#ClassicsaDay #ClassicalMexico Week 2, 2025
By Ralph Graves
Our neighbor to the south has a long, rich history of classical music. A much longer history than ours, in fact. For May, the Classics a Day team encourages folks to post videos of Mexican classical music.
There’s a lot to choose from. The first composers in New Spain were writing in the 1500s.
Here are my posts for the second week of #ClassicalMexico.
05/12/25 Macedonio Alcalá (1831–1869): Dios nunca muere
Alcalá was a violinist and pianist. Most of his music was improvised and unfortunately, seldom transcribed. One of his most popular works was Dios nunca muere, written in 1868.
05/13/25 Melesio Morales (1839–1908): Il Sospiro d’Amore
Morales was a native Mexican opera composer. He achieved success as such in Florence in 1866. He wrote 10 operas, 2 cantatas, and several other works.
05/14/25 Guadalupe Olmedo (1853–1889): String Quartet Op. 14
Olmedo was the first woman to graduate from the National Conservatory of Music in 1875. This string quartet was one of 15 works she submitted for her degree examination (which she easily passed).
05/15/25 Ricardo Castro (1864–1907): Piano Concerto in A minor, OP. 22
Castro was equally famous as a pianist and a composer. He wrote his only piano concerto in 1940.
05/16/25 Luis Sandi (1905–1996): La Hoja de Plata
Sandi was a conductor, teacher, and composer. Although a large part of his output was choral, Sandi also wrote some important works for orchestra.
