Narciso Yepes

Narcisio Yepes (born 7 km from Lorca, España, 1927, died in Murcia, 1997) was one of most respected Spanish composer, arranger and guitarist. His father bought his real guitar at the fair of Lorca when Narcisio was only 4 and at the age 6 he was already playing by ear the popular tunes at that time.
When he was 13, he was accepted to study at the Conservatorio de Valencia, and he was 15 when he became a student of the pianist and composer Vicente Asencio and followed courses in harmony, composition, and performance. Narciso Yepes made his debut in 1943 at the Teatro Serrano in Valencia.
On December 16, 1947 Narciso made his Madrid debut, performing Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquín Rodrigo whom he met after moving to Madrid. Next years of Narcisioo Yepes solo career were very successful. He performed in Genève, Italy, Germany, France and was responsible for the growing popularity of the Concierto de Aranjuez.
In 1950, after performing in Paris, Narciso Yepes moves to this city, where he went deeper into his musical study, work and research.
Narciso Yepes gave huge number of concerts around the world. In 1980 he toured the former Soviet Union annd next he went to Japan, where he gave 40 concerts and his art was really revered. His repertoire extended from the 15th century to contemporary compositions.
In 1964, Narciso Yepes performed the Concierto de Aranjuez with the Berliner Philharmoniker, premiering the ten-string guitar, which he invented in collaboration with the renowned luthier José Ramirez.
Since 1993 Narcisco Yepes limited his public appearances due to illness. He gave his last concert on March 1, 1996, in Santander (Spain).

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