A Catholic, a Patriot, a Good Modernist: Manuel de Falla and the Francoist Musical Press

Abstract

Falla and the Francoist governmentThe strategy of music critics and journalists acted as a complement to the moves of the Franco regime to enlist Falla's support as a way of legitimising its cause; such advances will be briefly described in the present section by referring to the existing bibliography on the subject which, however, has devoted less attention to the appropriation of Falla in the musical press. The interest of the Franco regime in Falla was evident in the developments which followed the composer's death, as a bitter struggle developed between the Francoist government and the Spanish exile community in Argentina, with both parties reclaiming Falla's body and, ultimately, his memory. Finally, the Spanish Embassy, with the mediation of Juan Domingo Perón's government, managed to embark the embalmed corpse on a ship for Spain one month after his demise in a quick and silent operation to avoid the protests of the Spanish exile community or of the Argentinean population.