Uploaded January 2024 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
During the winter of 1905-1906, the Edison Company set up a temporary recording studio in a building at 146 Industria in Havana, Cuba. Among the many musicians who made field recordings there was classical guitarist Sebastián Hidalgo, who made cylinders of two selections: the popular “Miserere” from Verdi’s Il Trovatore, and “Polka Selva Negra.” Dick Spottswood, an expert on early recorded music, observes that “these are likely the first recordings of solo guitar made in North America.”
For decades, musicologists have known of their existence through a listing in the July 1907 edition of Edison Phonograph Monthly, which advertised Hidalgo’s cylinders as “Solos de Guitarra.” However, until the recordings heard here recently turned up, no copies were known to have survived.
My friend Joe Gore’s Tonefiend YouTube channel is a tremendous resource for guitar aficionados: youtube.com/@joe_gore. Given Joe’s wide knowledge of classical guitar music, I shared these recordings with him and asked for his observations: “Hidalgo was a solid player,” Joe offered, “though maybe not in the very highest tier of virtuosity for the era. There are clams and intonation issues throughout, but then, who knows what the recording conditions were like? And of course, he would have been using sheep-gut strings which could be pitchy and unreliable relative to modern strings. Perhaps especially so in the Cuban climate.
“‘Miserere’ conforms with the guitar’s role as a parlor instrument. It was common to perform medleys of simplified guitar versions of beloved operatic themes — the closest thing to a Top 40 in Europe and the colonies. The other piece’s title is Spanish for ‘Black Forest Polka’ — a Polish/German fusion? Sounds like the composer was a little hazy on their musical geography, sort of like saying ‘Mexican flamenco.’ Again, it was very much a 19th-century thing to perform pieces with strong nationalistic identities. You didn’t have to be Polish to compose a polka or mazurka, or Scottish to write an écossais, or Austrian to play waltzes.
“One interesting aspect of the performance is Hidalgo’s use (and non-use) of vibrato. It’s applied selectively and dramatically. I was surprised by the fast vibrato speed on ‘Miserere.’ It’s almost like a B.B. King vibrato, presumably deployed to mimic an operatic soprano. Thanks for sharing. Super fascinating stuff!” Thanks, Joe!
Mark Marrington’s post “Early Classical Guitar Recording in Cuba,” an excerpt from his 2021 book Recording the Classical Guitar, provides more details about the Hidalgo session and recordings: markmarrington.com/uncategorized/early-classical-guitar-recording-in-cuba
For an overview of other pioneering guitar recordings, 1904-1916, check out this article in my "Talking Guitar" online magazine: jasobrecht.substack.com/p/the-first-north-american-guitar-recordings
I hope you enjoy these historic recordings!
#classicalguitarist #classicalguitarists #classicalguitarists #joegore #jasobrecht
During the winter of 1905-1906, the Edison Company set up a temporary recording studio in a building at 146 Industria in Havana, Cuba. Among the many musicians who made field recordings there was classical guitarist Sebastián Hidalgo, who made cylinders of two selections: the popular “Miserere” from Verdi’s Il Trovatore, and “Polka Selva Negra.” Dick Spottswood, an expert on early recorded music, observes that “these are likely the first recordings of solo guitar made in North America.”
For decades, musicologists have known of their existence through a listing in the July 1907 edition of Edison Phonograph Monthly, which advertised Hidalgo’s cylinders as “Solos de Guitarra.” However, until the recordings heard here recently turned up, no copies were known to have survived.
My friend Joe Gore’s Tonefiend YouTube channel is a tremendous resource for guitar aficionados: youtube.com/@joe_gore. Given Joe’s wide knowledge of classical guitar music, I shared these recordings with him and asked for his observations: “Hidalgo was a solid player,” Joe offered, “though maybe not in the very highest tier of virtuosity for the era. There are clams and intonation issues throughout, but then, who knows what the recording conditions were like? And of course, he would have been using sheep-gut strings which could be pitchy and unreliable relative to modern strings. Perhaps especially so in the Cuban climate.
“‘Miserere’ conforms with the guitar’s role as a parlor instrument. It was common to perform medleys of simplified guitar versions of beloved operatic themes — the closest thing to a Top 40 in Europe and the colonies. The other piece’s title is Spanish for ‘Black Forest Polka’ — a Polish/German fusion? Sounds like the composer was a little hazy on their musical geography, sort of like saying ‘Mexican flamenco.’ Again, it was very much a 19th-century thing to perform pieces with strong nationalistic identities. You didn’t have to be Polish to compose a polka or mazurka, or Scottish to write an écossais, or Austrian to play waltzes.
“One interesting aspect of the performance is Hidalgo’s use (and non-use) of vibrato. It’s applied selectively and dramatically. I was surprised by the fast vibrato speed on ‘Miserere.’ It’s almost like a B.B. King vibrato, presumably deployed to mimic an operatic soprano. Thanks for sharing. Super fascinating stuff!” Thanks, Joe!
Mark Marrington’s post “Early Classical Guitar Recording in Cuba,” an excerpt from his 2021 book Recording the Classical Guitar, provides more details about the Hidalgo session and recordings: markmarrington.com/uncategorized/early-classical-guitar-recording-in-cuba
For an overview of other pioneering guitar recordings, 1904-1916, check out this article in my "Talking Guitar" online magazine: jasobrecht.substack.com/p/the-first-north-american-guitar-recordings
I hope you enjoy these historic recordings!
#classicalguitarist #classicalguitarists #classicalguitarists #joegore #jasobrecht
