A Light in the Darkness

Joaquín Rodrigo is best known as the composer of one of the most popular works of music in the classical repertoire—the Concierto de Aranjuez for guitar and orchestra. Jazz great Miles Davis said of the work, “After listening to it for a couple of weeks,... I couldn’t get it out of my mind”, and used it as inspiration for his album Sketches of Spain. But Javier Suárez-Pajares and Walter Aaron Clark demonstrate in this musical biography that Rodrigo’s work and influence extend far beyond that singular work. Blinded in infancy, Rodrigo didn’t allow visual limitations to prevent him from pursuing his passion for music; travelling to study in Paris; connecting with a wide range of musicians, authors, and artists; and navigating the political and cultural complexities of Franco’s Spain. Though firmly grounded in the traditional music of Spain, his creative reach extended to a wide variety of styles, genres and media. He was as versatile as he was prolific and, one hundred years after his first serious composition, remains a figure of global renown.