Salvador Castro de Gistau (c. 1770–after 1831) was a Spanish guitarist, composer and publisher who played an important role in the dissemination of Spanish guitar music in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
He was born in Madrid around 1770 and came from a distinguished Aragonese family. Castro de Gistau was self-taught on the guitar. He spent a significant part of his professional life in Paris, where he worked as a teacher and publisher.In 1800 he moved to Paris, where he published a Journal of foreign music specialized in guitar, called “Journal de Musique éttrangère pour la Guitarre ou Lyre”. In this journal he discovered great compositions by other authors such as Fernando Sor and Federico Moretti.
Journal de Musique: He founded the influential Journal de Musique étrangère pour la Guitare ou Lyre, in which he introduced works by Spanish composers (such as Federico Moretti) to audiences throughout Europe.
He left behind a diverse repertoire that includes both educational works and compositions for voice and guitar. Méthode de guitare ou lyre: A textbook for guitar and lyre guitar, published in Paris around 1800. Compositions: His works include seguidillas, boleros and tiranas (including Op. 1, 3 and 19) as well as the Minuetto Afandangado. Publishing: Many of his editions are now digitally accessible via platforms such as the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP).