BACH: “SUITE NO. 3” BWV 1009; CHACONNE;...

BACH: “SUITE NO. 3” BWV 1009; CHACONNE; other works/ Andres Segovia, guitar. MCA MCAD--42068 (compact disc). RODRIGO: “FANTASIA PARA UN GENTILHOMBRE.” PONCE: “CONCIERTO DEL SUR.” MORENO TORROBA: “CASTILLOS DE ESPANA.” Andres Segovia, guitar; “Symphony of the Air conducted by Enrique Jorda. MCA MCAD--42067. (compact disc). These discs launch what MCA is calling “The Segovia Collection.” Among Segovia students, there exists a sort of antiquarian one--upmanship, projecting the golden age of Segovian playing ever further into the past. The Bach--recorded between 1952 and 1968--will confirm admirers’ impressions of individuality and fluidity, as well as the doubters’ sense of astylistic idiosyncrasy and technical unevenness. The concertos, from 1958, are eloquent distillations of the Segovia style, though reminding us that the Symphony of the Air was not one of the world’s great orchestras. “Castles of Spain,” recorded in 1969, is a nice bonus, as are the cogent, heartfelt appreciation and program notes by Segovia disciple Ron Purcell.