In 1941, Mexican composer Consuelo Velázquez wrote the love song “Bésame Mucho” that became famous all over the world and was covered by many artists in highly diverse musical styles and languages. The title means “kiss me much”. Consuelo Velázquez once said in an interview that she had never kissed a man before she composed “Bésame mucho” and wrote the lyrics. The song’s melody quotes a theme by Spanish composer Enrique Granados, who used it in two of his own compositions: first in his piece for piano, “Quejas o la maja y el ruiseñor” and later in his opera “Goyescas”. Thanks to “Bésame mucho” the melody found global fame and established the song as a Latin-American classic. Markus Götz arranged “Besamé mucho” for wind band and solo flugelhorn, using the Latin dance and music styles rumba, bossa and tango in a very creative way. The soft sound of the flugelhorn wonderfully suits the yearning message “kiss me much” and conveys a very emotional ambience.
Serie Sound Classics No. 35