Alberto Ponce

Alberto Ponce (born Alberto González Muñoz) (born 13 March 1935) is a Spanish classical guitarist and teacher who since 1962 has lived and taught in France.

Alberto Ponce's father was his first teacher. When he was a child he entered the Municipal Conservatory of Barcelona, Spain, where, in addition to guitar, he studied piano, harmony and chamber music. He left the Conservatory with a diploma and an Honorable Mention. The Catalan musicologist and scholar Emilio Pujol advised him to enter the Lisbon Conservatory. After three years of study Ponce perfected his technique with him at the Accademia Chigiana di Siena, where he increased his knowledge of the music of the Spanish Golden Age.

In 1962, he won first prize for interpretation at the "Concours de Guitare" in Paris, organized by ORTF. In the same year Alfred Cortot, the director of the École Normale de Musique in Paris, asked him to teach there. There he has had an unprecedented pedagogical career, having created one of the most prolific schools of contemporary guitar.

For many years Alberto Ponce was one of the few guitarists to dedicate himself continuously to both early and contemporary music. He has influenced numerous artists, including Maurice Ohana, Chayne, Dyens, Ravier, Antonio Ruiz-Pipo, and Yoram Zerbib. He also taught at the National Conservatory of Paris.

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