Ludic Uses of Intertextuality in the Music of Miguel Ángel Coria: Ravel for President (1973) and Falla Revisited (1973-1976)

Abstract

The use of quotations, references and allusions to other musics is a phenomenon that remerged in earnest in Spanish composition during the 1970s. This phenomenon was related to the crisis in the values associated with the previous avant-garde and the rise of postmodernity. Among the composers who employed intertextuality was Miguel Ángel Coria (1937-2016), whose use of revival eludes direct thematic quotation in re-creating the style of composers such as Falla and Ravel. The significance of this practice in Coria’s works is based on some of his aesthetic and ideological premises, including the rejection of the lineal view of history, the artisanal nature of composition, and the resumption of communication with the audience. This article focuses on two of the works that best reflect these ideas, analysed under the hypertextual typology of the pastiche: Ravel for president (1973) and Falla revisited (1973-76).