Performers

Piano: Iván Martín
Conductor: Josep Caballé Domenech
Barcelona and National Symphony Orchestra of Catalonia, OBC

Concert for piano and orchestra’s review by ©Francesc Serracanta at Historia de la Sinfonía:

The first movement is initiated by the piano showing all its virtuosic potential. According to the composer, the form is like a role-playing game to force the musical memory of the listener. Then the piano begins a cadenza that the orchestra accompanies to present the musical cell, which we will find in the rest of the movements. The music fades into the coda.

The second movement is in the form of a scherzo initiated by the soloist, followed by a vigorous dialogue between the piano and the timbrically powerful orchestra. In the central section corresponding to what would be the classic trio, the music seems to calm down, but it soon recovers its initial strength.

The third movement, Nocturne, begins with a solo by the English horn. It is followed by the piano with a sad character, which gradually grows in front of an orchestra that seeks a more aggressive and rhythmic nature. An ethereal coda closes the movement.

The fourth movement is another scherzo with the spirit of a toccata, where the piano becomes its absolute protagonist with marked rhythmic force. It ends with a fugatto, where the themes that have appeared throughout the concert are heard as in a collage.

A concert that, without abandoning a music committed to its contemporary era, seeks communication with the public, without renouncing lyricism or contributions from the past.