Gustavo Durán is one of the most enigmatic figures of the 20th century. Born in Barcelona, his early debut as a composer of the Generation of ’27 gave way to a prominent military role during the Spanish Civil War. Exiled in England, he began a life alongside the American Bonté Crompton.
From 1943 onward, during his diplomatic career at the U.S. Department of State and the United Nations, Durán created a songbook of early music and folklore from Europe and Latin America—his most intimate musical testament, in which love is the central theme. In 1969, he died in Greece, unaware of the cultural significance this body of work—marked by profound diversity and personal transformation—would later attain.
Tenor Jonatan Alvarado and guitarist Samuel Diz recover this previously unpublished repertoire through extensive archival research at the Residencia de Estudiantes and the composer’s personal library, in close collaboration with his daughters: poet Jane Duran, responsible for the lyric translations specially made for the cd-book set, and ethnomusicologist Lucy Durán, musical producer of the recording.
Recorded at Dartington Hall (England), this project was
funded by the OIP Link Fund of the University of Exeter (Department of
Languages, Cultures and Visual Studies), with the collaboration of Dartington
Trust and the Residencia de Estudiantes.
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