Repertoire
Kaija Saariaho: Oltra mar (Across the sea), for chorus and orchestra (1999) 22′ – National premiere
Bernat Vivancos: Cinc pregàries – World premiere
Jean Sibelius: The Oceanides, op. 73 (1913-1914) 10′
Jean Sibelius: Symphony No. 7 in C major, Op. 105 (1924) 21′
Artists
Barcelona Symphony Orchestra (OBC)
Núria Rial, soprano
Anna-Maria Helsing, conductor
Orfeó Català
Program
Jean Sibelius composed the last of his symphonies, making a masterful synthesis of the formal procedures worked on throughout his oeuvre. Conceived in a single movement and of relatively short duration, it is structured in four sections arranged symmetrically and crossed by different gradations of tempos. The symphony uses materials that the composer had accumulated for the elaboration of the unfinished symphonic poem Kuutar (Blind), based on the Kalevala, the Finnish epic poem. Composed in 1924, Sibelius’ Seventh Symphony can be heard as an epilogue to the late Romantic symphonic tradition.In a way, the figure of Kaija Saariaho is an epigone of the Finnish tradition inaugurated by Sibelius. In Oltra Mar (Across the Sea), for choir and orchestra, the composer proposes in seven parts a journey across the sea, with texts on love, time and death by the Persian mystic Abu-Saïd and Amin Maalouf, as well as funeral songs by African pygmies.
Bernat Vivancos, guest composer at L’Auditori for the 2021-2022 season, presents Cinc Pregàries, for solo soprano and string orchestra, harp and percussion. Commissioned by the Palau de la Música Catalana, it was written specially for Núria Rial. The five basic types of prayer in the Christian tradition find expression in the voice of the soloist, with an instrumental accompaniment marked by austerity and the sobriety of a space of intimate withdrawal, where nothing is superfluous.
