Agustin Barrios Mangore was born in San Juan Bautista de las Misiones, Paraguay on the 5th of May, 1885. He was a virtuosic guitarist and an innovative composer. After Barrios' death in August, 1944, he and his music were forgotten or ignored for nearly two decades. Since then, Barrios' recognition has been increasing steadily among the guitar community. Recent artists such as: David Russell, John Williams, Wulfin Lieske, and others have brought his music back to life through their recordings.

The young Barrios was introduced to music through the folk music of his native country, Paraguay, with songs such as the polca paraguaya, vals and the zamba. In 1898, Barrios was formall...