SEGOVIA, ANDRS

born Feb. 21, 1893, Linares, Spain died June 2, 1987, Madrid Spanish musician acclaimed as the foremost guitarist of his time. He was the most important force in reestablishing the guitar as a concert instrument in the 20th century, chiefly through demonstrating its expressive and technical potential. He continued giving concert performances past the age of 90. Segovia studied the piano and cello as a child but could not be diverted from his interest in the guitar, which was held in low repute at the time as an instrument fit only for playing in cafs. No competent teacher of the guitar was easily available, so Segovia taught himself, basing his technique largely on his own intuitions. He gave his first public concert in 1909 while a student at the Granada Musical Institute. By 1916 he was performing in Barcelona and later in Madrid. In 191923 he toured South America. By 1924, when he first performed in Paris, his reputation was international. Segovia enlarged the guitar's repertory with more than 150 transcriptions of works originally written for lute, vihuela (Spanish guitar- shaped lute), and harpsichord by such composers as Franois Couperin, Jean-Philippe Rameau, and Johann Sebastian Bach. He also encouraged the writing of works for the guitar by many 20th-century composers, including Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Alfredo Casella, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Joaqun Turina, Manuel M. Ponce, and Albert Roussel. An Autobiography of the Years 18931920 was published in 1976 and Andrs Segovia, My Book of the Guitar in 1979.