GINASTERA

Arrangement for accordion and orchestra

The album Ginastera is an arrangement for accordion and orchestra of Alberto Ginastera’s Concerto for Harp and Orchestra, Op. 25, performed by Iñaki Alberdi and conducted by Federico Jusid with the Navarre Symphony Orchestra.

It is a particularly interesting arrangement, as it involves two highly contrasting instruments—the harp and the accordion—giving the work a very different character.

As Iñaki Alberdi explained in an interview on the RTVE program La Dársena:

«In the case of the accordion, the bellows make the music breathe constantly, and with this piece, I felt I could offer a different version—perhaps one that is not as vertical, not as percussive or as sharply articulated, but rather a version that is broader, more expansive and filled with expression.»

Federico Jusid, in the same interview, added:

«What I find most curious is how music that, when played on the harp, sounds closely linked to rural Argentine folklore—a stylistic element Ginastera uses in much of his work, with harmonies and rhythms drawn from traditional country music, often making the harp sound almost like a guitar—suddenly takes on a completely different character when transcribed for accordion. The sound becomes entirely urban, distinctly «porteño» and resonates with the Río de la Plata folk tradition—namely, tango. It’s really fascinating.»