Una soprano inglesa en el Concurso de 1922: El encuentro jondo-folk en torno a Ursula Greville (1894-1991)

Abstract

On 20 June 1922, as part of the Concurso de Cante Jondo, a concert-conference was given in Granada by Ursula Greville (soprano) and Leigh Henry (lecturer) on English popular song. The programme of the concert focused on popular songs and arrangements of different English composers, a repertoire that would be performed by the singer in her many concerts in Europe and America. The visit of these two musicians, together with that of other musicians and intellectuals, was at the invitation of Manuel de Falla on the occasion of the Concurso de Cante Jondo, in order to achieve greater national and international exposure. The daily press (national and international), the photographs and letters kept by Manuel de Falla in his personal archives, and Ursula Greville's personal writings published in The Sackbut are the fundamental sources documenting the visit. Thus, by analysing the presence of this English soprano in Granada, we can better understand the international dimension that was intended to be given to the Concurso, while at the same time we study the meeting sought between European popular music and the presence of women in this event, so far scarcely investigated.