Friday October 6, 8:30 pm
vespres d'arnadí
BACH'S CONCERTOS
Johann Sebastian Bach
VESPRES D'ARNADÍ
Baroque orchestra
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Dani Espasa, harpsichord and direction
Marina Durany, traverso
Pere Saragossa, oboe
Vadym Makarenko, solo violin
Oriol Algueró, violin I
Kathleen Leidig, violin II
Cecilia Clares, violin II
Natan Paruzel, viola
Oriol Aymat, cello
Mario Lizarde, violone
PROGRAMA
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Bach's Concertos
Johann Friedrich Fasch (1688-1758)
Ouverture-suite in C major, FaWV K:C1
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Concerts of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Harpsichord concerto in A major, BWV 1055
Allegro
Larghetto
Allegro ma non tanto
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Oboe and violin concerto in C minor, BWV 1060R
Allegro
Adagio
Allegro
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Brandenburg concerto No. 5, for traverso, violin and harpsichord, BWV 1050
Allegro
Affettuoso
Allegro
PROGRAMME notes
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Bach's Concertos. Johann Sebastian Bach composed and arranged a series of concertos for harpsichord and orchestra, the first for harpsichord and orchestra. In the Concerto for harpsichord and orchestra No. 4 in A major (BWV 1055), Bach combines the mould established by Vivaldi, whom he admired, with the contrapuntal density and rhythmic and expressive intensity typical of Vivaldi. The concerto for solo instrument derives from an earlier form, the Concerto grosso, in which a group of solo instruments, called concertino, dialogue with the orchestra. This form, also known as concertante, is the form of the other works on the programme, such as the Concerto for oboe and violin in D minor, BWV 1060R, which was probably composed during Bach's years in Köthen (1717-1723). Although the original score was lost, it has been reconstructed from a version Bach arranged in 1736 for two harpsichords and string orchestra. Another concertante piece is the Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D major, BMV 1050, written in 1721 with three soloists: traverso, as the baroque transverse flute is known, violin and harpsichord. On 24 March (or May) 1721, Bach sent Marquis Ludwig of Brandenburg a letter of dedication accompanied by "Six Concerts avec plusieurs instruments" (six concerts for several instruments), which are today considered to be a major work of instrumental music of all time. Another noteworthy fact is that the first movement of Brandenburg's concerto No. 5 includes a formidable 65-bar cadenza that makes this work the embryo of what was to become the modern concerto for piano and orchestra. And preceding the three Bach concertos is a French overture by Johann Friedrich Fasch, a composer who studied at the same school as Bach, the Thomasschule in Leipzig. Bach held Fasch in high esteem, especially in instrumental compositions, as evidenced by the fact that the orchestral parts of five of his overtures were found copied from Johann Sebastian's own hand at the Thomasschule in Leipzig. Fasch's works comprise a large number of French overtures of great boldness of conception, an extraordinary thing for his time.
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soloists
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VadYM MAKARENKO, solo violin
Born in the Ukrainian town of Korsun-Shevchenkivskiy, in 2012 Vadym Makarenko completed the studies of modern violin at the Kiev Institute of Music in the class of Vadym Kozin, and years later he began studying baroque violin with Amandine Beyer at the Schola Cantorum in Basel. He mainly develops his musical activity with groups such as Gli Incogniti (Amandine Beyer), Collegium 1704 (Václav Luks) or his own ensemble Infermi de Amore, and is also frequently invited as soloist or concertmaster by numerous ensembles all over Europe. In January 2022 the Jumpstart Jr. Foundation in Amsterdam lent him a violin by Lorenzo & Tomaso Carcassi built in 1760.
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MArina durany, traverso
Marina Durany is a musician, painter, illustrator and often writes many stories and poems. She believes that if anyone wants to label her as a troubadour. She studied flute and traverso in Badalona and Amsterdam and has participated in concerts with the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, the Orquesta Ciudad de Granada, the Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia, the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès; early music orchestras such as Al Ayre Español, Bach Zum Mitsingen, Bachvereniging and Harmony of Nations, and is currently a flute soloist with Vespres d'Arnadí and the Orquestra Barroca Catalana. In addition to exhibitions, he has performed live with the Barcelona Clarinet Players at the Auditori de Barcelona and, as part of the Festival de Vespres d'Arnadí, in the opera Apollo e Dafne by Haendel.
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PERE SARAGOSSA, oboe
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He studied oboe at the Ateneu Musical in his native Vila Joiosa, at the conservatories of Alacant and Valencia, and baroque oboe with Alfredo Bernardini at the ESMUC in Barcelona. He worked for 9 years in the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès, and in 2005 he created Vespres d'Arnadí with the harpsichordist Dani Espasa, a baroque group with which he has performed in prestigious festivals in Europe. He has collaborated with prestigious baroque orchestras such as the Accademia Bizantina, Zefiro Ensemble, Balthasar Newmann Ensemble, Europa Galante, Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, Ensemble Matheus, Stockholm Barokorkester, Le Concert des Nations and Austrian Baroque Company. Since 2016 he has been professor of historical oboes at the Conservatori Superior de Música de Castelló.
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dani espasa, harpsichord and direction
Born in La Canonja (Tarragona), Dani Espasa has worked as a composer, pianist and musical director for dance, film, television and, above all, theatre. He is the musical director of the singer Maria del Mar Bonet and collaborates with the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya. After studying harpsichord with Béatrice Martin at ESMUC, he began an intense activity with baroque, renaissance and medieval music groups, performing in prestigious auditoriums in Europe, America and Asia. He currently teaches improvisation and chamber music at ESMUC.
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VESPRES D'ARNADÍ
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Vespres d'Arnadí is a baroque orchestra created in 2005 by Dani Espasa and Pere Saragossa to offer versions full of emotion, freshness and spontaneity, using historical instruments and criteria. Its name recalls the concerts that in the 18th century were usually offered in the VESPRES (evenings) as a dessert at the distinguished dinners of nobles and bourgeois. Pumpkin, sugar and almonds are the ingredients of ARNADÍ, one of the oldest desserts in the Valencian Country.
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With an intense concert activity, the ensemble performs in important concert halls and festivals in Europe such as Peralada, Torroella de Montgrí, Barcelona, Seville, Santander, Madrid, London, Halle, Prague and Ostrava, among others, and collaborates with prestigious soloists such as Vivica Genaux, Mary Ellen Nesi, Marta Infante, Núria Rial, María Hinojosa, Ana Quintans, Sunhae Im, Marie Lys, Hilary Summers, Sonia Prina, Emiliano González Toro, Juan Sancho and Thomas Walker, to name but a few.
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Vespres d'Arnadí has the discographic works Pièces de Simphonie by Charles Desmazures, Mass in D Major by Josep Mir i Llussà and Anna Maria Strada, Händel's favourite, all three on the Musièpoca label. The last of the discs is entitled L'Alessandro amante, featuring the countertenor Xavier Sabata and released on the Aparté label. The Mezzo television channel recorded the opera Rinaldo performed at the Peralada Festival in 2018.
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The group receives grants from the Department of Culture of the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Institut Ramon Llull.
Saturday, October 9, 7pm
Lucentum XVI
Francesc de Borja
Music for the 450th anniversary of his death
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Pere Saragossa, shawms and direction
Quiteria Muñoz, soprano; Carla Sanmartín, alto
Jesus Navarro, tenor; Giorgio Celenza, bass
Carlos García-Bernalt, organ
Xavier Boïls, cornetto; Vicent Osca, sackbut; Antoni Lloret, shawms;
Antoni Llofriw, dulzians; Fernando Fernández, lute; Facundo San Blas, percussion
PROGRAMme
francesc de borja
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· La Bataille, by Clément Janequin (c.1485-1558), of the Dixiéme livre (Amberes, 1545) of Tielman Susato
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· Rondeau «Ce jour», by Guillaume Dufay (c.1397-1474)
· Ave Maris Stella, by G. Dufay / Booksongs of Montecassino (c.1480)
· Miserere Nostri – Vexilla Regis, C. Montecassino
· El cervel mi fa, anonymous of the Booksong of Palacio (c. 1500)
· Susanne un jour, d’Orlando de Lassus (1532-1594)
· Credo in unum Deum of the Mass about Susanne un jour, by Orlando de Lassus.
· Makam Muhayyer «Kúme» usules Düyek Acemler, Turkish war march.
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· Passio Domini nostri Iesu Christi secundum Mattheum*, by Jan Nasco (c.1510–1561) and Joan Baptista Comes (c.1582-1643)
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*Named as «Passion de Valencia» by Joan Baptista Comes (Escorial Monastery Archive, c.1607)
ABOUT THE GROUP
lucentum xvi
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Group of ministers (instrument players) led by Pere Saragossa , created to interpret and spread the rich and varied musical repertoire of the Renaissance. Bands of wind instruments, with the name alta capella , spread throughout cities and towns in Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. The main function of the ministers within the liturgy was to accompany the vocal music, dubbing the voices. In the civil sphere, the high chapel was in charge of performing dances, popular songs, and love pieces and epics of courtly and popular origin.
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Lucentum XVI's performances include those performed in Bari and Molfetta as part of the Anima mea de la Puglia Festival (Italy), Musical Vespers of the Monastery of Pedralbes, Festival of Ancient Music of the Pyrenees, Serenades Festival of the University of Valencia, Music Festival Antiga de Morella, Clásicos en la Frontera a la Ribagorça, Festival of Contemplative Music of Santiago de Compostela, Festival of Sacred Music of Benicà ssim, Festival of Ancient and Baroque Music of PeñÃscola.
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In 2021 they published their first record work with the title " El Cantoral del Monestir de Santa Maria de la Murta d'Alzira ", a disc of which the specialized critic has said "The execution is absolutely exquisite, full of balance in the excellent voices and the instruments (...). The album is a gem, both for the interpretation and for the unprecedented and beautiful polyphony and for the documentation.» (Manuel de Lara Ruiz, Scherzo Magazine, June 2021).
Programme notes
francesc de borja
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This programme comemorates the 450th anniversary of the death of Francesc de Borja i Aragó ( Gandia 1510- Roma 1572) who was Duke of Gandia, Lieutenant of Catalunya, later joining the Jesuit order being proclaimed a Saint in 1671, for which reason the Catholic church is now celebrating the 350th anniversary of this fact.
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In this concert we present the premiere in modern times , of the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew, a work which Ferran d'Aragó, viceroy of Valencia and Duke of Calabria commisioned from the Flemish composer, Jan Nasco ( 1510-1561) to give as a gift to the Cathedral of Valencia , being known at the time as the Passion of Valencia.
This work is part of the repertoire of the choir of the monastery of Murta d'Alzira, a musical body to which our group has dedicated the first of their albums released earlier this year.
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The representation or interpretation of the Passion according to Matthew , where the gospel of this prophet is narrated, took place in the Roman Catholic liturgy during the Mass of Palm Sunday (the following Tuesday was the gospel of Saint Mark, on Wednesday, the gospel of Saint Luke and on Good Friday the gospel of Saint John.).
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The main characters of the Passion are Christ, the Evangelist narrator and the crowd, the so-called “mob” played by the whole congregation.
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The score for the crowd has not been found in the Monastery of Alzira , so it could have been performed in plain singing or in a now lost poliphony.
But some parts sung by the crowd appear in poliphony for 6 voices originally written by the Valencian Joan Baptista Comes ( chapel master in the Cathedral of Valencia, successor to Josep Prades) which is in the monastery of San Lorenzo d'El Escorial, a Jerónimo monastery, like that of Alzira. And the interventions of the mob, but for 4 voices, appear in a document of 1561 signed by Jan Nasco himself.
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Since the Second Vatican Council, held between 1959 and 1962 the singing of the Latin Passion has been replaced in almost all diocese by the reading of the Passion in the vernacular language ( except in our territory where our own language is not used.).
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Together with this great work we present among others pieces from the Cancionero de Palacio , the palace of Queen Isabel of Castilla ( the Catholic) and king Ferdinand of Aragón, and the Songbook of Montecasino ( Naples) a collection written in the 1480s which accompanied Alfons and Roderic de Borja to Rome where they became Popes with the names Calixtus lll and Alexander Vl.
