Ponce (Cuéllar), Manuel (María)

Ponce (Cuéllar), Manuel (María)

https://doi.org/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.22072
Published in print: 20 January 2001
Published online: 2001

(b Fresnillo, Zacatecas, Dec 8, 1882; d Mexico City, April 24, 1948). Mexican pianist and composer. He was
the leading Mexican musician of his time, and made a primary contribution to the development of a
Mexican national style – a style that could embrace, in succession, impressionist and neo-classical
influences.

1. Life.

Born into a musical family, Ponce began his studies with his sister Josefína and went on to study with
Cipriano Ávila. Around 1893 he joined the choir at S Diego, Aguascalientes, where he later became assistant
organist (1895) and organist (1898). Between 1900 and 1901 he studied in Mexico City with Vicente Mañas
(piano) and Eduardo Gabrielli (harmony). The latter encouraged him to continue his studies in Europe and
offered to introduce him to Marco Enrico Bossi, director of the Liceo Musicale in Bologna, where he duly
arrived in 1904 with the intention of studying composition. Bossi introduced him to Cesare Dall’Olio
(Puccini’s teacher) who became his teacher for a few months. Also in Bologna he met Torchi, whose
friendship and lessons undoubtedly determined Ponce’s subsequent career as an editor and musicologist.
In December 1905, following the death of Dall’Olio, he moved to Berlin, where he decided to continue
studying the piano with Martin Krause. However, financial circumstances forced him to return to Mexico
in January 1907.

Back in Aguascalientes he taught the piano and at the end of that year moved to Mexico City to take up a
post teaching the piano at the Conservatorio Nacional. In 1910 he formed part of a prestigious panel of
judges, also including Pedrell, Fauré and Saint-Saëns, in a composing competition marking the centenary
of Mexican independence. Among the numerous recitals given by his pupils was one in 1912 dedicated to
the music of Debussy (the first public performance of Debussy’s music in Mexico); the recital was opened
by the 11-year-old Carlos Chávez. Also in 1912 Ponce gave a concert of his own works, including the
première of his Piano Concerto, which confirmed him as the most important figure in Mexican music at
the time. In 1913 he gave a lecture entitled, ‘La musica y la canción mexicana’, which was immediately
published and formed the catalyst for the Mexican ‘nationalist’ school. Ponce’s prominence in Mexican
intellectual life was assured.

However, political and social difficulties arising from the Mexican Revolution (1910–20) forced him to
vacate the country from 1915 to 1917. Like other Mexican artists and intellectuals, he went to Havana,
where he gave concerts, lectures and classes and wrote music reviews for El heraldo de Cuba and La reforma
social. In March 1916 he gave a recital of his works which went virtually unnoticed, coinciding with the
attack on the frontier town of Columbus by Francisco Villa.

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Returning to Mexico, he took up his piano teaching post at the conservatory again (1917). He also
conducted the National SO (1917–19), which accompanied soloists such as Rubinstein and Casals, and gave
numerous Mexican premières. From 1919 to 1920 he directed the first of his many publishing enterprises,
the magazine Revista musical de México. In 1925, feeling the need to update his idiom, and conscious of the
rapid transformations taking place in music at that time, he returned to Europe and settled in Paris, where
he studied with Dukas until 1933 and also founded the Gaceta musical, a Spanish-language magazine which
numbered Villa-Lobos, Alejo Carpentier, Dukas and Milhaud among its contributors. During this period he
worked closely with Segovia, whom he had met in Mexico (1923) and with whom he remained friends until
his death. Also during this period, on the recommendation of Dukas, Albéniz’s family commissioned him
to finish the score of the opera Merlín, on the basis of which he wrote a symphonic suite.

Back again in Mexico in 1933, he concentrated on teaching and composing. He was director of the National
Conservatory (1933), founded the chair in folklore at the National School of Music (1934) and edited a third
magazine, Cultura musical (1936–7). A prolific writer, he published numerous articles and features on
musical topics ranging from piano technique to issues surrounding the media. The 1930s and 40s saw the
most important premières and performances of his works, including Chapultepec (Philadelphia Orchestra
under Stokowski, 1934), Poemaelegíaco (Mexico SO under Chávez, 1935), Suite en estilo antiguo (Mexico SO
under Ansermet, 1935), Merlín (Mexico SO under Revuletas, 1938), Ferial (Mexico SO under Kleiber, 1943)
and the Violin Concerto (Szeryng and the Mexico SO under Chávez, 1943). During a tour of South America
in 1941 he attended the première in Montevideo of his Concierto del sur with Segovia as soloist. In 1945 he
was appointed director of the National Music School. He died having received numerous prizes and
distinctions, including the Premio Nacional de Artes (1947).

2. Works.

Although he is best known internationally for his song Estrellita, Ponce’s work embraces a whole spectrum
of genres and styles. An obviously eclectic composer, he could integrate a variety of tendencies and styles,
ranging from the Romanticism of his first piano works to the almost atonal language of his Sonata for
violin and viola or the bitonality of his Quatre pièces for piano. At the same time he was Mexico’s first
nationalist composer, though his musical language later evolved away from Romanticism, nationalism
and the use of popular Mexican themes towards a more personal and contemporary style. He wrote a large
number of works reflecting his preoccupations with style, such as his six guitar sonatas (Clásica,
Romántica, de Paganini, Mexicana etc.), his preludes and fugues on themes by Bach and Handel (which fall
within the neo-classical tradition), his works in Spanish style (Diferencias sobre las folía de España) or his
works inspired by Cuban music (Suite cubana, Elegía de la ausencia). The influence of the impressionists is
also evident, especially in Chapultepec, a symphonic poem which marked him as one of the most important
exponents of American impressionism.

According to Segovia, Ponce was the composer who had the greatest influence on the revival of the guitar
repertory and the reinstatement of the guitar as a concerto instrument. Indeed his sonatas, preludes and
other works form a corpus of guitar music rivalled in the 20th century only by the works of Villa-Lobos or
Brouwer, and his Concierto del sur is unequalled in its balance of soloist with orchestra. Notwithstanding,
Ponce was also a consummate pianist and wrote a large number of piano works which combine a profound

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knowledge of the instrument with his Romantic heritage and, in many cases, nationalist tendencies. His
works display a happy combination of Lisztian virtuosity, Romantic genre (ballade, rhapsody, barcarolle,
albumleaf, mazurka) and popular Mexican tunes or melodic turns of phrase inspired by Mexican songs. He
also transcribed and edited a large quantity of Mexican songs, the recovery and preservation of which put
him on a par with such as Bartók or Grieg, and his interest in his Mexican musical heritage is also given
didactic expression in his Veinte piezas fáciles, which offer the young Mexican pianist a representative
selection of traditional Mexican music.

The transformation of the Mexican idiom in Ponce’s hands had great significance: heir to a rich and well-
established Romantic tradition, he passed through nationalism and Impressionism before producing, in
his late works, some of the most significant works of Latin American modernism. These late, lesser known
works include some of his best moments. Particularly fine examples are his Violin Concerto, in which he
seems to synthesize the whole of his musical evolution, his sonatas for harpsichord and guitar or cello and
piano, and the symphonic poem Ferial, which uses indigenous Spanish and Mexican melodies – for the
first time, and in an all-embracing sense, to portray the cultural mosaic of a typical Mexican village. His
high place in musical history will be due as much to these works as to his more popular output.

Works

Dramatic

El patio florido (op, 2, C. González Peña), 1913, inc.; La verdad sospechosa (incid. music, J. Ruiz de Alarcón), 1934

Orchestral

Pf Conc., 1912

Interludio elegíaco, 1919

Estampas nocturnas, 1923

Merlín, [suite after Albéniz’ opera], 1929

Danse des anciens mexicains, 1930

Suite en estilo antiguo, 1933

Poema elegíaco, 1934

Chapultepec, sym. poem, 1934

Ferial, sym. poem, 1940

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Concierto del sur, gui, orch, 1941

Vn Conc., 1943

Instantáneas mexicanas, 1947

Chamber

Andante, str qt, 1902

Pf Trio, 1912

Sonata, vc, pf, 1922

Sonata, gui, hpd, 1926

Str Qt, 1929

3 preludios, vc, pf, 1930

Sonata breve, vn, pf, 1932

Preludio, gui, hpd, 1936

Sonata, vn, va, 1939

Str Trio, 1943

Canción de otoño, vn, pf

Songs

Forse, 1905

Ho bisogno, 1905

Romanzetta, 1905

Sperando, sognando, 1905

Dos poemas alemanes, 1906

Toi, 1909

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Ultimo ensueño (L.G. Urbina), 1909

Soñó mi mente loca (Urbina), 1909

Estrellita, 1912, also arr. 1v, chbr orch; Por tí mi corazón (Urbina), 1912

Serenata mexicana, 1v, chbr orch, 1915, also arr. 2vv, chbr orch; Ofrenda, 1916

Aleluya (L. Espinoza), c1921, also arr. 1v, chbr orch

3 poemas de R. Tagore, 1921

3 poemas de Lermontow, 1925

5 poemas chinos (F. Toussaint), 1934, also arr. 1v, chbr orch; 3 poemas de M. Brull, 1934, also arr. 1v, chbr orch; 3 poemas
franceses, c1934

4 poemas de F.A. de Icaza, 1936

3 poemas de E. González Martínez, 1938

Acuérdate de mí; Adiós mi bien; 2 poemas de B. Dávalos; Insomnio; Poema de primavera; 6 poemas arcaicos, also arr. 1v,
chbr orch

Folksong arr.

A la orilla de un palmar, A ti va, Acuérdate de mí, Adiós mi bien, Ah, que bonito, Cerca de mí, Cielito lindo, Cuiden su vida,
China de mi alma, De tres flores, Dolores hay, Dos seres hay, El bracero, El desterrado, Estrella del norte, Hace ocho meses,
La barca del marino, La despedida, La ola, Palomita, La palma, La peña, La visita, Nunca, nunca, Ojitos aceitunados, Oye la
voz, Para amar sin consuelo, Para qué quiero la vida, Perdí un amor, Perdida ya toda esperanza, Pobre del hombre pobre,
Por esas calles, Por tí mujer, Que chulos ojos, Que lejos ando, Que pronto, Quisiera morir, Si algúna vez, Si eres recuerdo, Si
algún ser, Son las horas, Soy paloma errante, Te amo, Todo pasó, Trigueña hermosa, Valentina, Ven oh luna, Vengo a saber
si tu me amas, Voy a partir, Ya sin tu amor, Yo me propuse, Yo mismo no comprendo, Yo te quiero

Piano

Marcha del sarampión, 1891

Malgré tout, 1900

Gavota, 1901

Bersagliera, 1903

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11 miniaturas, 1903

3 preludios, 1905

Arrulladora mexicana [II], 1905

4 fugas, 1906

Nocturno, 1906

Arrulladora mexicana, 1909

Primer amor, 1909

Scherzino mexicano, 1909

13 románticos, 1910

Mayo (1910)

Rapsodia mexicana I, 1911

Album de amor, 1912

2 nocturnos, 1912

Leyenda, 1912

Preludio y fuga sobre un tema de Bach, 1912

Scherzino (Homenaje a Debussy), 1912

Tema variado mexicano, 1912

A la memoria de un artista, 1913

En una desolación, 1913

Sonata no.1, 1913

Rapsodia cubana I, 1914

Rapsodia cubana II, 1914

Rapsodia cubana III, 1914

Rapsodia mexicana II; 1914

Balada mexicana, 1915

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Barcarola mexicana (Xochimilco), 1915

Romanza, 1915

Serenata mexicana, 1915

Guateque, 1916

Morire habemus, 1916

Preludio cubano, 1916

Preludio y fuga sobre un tema de Haendel, 1916

Sonata no.2, 1916

Suite cubana, 1916

Hojas de álbum, 1917

Elegía de la ausencia, 1918

Canon, 1919

Glosario íntimo, 1919

Momento doloroso, 1919

Preludio mexicano, 1919

Rapsodia mexicana III (yucateca), 1919

Scherzino maya, 1919

La vida sonríe (1919)

Minueto (1919)

Gavota y mussette, 1920

Evocaciones, 1921

Hacia la cima, 1921

Preludios encadenados, 1927

4 piezas, 1929

Sonatina, 1932

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Preludio romántico, 1934

Danza de la pascola, 1937

Idilio mexicano, 2 pf, 1939

20 piezas fáciles, 1939

4 danzas mexicanas (1941)

2 études (1942)

Estrellita (Metamorfósis de concierto), 1943

20 mazurkas; Alma en primavera; Apasionadamente; Bocetos nocturnos; Cadenza for J.C. Bach: Sinfonia concertante;
Canción del martirio; 5 hojas de Album; 2 cadenzas for Beethoven: Pf Conc. no.4; 2 danzas (mexicana y cubana); 2 danzas
(sobre temas de J. Gilbert); Horas augustas; Intermezzos) nos.1 and 2; Jarabe; Juventud; Nocturno II; Preludio trágico;
Preludio y fuga, left hand; Rapsodia cubana; Serenata arcaica

Guitar

Sonata mexicana, 1923

3 canciones mexicanas, 1923–7

24 preludios, 1926–30

Tema variado y final, 1926

Alborada, 1927

Sonata III, 1927

Sonata clásica, 1928

Sonata romántica, 1929

Diferencias sobre la folía de España y fuga, 1930

Estudio, 1930

Sonata de Paganini, 1930

Suite, A, 1930 [orig. attrib. S.L. Weiss]

Homenaje a Tárrega, 1932

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Mazurca, 1932

Sonatina meridional, 1932

Rumba, 1932

Trópico, 1932

Vals, 1932

Variaciones sobre un tema de A. de Cabezón, 1948

Writings

Selected
‘Escritos y composiciones musicales’, Cultura, 4/4 (Mexico, 1917)

Nuevos escritos musicales (Mexico City, 1948)

‘La música después de la guerra’, Revista musical de México, 1/1 (1919), 5–9

‘La música norteamericana’, Revista musical de México 1/2 (1919), 22–3

‘Apuntes sobre música mexicana’, Boletín latinoamericano de música, 3/3 (1937), 37–42

Bibliography
A. Segovia: ‘Manuel M. Ponce: Notas y Recuerdos’, Guitar Review, no.7 (1948), 15–16

M. Pincherle: ‘A la memoria de Manuel M. Ponce’, Nuestra música, 5/18 (1950), 160–63

J.C. Romero: ‘Efemérides de Manuel (María) Ponce’, Nuestra música, 5/2 (1950), 164–202 [incl. work-list]

P. Castellanos: Manuel M. Ponce: ensayo (Mexico City, 1982)

C. Sordo Sodi, ed.: Centenario Manuel M. Ponce 1882–1982 (Aguascalientes, 1982)

C. Otero: Manuel M. Ponce y la guitarra (Mexico City, 1981; Eng. trans., 1983)

M. Alcázar, ed.: The Segovia–Ponce Letters (Columbus, OH, 1989) [Eng. and Sp.]

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