Sorozabal / Mahler

Antonio Méndez, one of Spain's most internationally renowned conductors, will lead the Basque National Orchestra on its visit to L'Auditori de Barcelona, with a Basque programme that sets out a suggestive contrast of aesthetic currents. On the one hand, the French sonorous hedonism of Maurice Ravel, whose Alborada del gracioso exudes Andalusian aromas, with its elegant orchestral palette; on the other, the Germanic tradition that informed the writing of Pablo Sorozabal, trained in Leipzig and Berlin. In his 7 Lieder from 1929, Central European harmonic and contrapuntal architecture coexist with Basque folklore and language, a fusion that is to meet its ideal interpreter in the Navarrese soprano Sofía Esparza. The programme will be rounded off by one of Gustav Mahler's most tragic creations: Symphony No. 5, written after a haemorrhage that brought him to the brink of death. During his recovery, he wrote this symphony of awakening, which opens with a haunting trumpet solo.