Rafael Alberti is one of the great Spanish poets of the 20th Century. A few years after publishing the poem, Se equivoco la paloma (The Dove Was Wrong), Alberti was visited by a young Argentine composer who asked for permission to use the poem in a song. Alberti had never thought that his poem would become such a great success as it has. The young composer was indeed Carlos Guastavino.

The song is a wonderful blend between the lyrics and the music. Guastavino musically describes the great t...