Repertoire
Carles Baguer: Symphony No. 5 in D major 13′
Jordi Cervelló: Concerto grosso (1973) 17′
Johannes Brahms: Serenade No. 1 in D major, Op. 11 (1858) 45′
Artists
Barcelona Symphony Orchestra (OBC)
Edmon Colomer, conductor
Program
If classicism in Catalonia had a name; it would be that of Carles Baguer. The symphonic contribution made by this composer, who was also the organist of Barcelona cathedral at the start of the 18th century – heavily influenced by the music of Franz Joseph Haydn – is unique in the whole of the Iberian Peninsula. The manuscript of his Symphony No. 5, one of his earliest works, came from the collection of the church of St. Mary and is now preserved in the Catalan Wine Cultures Museum in Vilafranca del Penedès.
DOWNLOAD THE PROGRAMME HEREJordi Cervelló’s Concerto Grosso, which was written in 1973 – the year when the author was awarded the Premi Ciutat de Barcelona (Barcelona City Award) – and premiered in 1981, is a tribute to George Frideric Handel and Arcangelo Corelli. The work uses the baroque concerto grosso structure and orchestral arrangement: two solo violins and one solo cello performing against the ripieno (full orchestra).
Johannes Brahms’s Serenade No. 1, Op. 11 is one of this composer’s first orchestral works. The two orchestral Serenades written by this author when affected by the recent death of Robert Schumann and obsessed with studying Ludwig van Beethoven’s symphonies contain the seeds of what would years later, after a long brewing and learning process, develop into his four symphonies.
