Rodrigo’s “Concierto d’Aranjuez” from the film “Brassed Off”

One of THE HOBBLEDEOY’S all-time favorite films is writer/director Mark Herman’s Brassed Off (1996). This scene features the legendary Pete Postlethwaite, Tara Fitzgerald, Stephen Tompkinson, and Ewan McGregor, but the true star here is the Grimethorpe Colliery Band, who perform the music.

The Concierto de Aranjuez is by the Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo. Written in 1939, it is by far Rodrigo’s best-known work, and its success established his reputation as one of the most significant Spanish composers of the 20th century.

Usually performed as a guitar concerto, the flugelhorn arrangement of the Adagio was by Kevin Bolton.

If you have not seen this film, you must. Not currently available on Netflix or Amazon, it’s worth a trip to borrow from the local library.

British Films
The Wicker Man: 1973 folk-horror endures to this day as a masterpiece of the form
Free love and folk-singing hides a dark secret on the Scottish island …
Listen to “The Voices Of…” Richard Dawson
Released On: 29 Jul 2019 For a man whose musical demeanour comes across …
Watch trailer for Ken Loach latest “The Old Oak”
Ken Loach could hardly have delivered a more resonant, timely or indeed …
William Blake, Our Contemporary
Could Allen Ginsberg have written “Howl” without him? By Michael Glover The …

4 thoughts on “Rodrigo’s “Concierto d’Aranjuez” from the film “Brassed Off”

  1. Rodrigo wrote this after his wife miscarried. They made him the Lord of the gardens he wrote this music for in Aranjuez.

Leave a Reply