The folia was "a very noisy Portuguese dance, performed with tambourines and other instruments, by women wearing masks and men dressed like women." The name translates as "mad," "without a brain," or "empty headed." ^{[Note 1]}. By the early seventeenth century, through its proliferation in guitar tablatures, the folia had acquired certain characteristics for which it became universally known: "It would always be set in a minor key, most often d minor. The ostinato bass and the chord progression, i-V-i-VII-III-VII-i-V-i, finally became unique to the folia--unlike in the previous century when this chord scheme, or ones very similar, comprised several dances such as the passamezzo antico, romanesca, and the fedele." ^{[Note 2]}. After 1672, a simple melody by Jean-Baptiste Lully also became associated with the folia; however, many composers and performers continued to use only the chord progression as a basis for improvisation. This progression remains one of the most popular and important formulas for musical variations on all instruments. In the program notes for his recording of this piece, Bryan Johanson tells us: Notes Note 1. Covarrubias, Tesoro, translated in Kurt Martinez, "Five Hundred Years of La Folia," Soundboard, XXX, No. 2 (2004), 6.
[Return to text] Note 2. Martinez, Ibid., 12. Martinez also cites Otto Gombosi, "The Cultural and Folkloristic Background of the Folia," Papers of the American Musicological Society (1940), 88.
[Return to text] Note 3. Bryan Johanson, from the program booklet of Folio: Music for Guitar Alone by Bryan Johanson, Gagliano Recordings GR 602-CD, 1996.
[Return to text] Bryan Johanson is an active concert guitarist, composer, and author who has taught at Portland State University since 1978. A Professor of Music, he currently serves as Chair of the Department of Music. His articles and reviews on the guitar have appeared in the top journals and magazines in the field, including Soundboard, Guitar Review, Acoustic Guitar, and American Lutherie. His compositions have been published by Columbia Music Company, Edizioni Musicali, Berben, Frederick Harris Music Publishers, Guitar Solo Publications, Thomas House Publication, Earthsongs Music Publishers, and Mel Bay Publications, Ltd. The recipient of many commissions, his music has been performed and recorded by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Chamber Music Northwest, The Oregon Symphony, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, David Starobin, the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, David Tanenbaum, the Portland Symphonic choir, and Third Angle New Music Ensemble. He has won numerous composition prizes, including awards from the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Aspen Music Festival, the Esztergom (Hungary) International Guitar Festival, the Festival of August (Venezuela), the Roger Wagner Center for Choral Studies, as well as multiple awards from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). Johanson's music is recorded extensively and appears on record labels such as Albany, Bridge, EMI, GSP, Gagliano Recordings, and Naxos. In 1999, his critically acclaimed composition Open Up Your Ears for guitar was recorded on David Starobin's Grammy Award nominated New Dance, and, in 2004, his Pluck, Strum and Hammer and Let's Be Frank were recorded by the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet on their Grammy Award winning Guitar Heroes.

La Folia Folio Originally a raucous dance from Portugal played out on tambourines and various other instruments by women wearing masks and men dressed like women, by the 17th century the Folia had attained certain musical characteristics for which it became universally identified with, these features being that it was performed in a minor key, usually D minor, and following a standard chord progression. This progression has been used extensively over the centuries in various instrumentations by the likes of Lully, Marais, Corelli, Scarlatti, Vivaldi, C. P. E. Bach and of course for guitar by Sor, Giuliani, Sanz and Manuel Ponce whose composition Theme, 20 Variations and Fugue sur "Folias de Espana" remains one of the longest single-movement compositions for classical guitar. The American guitarist/composer Bryan Johanson received a commission from Harold Micay (of the Canadian Guitar Trio) to compose a substantial work, which, as he puts it, he could "splash around in". Using the Folia harmonic progression as a framework Johanson has gone ten variations more than Ponce did and written 30 variations on this "theme". A multiplicity of textures and guitar techniques have been employed throughout this composition using an array of technical features including percussive slap, golpe, multiple slurs, pizzicato, extended trills, "Bartok" pizz., rasgueado, muted strings and "bent" harmonics. At times the original basis for a particular variation can seem quite veiled but after a bit/quite a lot of practice and the proper tempo attained, it emerges. The wonderfully percussive, latin-flavoured first five variations aside, it seems that the composer has reserved the best until last where, from Variation 23 onwards the Writing takes a definite raise in standards although this is not to disparage the previous sets which are indeed very well written and hold the interest. At probably around the ten-minute mark in length, this is a rewarding, highly entertaining and substantial new addition to the solo guitar repertoire. It certainly deserves to receive high exposure and anyone of a high technical standard wishing to enlarge their repertoire should take a look at this wonderful work. If you want to hear it beforehand, Michael Partington has recorded the piece on his CD "20th Century Guitar - vol. 2". This edition is part of "The Frank Koonce Series" and the presentation is excellent, with a most attractive front cover, clear printing and well fingered. -Steve Marsh (Classical Guitar Magazine)