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Gerónimo Giménez
(1854 - 1923) |
 Born in
Seville, 10th October 1854, Giménez began his musical studies
with his father. He continued to study in Cadiz with Salvador Viniegra,
and at the age of twelve took his place in the 1st Violins at the Teatro
Principal. Five years later he was already conducting opera and zarzuela
performances in the city, but on obtaining a scholarship he left to consolidate
his musical training at the Paris Conservatoire. Under the highly popular
Delphin Alard he won the First Prize for Harmony and Counterpoint -
amongst his defeated contemporaries was Claude Debussy. The inevitable
tour of Italy preceded his return to Spain and the capital, where by 1885 he
had become conductor at the Teatro Apolo, later moving to the Teatro
de la Zarzuela, and the Teatro Lírico. Aside from a healthy
output of zarzuelas, Giménez also managed to write a number of
symphonic and chamber works. Many of these were played by the Unión
Musical Espagñola and the Sociedad de Conciertos, both of
which he conducted.
His best stage works date from relatively early in his career. Amongst the most
notable are Trafalgar (1890) and Los voluntarios (1893), but his
fame largely rests on three works - the twin sainetes El baile de Luis
Alonso and La Boda de Luis Alonso (1896/7), and his masterpiece
La Tempranica (1900). Perhaps aware of
his waning powers, further success after the turn of the century was only
achieved with the help of Miguel Nieto, in their witty reworking of
El barbero de Sevilla (1901) and Vives -
notably in El húsar de la guardia (1904) and La gatita
blanca (1905); though their intriguing Los viajes de Gulliver
(1910), based on Jonathan Swift, did not cut much ice. Later solo efforts, such
as Cinematógrafo nacional (1907) and La bella persa y la
cortesana de Omán (1920), were cold-shouldered by audiences and
critics alike. Indeed, Giménez's last years were dogged by
financial problems and ill health as well as the decline in public favour. He
was refused a professorial chair at the Madrid Conservatory until very near the
end, and died in near-poverty in Madrid on 19th February 1923. The lack of consistency in
Giménez's musical output (admittedly partly due to the mediocre
quality of many of the libretti that he set) should not be allowed to obscure
his technical brilliance and musical sophistication. The Baile and
Boda demonstrate his nice handling of orchestral subtleties - far in
advance of his contemporaries, with the exception of Bretón - and both these and the best
collaborations with Vives reveal
Giménez to be a melodist of taste and wit.
La Tempranica goes beyond almost
anything else of the period in its giddy range of references, from Weber
through Johann Strauss to Puccini - and in sheer musical quality. Its influence
on Falla's La Vida Breve is patent. Had he written nothing else,
Giménez's name would be guaranteed an honourable place through
this chef d'oeuvre.
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