The concert ‘Arte, commedia y poesía…Pierrot Lunaire’ will be staged this Thursday with works by Urquiza, Río-Pareja and Schönberg.

 

This Thursday (the 18th), the Auditorio de Tenerife is offering the concert Arte, commedia y poesía... Pierrot Lunaire by the Ensemble Sonido Extremo and the countertenor Xavier Sabata. The musical event with poetry and humour will occur at 7:30 p.m. in the Chamber Hall. The programme to be performed by the Extremaduran ensemble and the Catalan singer includes works by Mikel Urquiza, José Río-Pareja and Arnold Schönberg.

The Ensemble Sonido Extremo comprises Jesús Gómez on flute, Alfonso Pineda on clarinet, Javier González on saxophone, Cecilia Bercovich on violin and viola, Iván Siso on cello, Beatriz González on piano and Reyes Gómez on harp.

The concert will begin with Ars Memoriae by Mikel Urquiza. This composition uses timbre, instrumental artifice and dialogue with other music to create a fun and heterogeneous piece in several movements, symbolically placing us in the different rooms of a Roman house, a Domus. Jordi Francés, the ensemble's director, defines this piece as "purely instrumental music without voice, but which explores humour through our memory". 

The following piece adds music to four poems by the Portuguese writer and poet Fernando Pessoa. Tão longe de mim (So far from me), by José Río-Pareja, is an original dialogue in which both voice and instruments explore the provocative style of the ironical and irreverent Pessoa. Francés notes that "this work has a sophisticated and poetic humour. José Río-Pareja composed these four beautiful songs with a string ensemble, some wind instruments, and a harp." 

Following the intermission, the countertenor and the ensemble will present a cycle of small melodramas, a musical journey through 21 poems by the Belgian poet Albert Giraud. The piece, Three Times Seven Poems of Pierrot Lunaire, with its groundbreaking score by composer Arnold Schönberg, revolutionized musical composition in Berlin in 1912. This work, known as Pierrot Lunaire, is a fresh and mysterious masterpiece, and experiencing it is a unique opportunity to understand the evolution of music in the last century.

The Ensemble Sonido Extremo is committed to disseminating culture and art through music. The group, based in Extremadura, defines its activity by reflecting on the many languages of music that coexist in our age. Since their creation in 2009, they have performed at some of the most important cycles and festivals both in and outside Spain. They have had world premieres of over 60 works, collaborating very closely with composers such as José Río-Pareja, Inés Badalo, Jesús Rueda and Mikel Urquiza.

The concert will feature the talent of Catalan countertenor Xavier Sabata. With a background in acting at the Institut del Teatre de Barcelona and a degree in singing from prestigious institutions Escola Superior de Música Catalunya and the Musikhochschule of Karlsruhe, Germany, Sabata has performed with renowned ensembles such as Les Arts Florissants, Europa Galante, Collegium 1704, the Venice Baroque Orchestra, and Il Pomo D'Oro. His collaborations with esteemed conductors like Fabio Biondi, René Jacobs, Jordi Savall, Alan Curtis, Gabriel Garrido, and Fabio Bonizzoni have further solidified his reputation. Recognized for his contributions to the opera world, Sabata was awarded the Ópera Actual Award in 2013 and the Premi Tendències d'el Mundo award in 2014.

This performance is supported by the collaboration of the Island Council of Gran Canaria - the Philharmonic Orchestra of Gran Canaria. The tickets for this concert can be purchased at a single price of €15 and €5 for the audience under 30 years of age until the day of the event on the website www.auditoriodetenerife.com, at the auditorium's box office and by dialling the phone number 902 317 327 from Monday to Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. There are discounts for students, unemployed and large families.