Mauro Giuliani – Sonata for guitar, op. 15, as a printed item

Giuliani’s Sonata op. 15 for solo guitar, is presented here in a RE-ENGRAVED edition, not facsimile – that is to say, it is a definitive modern edition in modern notation. Newly edited from the original first edition (of which a facsimile is also included in an appendix). 30 pages, 1986. Free on request to purchasers of Volume 3 of Giuliani’s Complete Works.

Mauro Giuliani’s Sonata op. 15 dates from 1808, that is to say from the very first moments of his arrival in Vienna from Italy and his great success there as a guitar virtuoso.

The sonata is presented here in a Tecla modern urtext re-engraved edition (not facsimile) which is prepared from the earliest known edition, that is to say from the edition of the Imprimerie Chimique which was advertised in Vienna on 16 July 1808.

This point about the original edition is not of trivial importance! Why? Because very large numbers of changes were introduced into the next edition of the sonata which was that of Steiner in Vienna in 1812, and those very many changes of Steiner, which there is no reason to think that Giuliani had anything to do with, remained in place in later editions right up to the present day.

A prominent example of the changes is that the original edition, that of the Imprimerie Chimique, has “pmo” in about 28 different places which the Steiner edition has changed into “p”. But Giuliani’s compositional style makes much of dynamic contrast, as you can see by the very careful and precise dynamic markings in this sonata: if he wanted you to play a passage pianissimo then I’m sure that he had a very good reason to do so, no doubt by creating a contrast with a louder passage before or after. But if you use an edition which is ultimately derived from that Steiner edition, you will lose that contrast that Giuliani intended, you won’t even know that it was supposed to be there. You can see Giuliani’s frequent and detailed dynamics, with lots of contrast, at FIRST PART FREE here.

This present edition is derived from that original Imprimerie Chimique edition of 1808, so that anyone who uses this present re-engraved edition can be sure of playing from a text straight from the composer. Don’t mess around with altered texts; get the original, it’s best.

This printed Tecla edition has been much praised for its well-placed page turns.

Unlike other editions of this sonata which are on the market today, this edition starts from the original 1808 edition and establishes a completely new modern re-engraved text, rigorously authentic and without any changes from the original. Anyone wishing to play this work in public, or to record it, will find that this edition provides the authentic text. There is a preface setting out the circumstances of the original edition.

It really is worth while using editions, such as this one, which are based strictly on the original sources. Here is what a guitarist wrote on receiving the Tecla edition of Giuliani’s Sonata op. 15:

“I received my order today and I am delighted with the editions. Thank you! Having studied the Giuliani Opus 15 I can appreciate the quality of the urtext edition. It is a true joy to read from this score, as I now only have 1 page turn, which occurs at the best possible location in the piece. Also, the score is faithful to the original 1808 edition which saved me many, many hours of work given the urtext readability. In my master class studies with [a teacher], he pointed out the many errors and re-writes in the modern edition I was using. The 1808 version has many subtle yet critical differences in dynamics, markings, slurs, etc., which have made me completely rethink the interpretation, phrasing, and fingerings. Even the opening melody line is corrupted in a later edition’s error in the tie marking, which has been carried forward to countless modern editions and copies. Just shows once again the value of a primary source. It is a welcome change to play uncorrupted period music. I was thrilled with the edition.  Scholarly work, beautifully engraved, page turns optimized, high-quality paper. Outstanding, in fact.” (a guitarist, Jack Watson, on this Tecla edition of Giuliani’s Sonata op. 15, TECLA 0497).

I’m sorry to say that because of damp in a warehouse in the past, all our copies have some rust on their staples (not very much, but it is there).  Please be aware of this when you order.  Of course remember that the music is fine and it’s a very good piece with (I hope) a good introduction . . .

Tecla main page.

Copyright 2003 by Tecla Editions. Errors and omissions excepted.