Cuba on the Centenary of the Spanish Pianist Alicia de Larrocha
Cuba will have the privilege of taking part in this year’s worldwide celebrations of the centenary of the birth of Alicia de Larrocha, one of the most internationally renowned pianists and one of the best classical pianists of the 20th century.
To this end, a concert will be held on Thursday February 16 at 6pm in the Basílica Menor del Convento de San Francisco de Asís, in the historic center of Havana, according to Helson Hernández, artistic director of the event.
This commemorative show will reveal the scores composed by the outstanding pianist, a little-known area of her artistic career, thanks to the collaboration of her daughter, Alicia Torra de Larrocha, interviewed by Radio Musical Nacional, added Hernández, who also said: «She has given us access to these precious works, part of her family heritage, which can now be performed by Cuban soloists as a premiere in the Americas.
He also commented: «The audience will enjoy musical pieces that will be a kind of discovery, such as a suite for piano with its four movements, other pieces created for the instrument, including Festívola, Homenaje a Schumann, Sueño infantil, Ofrena, as well as chamber formats such as a sonata for violin or a little romance for cello with piano accompaniment.»
Among the highlights of this recital are the vocal works, eight songs in which Alicia de Larrocha has taken texts by famous Latin American poets such as Rubén Darío, Gustavo Adolfo Béquer and Ramón Campoamor and transformed them into songs with a balance of incomparable beauty.
The Cuban soloists, all women, who will take part in the recital are the pianists Eralys Fernández, who is currently working in England, Mayté Aboy and Maestro Vilma Garriga, the violinist Camila Martel, the cellist Amaya Justiz and the sopranos from the National Lyrical Theater of Cuba, Milagros de los Ángeles and Dayri LLanes.
Alicia de Larrocha desde La Habana, the title of the performance based on an original idea by Helson Hernández, is also part of the activities to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the CMBF Radio Musical Nacional, sponsored by this Cuban radio station specializing in classical music, the Havana City Historian’s Office, with the support of the National Lyrical Theater and the Spanish Embassy in Havana.
