José Ferrer (guitarist)

José Ferrer Esteve de Fujadas (in 19th-century France known as “Joseph Ferrer”) (13 March 1835 – 7 March 1916) was a Spanish guitarist and composer. Life Ferrer was born in Torroella de Montgrí, Girona, and studied guitar with his father, a guitarist and collector of sheet music, before continuing his studies with José Brocá. In 1882, he left Spain for Paris in order to teach at the Institut Rudy and at the Académie Internationale de Musique, also becoming the official guitarist of the Comédie Française, and remained in Paris for 16 years. Ferrer gave regular performances as a soloist. He taught at the Conservatori Superior de Música del Liceu in Barcelona from 1898 to 1901. Following a period of moving between Barcelona and Paris, he settled permanently in Barcelona in 1905, where he died. Music Most of Ferrer’s compositions were written for guitar but, being a deeply religious man, he also wrote some sacred music. His works for guitar solo and duo resemble the fashionable salon music of his time, bearing titles such as Le Charme de la nuit (“Charm of the Night”) and La Danse des Naïades (“Dance of the Naiads”). One of his most popular pieces was his opus 1, Recuerdos de Montgri.