Gershwin, Montsalvatge, Bernstein & Jenny Peña Campo

Featuring

Duncan Ward
Adriana Bignagni Lesca
Philzuid
George Gershwin
Xavier Montsalvatge
Leonard Bernstein

Jenny Peña Campo

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Composition History

Jenny Peña Campo's Cuban Suite was commissioned by the Rheingau Musik Festival and premiered by the Cuban-European Youth Academy under Duncan Ward in 2017.

Composer Biography

Xavier Montsalvatge, a Catalan composer on this album, achieved his greatest international success with a song cycle inspired by Caribbean and Cuban music and poems.

Recording & Production

This album captures live recordings from Philzuid's New Year's concerts in January 2024, featuring a program of dance music inspired by jazz and Caribbean rhythms.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Leonard Bernstein, like Gershwin, drew inspiration from jazz, blues, and African-American elements, and sought recognition as a 'serious' composer but became a Broadway success.

Composer's Artistic Vision

George Gershwin, a composer featured on this album, became a role model for many by incorporating blues and spirituals into serious concert works.

Composer Biography

Jenny Peña Campo, the only living composer on this program, is a Havana-born arranger and composer whose greatest inspiration remains Cuban folk music.

Composition History

Montsalvatge's Cinco canciones negras began with one song, "Canción de Cuna para dormir a un negrito," which was so successful it led him to expand it into a cycle with four additional songs.