Joly Braga Santos
José Manuel Joly Braga Santos, (; May 14, 1924July 18, 1988) was a Portuguese composer and conductor, who was born and died in Lisbon. He wrote six symphonies. Biography. José Manuel Joly Braga Santos was born in Lisbon in 1924 and died in this city in 1988, at the peak of his musical creativity. Having studied violin and composition at the National Conservatoire of Lisbon, he became a disciple of Luís de Freitas Branco (1890–1955), the leading Portuguese composer of the preceding generation. After the Second World War, he was able to go abroad, having studied conducting with  Hermann Scherchen and Antonino Votto, and composition with Virgilio Mortari. In 1945 he visited England where he met Ralph Vaughan Williams, who encouraged him to use his native folksong in his symphonic music and also suggested that he should take lessons in counterpoint. He was undoubtedly the leading Portuguese symphonist of the 20th century, and perhaps of all time. Apart from an innate sense of orchestration, his musical language is based on a strong musical architecture as well as drama, with long melodic phrases and a natural instinct for structural development. In his own words, he wanted “to contribute toward  a Latin symphonism and to react against the predominant tendency, of the generation that preceded me, to reject monumentalism in music”. In his first works, the composer showed a modal tendency motivated by the desire to establish a connection between contemporary music and the golden age of Portuguese music: the Renaissance. We also find a melodic outline of the oldest folk songs of his country. Although he was not particularly interested in the Portuguese folklore, studying and composing at the country home of his mentor, in the rural south of Portugal - the Alentejo - he naturally accepted the influence of the  very old local folklore that he considered "of mesmerizing originality and grandeur". The first four symphonies, which followed each other quite rapidly (between the ages of 22 and 27), were immediately performed by the Portuguese Radio Symphony Orchestra in Lisbon, and met with great success. The conductor and founder of the Portuguese Radio Symphony Orchestra was the great Portuguese conductor Pedro de Freitas Branco, a friend of Maurice Ravel, Manuel de Falla, and former director of the Orchestre Lamoureux. Pedro de Freitas Branco early recognised his brother’s pupil’s talent and launched Joly Braga Santos's international career during  the 1950s, conducting several international premieres of his works around Europe. Other works of this period are the Concerto for Strings, Variations on an Alentejo Theme, and three Symphonic Overtures. Most of the works were recorded, from the 1970s onwards, by the Portuguese label Strauss SP, and more recently, by the Naxos / Marco Polo label. Following closely the works of post-war European composers, his style became, from 1960 onwards, more chromatic. The period of travel and the time he devoted to conducting provided him with what he described as a useful period of rest, decisive for the evolution of  his musical style toward increased chromaticism and less traditional form. To this period belong the works Three Symphonic Sketches, Sinfonietta, the Requiem, his 5th and 6th Symphonies, and Divertimento no. 2. Joly Braga Santos also wrote three operas, chamber music for a wide variety of instruments and ensembles, film scores, and several choral works based on poems from the great classical and modern Portuguese and Spanish poets such as Camões, Antero de Quental, Teixeira de Pascoaes, Fernando Pessoa, Garcilaso de la Vega, Antonio Machado and Rosalía de Castro. Joly Braga Santos lectured on composition at the National Conservatoire of Lisbon , where he introduced the chair of Musical Analysis. He was also director of the Oporto Symphony Orchestra and one of the founders of the Juventude Musical Portuguesa (Portuguese Musical Youth). As a critic and journalist he produced a vast range of work for several Portuguese and foreign newspapers and journals. He died in Lisbon, of a stroke. Awards. The Three Symphonic Sketches (1962) were distinguished by Donemus in 1963, and the 5th Symphony, by the «Tribune Internationale des Compositeurs» (UNESCO) in 1966. In 2004, the recording of the Symphony No. 4 by Naxos/Marco Polo, performed by the National Symphony  Orchestra of Ireland and conducted by Álvaro Cassuto received the Cannes Classical Award for the CD Premier category. Honors. In 1977, Joly Braga Santos was distinguished with the Order of Santiago de Espada by President of the Republic of Portugal. Selected works. 1942 – Nocturne (in E) Violin and Piano 4' 1943 – Four Songs on poems by Fernando Pessoa 1943 – Aria I Cello and Piano 4' 1944 – Siciliana Piano 2' 1945 – Three Sonnets by Camões - "To Carmélia Âmbar" 1945 – String Quartet I (in D m) - "To Luís de Freitas Branco" 1945 – Sonnet by Antero de Quental - “To Carmélia Âmbar” 1946 – Symphonic  Overture No. 1 "To Pedro de Freitas Branco" 1947 – Symphony No. 1 (in D) - "To the Heroes and Martyrs of the last World War" 1947 – Symphonic Overture No. 2 (in E) Premiere: Lisbon 1947, National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Pedro de Freitas Branco, conductor. 1947 – Nocturne for Strings (in B minor) - Strings Orchestra and viola 7' 1948 – Symphony No. 2 (in B minor) 3,3,2,2 4,3,3,1 Tp. 2, Perc. 1, strings. 60' International Premieres: Paris, 1948, Orch. Radiodifusion Française, Pedro de Freitas Branco conductor. 1948 – Elegy to Vianna da Motta 3,3,3,3 - 4,3,3,1 Tp., Drum, strings 9' 1949 – Symphony No. 3 (in C  M) "To Luis de Freitas Branco" 1950 – Symphony No. 4 (in E m) " To the Portuguese Musical Youth" 1951 – Concerto for Strings in D - "To the Chamber Music Academy" 1951 – Variations on an Alentejo Theme "To Pedro de Freitas Branco" Premiere: Bordeaux 20.02.1952, Orchestre Philharmonique de Bordeaux Pedro de Freitas Branco conductor 1954 – Symphonic Overture No. 3 "To Elisa de Sousa Pedroso" 1957 – Quartet with piano piano, violin, viola and cello 18' "To the Lisbon Quartet" 1957 – String Quartet II 2 violins, viola and cello 30' 1958 – Mérope Opera in 3 Acts, on a play by Almeida Garrett 1960 – Viola  Concerto "To François Broos" Recordings: Strauss SP870008/PS, 1989. 1960 – Divertimento I "To Virgilio Mortari" 1962 – Three Symphonic Sketches "To Silva Pereira" 1963 – Sinfonietta for Strings Orchestra, 18' 1964 – Requiem "In memoriam of Pedro de Freitas Branco" 1966 – Symphony No. 5 op.39 -"virtus lusitaniae" Distinguished by the Tribune International des Compositeurs (UNESCO) -1968. 1967 – Variations for Orchestra "To Adrian Sunshine" 1967 – Encruzilhada (Crossings) - Ballet 1968 – Violin and Cello Concerto Strings Orchestra and Harp - 18' 1970 – Trilogia das Barcas Opera based on three plays by Gil Vicente 1972 – Symphony No. 6 “To my Daughter Maria da Piedade” Premiere: Lisbon, 1972, Tivoli  Theatre, National Radio Symphony Orchestra, S. Carlos Theatre Choir, soloist soprano Elsa Saque, Álvaro Cassuto conductor. 1973 – Piano Concerto Premiere: Lisbon 1974, National Radio Symphony Orchestra; soloist, Helena de Sá e Costa, Silva Pereira conductor. 1974 – Choral compositions on Classic Castilian Poems – "A Capella" Choir 1975 – 2 Motets – “A Capella” Choir 6' 30" 1977 – Aria II – Cello and Piano 6' “To Luisa de Vasconcelos" 1978 – Divertimento II – String Orchestra 14' 1982 – Cantares Gallegos for Soprano e Orchestra on poems by Rosalía de Castro 1984 – Aria a Tre con variazioni for Clarinet, Viola and Piano 1984 – Dance Suite Piano, Viola, Oboé  and Bass Recordings: EMI Valentim de Carvalho – EMI 7496622, 1988, Opus Ensemble. 1985 – Trio for Piano, Violin e Cello - “To the Mirecourt Trio” 1985 – Suite for wind instruments 1986 – Sextet - "To Alberto Lysy" 1987 – Cello Concerto - 2,2,2,2 - 2,2 - 1,2 - strings 1988 – Aquella Tarde on a dramatic poem by António Machado. Soprano or tenor and orchestral ensemble. Premiere: Lisbon, 1988 - Gulbenkian Encounters of Contemporary Music, by the Contemporary Music Group, conducted by Jorge Peixinho. 1988 – Staccato Brilhante – “To The New Phylarmonic Orchestra” Premiere: Lisbon 1988, The New Phylarmonic Orchestra, conducted by Álvaro Cassuto. 1988 – Improviso for clarinet and piano. Joly Braga