Cantilena

Featuring

Javier Perianes
Tabea Zimmermann
Ástor Piazzolla
Xavier Montsalvatge
Manuel de Falla
Heitor Villa-Lobos

Pablo Casals
Enrique Granados
Isaac Albéniz

Did you know?

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Interpretation

The album features the viola's rich, warm, and penetrating timbre adapting to melodies, most of which were originally written to be sung.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Heitor Villa-Lobos, in his Bachianas Brasileiras, aimed to highlight the kinship between J.S. Bach's music and Brazilian folk music, rather than directly borrowing Bach's compositional techniques.

Performer Biography

Tabea Zimmermann, one of the world's most renowned violists, has inspired numerous composers like György Ligeti and Heinz Holliger to write for the viola, introducing many new works into its repertoire.

Instruments

Hector Berlioz, composer of the viola symphony Harold en Italie, significantly contributed to recognizing the viola's rich and expressive qualities, noting its mournfully passionate accent and profound melancholy.

Performer Biography

Javier Perianes, a pianist, was awarded the 'National Music Prize' in 2012 by the Ministry of Culture of Spain and named ICMA Artist of the Year in 2019.

Compositional Technique

Manuel de Falla, in his Siete canciones populares españolas, reshapes folk elements from various Spanish regions using elaborate harmonization and piano texture, emphasizing the spirit over the letter of folk songs.