EARLY MUSIC
As a performer in the field of the early music, Grafenauer has carried out a number of solo projects, one of the first ones was the release of Preludio on Divya records in 2018. The CD contains works by Silvius Leopold Weiss and Adam Falckenhagen.
In addition to solo playing, chamber music is also an important part of his work. He leads the international group Cuerdas al Pasado (Strings of the Past), where he is researching music from the Renaissance, Baroque and the transition to the Classical period. They dedicate themselves to recreating music, where the guitar or lute is treated either as an equal instrument, or as a solo instrument in front of an orchestra or the chamber group.
Among his latest high-profile projects is a program with music composed by the composers Santiago de Murcia and Luigi Boccherini. Both worked at the Spanish court, Santiago de Murcia under the patronage of Maria Luisa of Savoy, and Luigi Boccherini about 60 years later under Luiz Antonio of Spain, the younger brother of Spanish King Charles III. Both composers are strongly influenced by Spanish folk music, which they imployed in their own composicions which makes an intriguing and lively program to listen and perform.
FLAMENCO
One of the most important countries for the development of the guitar is also the homeland of flamenco. It it important to know that already in the Baroque period the guitar was called the Spanish guitar throughout Europe. Flamenco is an art that has absorbed the influences of Moorish, Spanish, Jewish and Roma culture and since 2010, flamenco has been on the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage.
Every classical guitarist encounters flamenco at some point in his life. Thus, due to the desire to create in this field, the band Grafenauer flamenco project was created. They perform original music of modern flamenco, which contains elements of classical music, jazz and world music. The project involves both Slovenian musicians (bassist Jošt Lampret, violinists Ana Mezgec and Peter Ugrin, cellist Bernardo Brizani, trump Luka Ipavec and percussionists Petra Vidmar and Žiga Šercer, Nino Mureškič), as well as leading flamenco musicians from Spain, such as trumpeter Enriquo Rodriguez “Enriquito” and percussionists José Manuel Ruiz Motos “Bandolero” and José Montaña.
“The band is full of names that have built their reputations in jazz, ethno, flamenco and classical and so-called world music, and the range of sounds created by the band is correspondingly colorful”
Aljaž Kravanja, Radio Študent.si
In 2024 they released their first project “Ventana abierta” which they recorded in MUSIGRAMA, a famous recording studio in Madrid. The program consists of original works based on flamenco palos. Each piece is a reflection of the author’s experience of the world around him, years of dedication to the creation of the album and in-depth artistic research. With a mixture of traditional elements and modern musical approaches, it presents a fresh and distinctly expressive, but respectful view of this masterful musical genre, thereby also bringing new possibilities and perspectives for the development of flamenco in Slovenia and beyond. With its innovation, it opens a window for new musical generations and encourages diversity and the exchange of ideas.
Listen to VENTANA ABIERTA:
https://izidorerazemgrafenauer.bandcamp.com/album/ventana-abierta