Sonata by Juan Tamariz - Book

When Juan Tamariz released Sonata in 1989, he wasn’t just publishing another collection of tricks—he was opening the doors to his professional repertoire.

At the time, Tamariz was already a household name in Spain and across Latin America, filling theaters, dominating television, and redefining what close-up magic could feel like. When his work reached English-speaking magicians, the impact was immediate. The Five Points in Magic and The Magic Way laid the groundwork. Sonata showed what happens when theory meets real-world performance.

This book is music made with cards.

Sonata was the first volume in Tamariz’s legendary “Bewitched Music” series. Years later, Mnemonica would shake the foundations of card magic—but by then, Sonata had vanished, becoming one of the most sought-after out-of-print magic books in existence. Now, at long last, it has returned.

This new edition has been carefully edited, corrected, and expanded, restoring missing details and refining the original text. Yet the material itself remains timeless. These routines—featuring playing cards and penknives—are as strong, deceptive, and performable today as they were decades ago. Nothing feels dated. Nothing feels theoretical for theory’s sake. This is working magic, designed to be performed, refined, and lived with.

Included with the book is a revised reproduction of The New Mini-Symbolic Method, Tamariz’s ingenious system for analyzing, recording, and understanding magic. It’s a glimpse into how a master thinks—how structure, emotion, and deception intertwine beneath the surface.

Why Sonata still matters:

• A curated selection from Tamariz’s professional repertoire
  
• Deeply deceptive, audience-tested card and knife magic
  
• Theory embedded naturally within practical routines
  
• A window into the thinking that shaped modern close-up magic
  
• Newly edited and restored for today’s performers

This isn’t a book you skim.
It’s a book you study, perform from, and grow into.

Sonata is not nostalgia.
It’s a living work—one that continues to challenge, inspire, and reward anyone willing to pick up the cards and play the music.