The Essential Repertoire
The repertoire, by composer.
A handful of composers form the backbone of the classical guitar. This is your map to that core repertoire — organised by composer, each with an in-depth guide and great performances.
The classical guitar's repertoire is vast, but a handful of composers form its backbone — the names every player returns to and every listener recognises. This guide is your map to that core repertoire, organised by composer, with a dedicated in-depth guide and great performances behind each one.
Johann Sebastian Bach
Though Bach never wrote for the guitar, his lute, violin and cello works have become essential to it — above all the Chaconne. Start with our complete guide to Bach on the classical guitar.
Francisco Tárrega
The father of modern guitar technique gave us Recuerdos de la Alhambra and Capricho Árabe. Explore our guide to Tárrega on the classical guitar.
Fernando Sor
The Beethoven of the guitar, whose Mozart Variations and studies remain cornerstones. See our guide to Fernando Sor on the classical guitar.
Heitor Villa-Lobos
Brazil's great voice for the guitar, with his Five Préludes and Twelve Études. Explore our guide to Villa-Lobos on the classical guitar.
Isaac Albéniz
His piano music became the sound of the Spanish guitar — Asturias, Sevilla and more. See our guide to Albéniz on the classical guitar.
Domenico Scarlatti
His Spanish-tinged keyboard sonatas sound born for the guitar. See our guide to Scarlatti on the classical guitar.
John Dowland
The melancholy of the English Renaissance, from Flow My Tears to the Fantasias. See our guide to Dowland on the classical guitar.
Joaquín Turina
Andalusian colour and flamenco fire — the Sevillana and the Sonata Op. 61. See our guide to Turina on the classical guitar.
Agustín Barrios Mangoré
The poet of the guitar from Paraguay — La Catedral and Julia Florida. See our guide to Barrios on the classical guitar.
Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco
Italian lyricism for the twentieth-century guitar — the Capriccio Diabolico and the Sonata. See our guide to Castelnuovo-Tedesco on the classical guitar.
Astor Piazzolla
The reinventor of tango — the Estaciones Porteñas and Oblivion. See our guide to Piazzolla on the classical guitar.
Johann Kaspar Mertz
The great Romantic of the guitar — the Fantaisie Hongroise and Tarantella. See our guide to Mertz on the classical guitar.
Federico Moreno Torroba
Spanish lyricism written for Segovia — the Sonatina and Torija. See our guide to Torroba on the classical guitar.
Manuel Ponce
Mexico's gift to the guitar — the Sonatina Meridional and the Folía de España variations. See our guide to Ponce on the classical guitar.
More composers
- Antonio Lauro – Venezuelan waltzes
- William Walton – the Five Bagatelles
- Paulo Bellinati – Jongo & Brazilian rhythm
- Alexandre Tansman – the Cavatina suite
- Vicente Asencio – Collectici Íntim
- Marco Pereira – Brazilian choro
- Dušan Bogdanović – jazz-Balkan fusion
- Konstantin Vassiliev – programmatic miniatures
- Frédéric Chopin – mazurkas & nocturnes (transcriptions)
More composers (part 2)
- Nikita Koshkin – modern, theatrical works
- Egberto Gismonti – Brazilian melodies (Água e Vinho)
- Jorge Morel – Latin-American virtuoso (Danza Brasilera)
- Dilermando Reis – Brazilian choro
- Sainz de la Maza – Spanish school (Rondeña, Campanas del Alba)
- Carlos Seixas – Portuguese Baroque sonatas
- Hans Haug – Swiss 20th-century works
Hearing the repertoire for yourself
Every guitar in our collection is filmed in a professional video review, so you can hear how a fine instrument brings this music to life. Explore our classical guitars — from warm cedar tops to clear spruce tops — and try one for 14 days at home.
