L’encouragement, opus 34

(2 solo guitars and guitar ensemble)
Sor's original score for L'Encouragement was intended for a master accompanying a student, but Napoleon Coste revised the setting, distributing the parts more equally. Johanson has taken that version and added another layer of texture to enhance and augment the sound without trying to add much new material. He lets Sor's ideas shine clearly instead of gumming up the works with extra distractions. The accompaniment is discreet and tasteful.
I have always liked the idea of setting one or two guitar soloists against a guitar ensemble. It offers a wide palette of orchestral colors and gives the soloist(s) an opportunity to experience something like a concerto setting without having to assemble an actual orchestra. Guitar ensembles are almost always much more readily available. A few other titles in this vein are van der Staak's Concertino III, Brindle's Concerto breve, Gilardino's Concierto de Cordoba and Garcia's Lorca Concerto. With careful balancing, all these can be done quite effectively with various sizes of ensembles.
Johanson's ensemble parts are not technically demanding, and this could be a very good choice for a group that has a couple of better players mixed with some not quite so advanced.
David Grimes (Soundboard Magazine)