Prelude No. 1 in E minor

Villa-Lobos's Five Preludes for guitar (1940) are the most important contributions to the guitar's solo literature since the 19th century, and the first in E minor is perhaps the most widely loved. Villa-Lobos subtitled it 'Lyric Melody'—a dedication 'to the soul of the Brazilian countryside'—and it combines the guitar's characteristic open-string resonances with a lyrical, slightly melancholy melody that owes something to the modinha, a Brazilian urban song form. The piece's elegant arch form—a sustained singing melody over plucked bass arpeggios, with a more animated middle section before the return—makes it accessible to intermediate players while rewarding the refinements of the virtuoso, and it has become perhaps the most recorded piece in the guitar's entire repertoire. Julian Bream's 1977 recording and John Williams's many versions have done much to establish its worldwide popularity. The Prelude exemplifies Villa-Lobos's gift for fusing European Romantic harmony with the distinctive rhythmic and melodic personality of Brazilian music.