This piece brings back special memories for me! I did a tour in Costa Rica in college and we donated a bunch of instruments to a school down there. We had a joint concert that night and they surprised us by asking us percussionists to join them for this piece. I got to play the tambourine part and it was a ton of fun.

I remember playing this in college, when we were invited to perform at WIBA in Seattle. I remember learning the story behind this piece is that it was inspired from dance competitions men would have in old Argentina (or elsewhere in Latin America), wherein they would take turns dancing for some prize (be it a woman or honor or whatever it was) until one of the men literally died from exhaustion.

Also, if you haven't listened to the rest of "Estancia," I really enjoy the second movement myself--very beautiful.

Juniper, you have found one of the six pieces of music that is the very reason why I fell in love with Classical Music in the first place. Back when I was in Middle School/High School, I found this LP of six classical works that were supposed to evince diabolical themes (Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain, Stavinsky Infernal Dance from Firebird, Saint-Saens Danse Macabre, Khatchaturian's Sabre Dance, Dukas's Sorcerer's Apprentice, and Ginastera's Danza Final from Estancia). I started listening to it, dancing to it, and falling head over heels in love with the music, the powerful emotion, the bravura, the dynamism, the hseer energy and power!

I copied them all to cassette tape before I went away to college so I could still listen to them. Of course, my interests expanded, and expanded, and expanded, until I have the massive collection I have now.

But this piece (and the other five) have always retained a special place in my heart. Not ten years ago I managed to find this piece on a CD of Ginastera's music. Ah, wonderful to hear the entire Suite. It also had his Piano Concerto, which is one of the most brutal and unrelenting works in the genre (and I love it too!).

Your band performs this very nicely and really that last hurrah at the end brings a delight to my face.

I ought to go and play that piano suite of his I have again. Man that was a fun piece!

Dominus tecum

Very nice! I think I've heard this before somewhere, in another version, but I can't remember where. It's so fun! Ginastera is hard. :/