Artes

This programme is designed to highlight the relationship between different works of art and different art forms. Every single composition has been inspired by, based on or closely linked to another (or other) work of art.  In three cases, the works are part of the art of painting, literature or filmmaking. The fourth is related to another piece of music. Goyescas is a piano suite by Enrique Granados which, even though it does not intend to create a musical narrative on a specific painting by Goya, it does describe the atmosphere of his painting style in general. For its part, Der Hirt auf dem Felsen (The Shepherd on the Rock), is a famous lied by Schubert for soprano, clarinet and piano whose first four stanzas and the last one were written by poet Johann Ludwig Wilhelm Müller –his poetry was also turned into Die schöne Müllerin (The beautiful Mill Girl) and Winterreise (Winter Journey)–, while the fifth and sixth are by Karl August Varnhagen von Ense. Although he is ranked among one of the major stars of silent films, Buster Keaton’s contribution to the history of film makes him go beyond that specific period. His film Steamboat Bill, Jr. is an outstanding piece in his extraordinary film production. Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg was so impressed by it that in 1990 he decided to create a piece for clarinet and cello that tries to express the action of the film and follow its plot. Piano Quartet op. 47 by Schumann is strongly influenced by Beethoven’s String Quartet op. 127: among other elements, we can highlight they are both in Mi bemol mayor, both use similar structures and Schumann’s quartet starts with a “Sostenuto assai”, just like Beethoven’s.