The
orchestra of Torrevieja was conducted by José Francisco Sánchez, a diminutive
man who exuded plenty of bravura and was clearly liked by his musicians. The
orchestra was a good mix of males and females, many of them young, and they all
played with gusto and fervour and enjoyed the whole performance.
The
concert began with El Tambor de Granaderos (Prelude) by Ruperto Chapí y Lorente
(1851-1909). Chapí wrote a
large number of symphonic, band, choral and chamber works, as
well as zarzuelas and operas. He was one of the most popular and important composers
of his time. Many of the preludes to his zarzuelas (including those to El
tambor de granaderos and La patria chica) have remained staple items
in Spanish orchestral concerts, hence its inclusion here.
There
followed Tchaikovsky’s Polonesa de ‘Eugene Onegin’ and Vals del Lago de Los
Cisnes (Swan Lake).
Johann
Strauss’ New Pizzicato Polka was rendered with great precision, one of several
highlights of the night; this was followed by the Tik-Tak polka. The first half
concluded with the Intermedio de la Boda de Luís Alonso (1897) by Gerónimo
Giménez (1854-1923). He was commissioned by
Chapí to write the openings to his zarzuelas El Milagro de la Virgen and
La bruja.
Giménez was a prolific
composer and his influence is often noticeable in the compositions of
subsequent Spanish composers, such as Manuel de Falla. In 1939, Joaquín Rodrigo
paid his respects with a Homenaje a la tempranica, which contained a
solo part for castanets.
The second half began with the prelude to El Bateo (the
baptism, 1901) by Federico Chueca (1846-1908). Chueca entered the conservatory
aged eight, but his family later forced him to abandon music to study medicine.
He was arrested in 1866 as a participant in the student demonstrations against
the government. While he spent three days in the Madrid prison, he composed
several waltzes that he entitled Lamentos de un preso
("Lamentations of a Prisoner"). Later, his works were orchestrated,
and their success helped Chueca leave medicine and devote himself once more to
music…
The rest of this half was dedicated to Johann Strauss –
Tritsch-tratsch polka, Voices of Spring, the thunder and lightning polka and
lastly the Blue Danube waltz, which was beautifully played.
Then we had a good ten minutes of encore music - The Champagne Gallop,
a piece of orchestral music by the Danish composer Hans Christian Lumbye
(1810–1874) which was written to celebrate the second anniversary of Copenhagen's
Tivoli in 1845; this was complete with the traditional popping of corks! Next,
the audience was in for a treat with witty and clever piece, The Typewriter (1950)
by Leroy Anderson (1908-1975), a novelty instrumental first performed by the
Boston Pops. One of the percussionists, the kettle drummer, brought out a typewriter:
keystrokes, the typewriter bell, and the carriage return mechanism provide amusing
components of the piece. In fact, the typewriter is modified so that only two
keys work.
Finally,
to be expected, the musical evening concluded with Strauss’ dedication to Field
Marshal Joseph Radetzky von Radetz, The Radetsky March (1848).
This concert took place in Torrevieja’s controversial €40m auditorium; it has a symphony hall with 1,452 seats and a smaller hall with 384 seats. This evening’s event was in the symphony hall and was virtually full. The Concert Hall was opened over two years ago, but has only featured a handful of events since then. The extensive music conservatory for more than 240 students, as part of the complex, has never been used. Apparently, two nearby universities have expressed an interest in managing the music conservatory. To date, it is an underutilised gem.
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