HISTORICAL DICTIONARY A–Z - Spain and Portugal: A Reference Guide from the Renaissance to the Present - page 346

Rodrigo, Joaquín (marqués de los
Jardines de Aranjuez) (1901-1999)
Spanish composer
Rodrigo triumphed over blindness that
began in childhood to become not only a
master of the piano but the leading Spanish
composer of his generation. He studied
under M ANUEL DE F ALLA and other masters
in Paris and settled permanently in his
native land after the S PANISH CIVIL WAR . It
was in Spain that he premiered, in 1941,
the work that earned him his greatest fame,
the Concierto de Aranjuez, a concerto for gui-
tar and orchestra inspired by the royal pal-
ace and gardens near M ADRID . In addition
he composed more than 150 other pieces
for solo instrument or orchestra, many of
them inspired by Spanish folklore and his-
tory. The prolific composer also produced
film scores, light operas, and dozens of
songs as well as venturing into many other
musical genres. He was, for more than 30
years, professor of music at the University
of Madrid, where he held an academic chair
named in honor of his mentor, Falla. The
recipient of many honors, he was particu-
larly proud of the title bestowed upon him
by King J UAN C ARLOS I, in 1991, marqués
de los Jardines de Aranjuez (marquis of the
Aranjuez Gardens).

During her long professional career
Rodrigues represented the ultimate expres-
sion of fado. In stage concerts during the
1930s, on the radio in the 1940s, on televi-
sion (first in the United States) in the 1950s,
and in films thereafter, she became, for a
global audience, the personification of Por-
tugal's soul. A striking combination of
artistic technique and personal presence,
the intense, black-clad singer made her
last public appearance at the 1998 interna-
tional exposition in L ISBON . Her death in
the following year precipitated a heartfelt
flood of grief and public tributes. Follow-
ing her death, marked by three days of
national mourning, the assembly voted to
place her remains in the National Pan-
theon in the company of kings and heroes.
Although Portugal had long since aban-
doned monarchy, for her compatriots and
international admirers, Rodrigues was not
only the “Queen of Fado ” but also the
“Queen of Portugal.”

Rodríguez Zapatero, José
Luis (1960- )
Spanish politician
The grandson of an army officer who was
executed for refusing to join the Franco
uprising, Zapatero (as he is commonly
called) came naturally to a position on the
Left. A graduate of the University of León
and a lecturer there in constitutional law,
he was won to the Socialist cause when he
attended a speech by the party's then
leader, F ELIPE G ONZÁLEZ . He joined the
party in 1979, was elected to parliament
(its youngest member) in 1986, and was
recognized as an attractive and rising fig-
ure, although he had not attained ministe-
rial rank by the time of the Socialists'

Rodrigues, Amália (1920-1999)
Portuguese singer
Millions of people around the world who
knew nothing else about Portugal knew the
word fado (“fate”). The distinctive expres-
sion of sorrow, longing, and ultimate hope
that for centuries had constituted the
nation's characteristic song genre, it sur-
vived all the vicissitudes of the 20th cen-
tury, just as did the Portuguese people.