Dionisio Aguado

Dionisio Aguado y García was a Spanish classical guitarist and composer born in Madrid on 8 April 1784. He received early music instruction from the Cistercian monk Pater Basilio. After the Napoleonic invasion, Aguado retired with his mother to an estate in Fuenlabrada where he focused on guitar studies. In 1825 he published Escuela de Guitarra in Madrid, a method that introduced new techniques such as playing with the fingernails. He moved to Paris in 1826 and established a friendship with Fernando Sor. The two performed as a duo and Aguado dedicated the composition Les deux amis to Sor. Aguado returned to Madrid in 1838 and dedicated himself to teaching until his death on 29 December 1849.