin and the romantic essence of the sound: the evocative timbre of the guitar […] Juan Manuel Ruiz's arrangements for this record are part of Tárrega's Chopin tradition […] Comment Besides it deserves the adaptation for two guitars from six of the Studios, since it also responds to the intention of the originals by posing technical problems without giving up musical wealth ”. (Magazine "Music and Education").
“An extraordinary work […] Congratulations for this“ Chopin for guitar ”, which we turned into a leading album”. (Curro Castillo, Onda Madrid).
“The general impression is that the works are light, fluid, without difficulties, which shows the success achieved by the transcripts. Other good attempts at settlement were made in the past by Tárrega, Isaías Savio, Segovia and others, and those of Juan Manuel Ruiz Pardo come to join these as references to anyone who wants to venture into this repertoire. It is difficult to highlight something on such a beautiful CD. The works for two guitars demonstrate a good understanding between the two players, perhaps highlighting the studio op.25 nº1 and the Polonaise, works frequently heard and performed on scholarly radios, but which on guitars gain a very special flavor. Also the waltz op.69 nº 1, also so frequently heard, transmits a feeling of calm and romanticism perfectly demonstrated by the fingering of the guitar, sounding at the same time quite different from the piano and so close to it. […] Anyway, It is a CD that is listened to with pleasure and that deserves to be highlighted in this year of commemorations of Fréderic Chopin. We look forward to more projects and recordings from this excellent Spanish guitarist, who will come to expand the guitar repertoire of recordings, judging by the optimal recording idea for this CD. ” (Gilson Antunes, “Solo Violao” - Brazil)
“Juan Manuel Ruiz Pardo makes it clear in his notes to the program that his intentions were never to imitate the piano, and it is clear from the selection of pieces that there are many omissions due to technical reasons. But here you will find a good selection of some of the most famous waltzes and studios with a few preludes, mazurkas and a lonely Polonaise (a nice duo arrangement), perhaps the most famous, op.53. And works. After several listens of different lengths (this is the advantage of having a CD with works by a single author), one wonders when does the tedium appear? In this case it does not. I realized that by immersing yourself in a listening that went beyond a superficial ten minutes, one is persuaded by Pardo's premise that “please, don't hear this like the sound of a guitar trying to be a piano, but rather rather like a guitar that tries to be… even more guitar ”(his ellipsis).
A good recording (from 2004, by the way) that all guitar music collectors should have and now, after this review, I would highly recommend to all who love what the guitar is capable of. ” (Tim Panting, “Classical Guitar Magazine”)
"The result, contrary to what might be expected (it is always difficult and risky to approach the technical language - expressive of a composer - performer dedicated to the pianoforte) is good and rigorously faithful, within the limitations, to the work of the Polish composer" ( Manuel Álvarez, Magazine “Chords”)
“[…] It has captured in flight the romantic and introspective air that the Polish genius captured in his piano music, and has brought it to his guitar. No less than three years has taken to transcribe and interpret part of the work that Chopin wrote for the piano as if it had been conceived for the guitar. The same sweetness in the melodies, identical and refined harmonies and lyricism, but in the language of the strings ”(Alexia Salas,“ La Verdad ”)
"The famous" Minute Waltz "Op.64-1, is performed by the two well-coordinated guitarists [...] In the" Polonesa Heroica "you can also appreciate the vitality that comes from his cadence. […] The Studios make us feel an innovative effect, by being able to hear the characteristic sound of the guitar with these piano pieces ”(Gendai Guitar - Japan)
"The best criticism is that of the arranger and performer, when he says: do not listen to this album as if what it sounds like is a guitar that tries to be a piano, but rather like a guitar that tries to be ... even more guitar". (Program "Praise of the Guitar", Radio Clásica - RNE)