The role of women in the world of guitar
The evolution of the role of women in the world of guitar has been constant, magnificent guitarists go up to the best stages in the world
The classical guitar has had great female artists. At the beginning of the 20th century, María Luisa Anido (1907 - 1996) was born in Argentina, a guitarist, composer and teacher, a reference of the classical guitar.
In Valencia, Doña Pepita Roca, also a student of Francisco Tárrega, was a guitar teacher at the Conservatory of Valencia from 1955-1956, replacing the prestigious Don Rafael Balaguer. Later Rosa Gil del Bosque (Valencia 1930), a reference for the classical guitar in Valencia, was the first professor of the Conservatory of Valencia.
More recently, great female guitarists are triumphing all over the world. Name like María Esther Guzman (Seville 1967), Ana Vidovic (Karlovac, Croatia, 1980) or Andrea González, winner of the Alhambra Guitar Competition in its thirteenth edition in 2016.
These are only some names of female guitarists among many others that place classical guitar at a very high level.
The woman on the flamenco guitar
If in the classical guitar the woman has had a fundamental role, in the world of the flamenco guitar the evolution has been different, although every time we can find more female guitarists, although in a much slower process.
If we look for examples that catch the eye, we go back to the 19th century. Aniya la Gitana (1855 - 1933) was a singer and guitarist who accompanied herself when singing and was a regular artist in the Cafés Cantantes.
Currently we can find flamenco guitarists such as Afra Rubino, Kati Golenko, Bettina Flater, Laura González, Marta Robles, Ekaterina Záytseva or the Israeli Noa Drezner. All of them, current guitarists with a very worked technique and knowledgeable about flamenco traditions.
Women in composition
And if guitarists are important, composers, especially those that compose for guitar, are essential.
María Luisa Anido stood out for interesting compositions that had extraordinary reviews. The famous guitarist Miguel Llobet, student of Tárrega, even said of Anido that she had been a revelation for him, highlighting her artistic qualities.
Nowadays we have great composers. A relevant name is Claudia Montero. The Argentinian has been awarded no less than with four Latin Grammy awards.
This magnificent composer wrote three pieces for the project called Sonidos de Mujer. A proposal for a concert for guitar by José Luis Ruiz del Puerto, whose program is entirely dedicated to women, performing only music by female composers from the late nineteenth century to the present. A brilliant project that has achieved great success.
From Guitarras Alhambra we are proud of this evolution and we encourage women to be an active part of the exciting world of the guitar.
