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Alxarq Percussió

Multimedia Program of Premieres by Young Composers from the Comunitat Valenciana

 

 

 

Notes on the program

 

Bernat Cucarella (2001) – To-Kà ‘A true Samurai’? (2024)

For percussion trio, video, and tape.

This piece explores the relationship between the performer’s voice and the instruments, similar to how some rhythmic percussion arts, like Konnakol, work. Konnakol involves assigning syllables to typical tabla strokes to study and interpret its music. In To-kà, this technique is also used as a rhythmic, timbral, and theatrical element. The instruments were chosen considering their timbral coherence with the voice, but also as a nod to those tribal musics that use these vocal techniques.

As for the visuals, two techniques were employed. On the one hand, public domain samurai films were used, and on the other, the performers’ faces were superimposed in 3D. Although there is a narrative thread, the main goal of the video is not to tell a story, but for the audience to discover a type of cinema different from the Western one. Scanning the performers’ faces is a current trend in new music creation, as it personalizes the visual content with the performers themselves. In modern terms, it’s a “customized” version. In this case, the characters sometimes transform into the performers themselves.

This piece was created for the Alxarq trio, who were the first to perform it. It also received financial support from the Institut Valencià de Cultura through the 2024 musical promotion grants.

 

Mar Caballer (1999) – Creta (2024)

For percussion trio and electronics.

Crete, Cretan, syncretism.
Just as Plutarch explains in his Moralia that the Cretans would put aside their internal differences during times of war and unite for a common good, this piece seeks to merge the differences between acoustic sound and electronics, aiming for their fusion, becoming a single entity, an integrated whole.

 

Raimon Flores (1994) – Trio I (2024)

For percussion trio

In Trio I, the rhythmic materials were derived from an algorithm based on the three-body problem, specifically these rhythms come from scaling the distance and trajectory lists of the three bodies. The raw resulting material had to be limited and recomposed (or humanized) in an attempt to poetize the algorithm.

 

Joan Gómez Alemany – Río. Homage to Fernando Zóbel – Part II (2022) / **

“Río. Homage to Fernando Zóbel” is a composition in tribute to the artist Fernando Zóbel (Manila, 1924 – Rome, 1984) for percussion quartet, divided into two independent movements. This work is particularly inspired by a series of pieces the painter created using the river as the main theme (mainly the green flow of the Huécar and Júcar rivers in Cuenca). This body of work reminds us of the musical form known as “variations on a theme.” The river, a natural and evocative subject, can easily be related to both the visual and sonic arts. Additionally, the composition Río recalls music from the Far East, a culture that also influenced Zóbel’s work. As he wrote in his Conca diary on September 1, 1971: “In the West, it is not common to develop a pictorial theme ‘over time’ as in a musical composition. However, in Chinese and Japanese painting, this way of treating a theme is completely common, and finds its most characteristic expression in the emakimono or long horizontal scroll painting.”

Furthermore, Fernando Zóbel had a great interest in music, being a flute player, painter of musical moments, and an excellent music lover, which further justifies the connection between sound and his visual work. His artistic work, with its beautiful gradients, geometric structures, dots and blotches, minimal modulations between tones, and a long etcetera, creates a palette of formal resources that are common to both the visual arts and music, which we also hear in Río.

The first part of this composition was premiered by Alxarq Percussió at the Auditori de Rafelbunyol on 11-12-22. The second part will be premiered by the same musicians at the Cuartel de Artillería (Murcia) on 10-24-24, coinciding with the centenary of Fernando Zóbel’s birth.

 

 

Juan José Párraga (1999) – Sequential Mayhem (2024)

For percussion trio and electronics.

Sequential Mayhem seeks to explore the patterns and structures inherent in numerical series and bring them into the realm of contemporary music. The piece employs an algorithm that translates these internal structures and patterns into musical fragments, which are then reorganized and orchestrated for the percussion set.

 

 

Pablo Andrés (1995) – Iso(lament) (2024)

For percussion trio, video, and electronics.

Iso(lament) is an emotional and profound musical work that reflects the complexity of human relationships in the digital age. Through the use of percussion and electronics, composer Pablo Andrés weaves a sonic texture that captures the internal dissonance of the modern individual immersed in a world of superficial connections. Inspired by percussionist Uly de Macau, this piece invites the listener to reflect on their relationship with technology and contemporary solitude, while embracing our shared humanity. Iso(lament) is not just a musical work but an experience that pushes us to explore the depths of our existence in today’s digital society.

 

This composition has received the 2024 musical promotion grants from the Institut Valencià de Cultura.

 

*World premiere and work dedicated to Alxarq Percussió.
** In collaboration with Rubén Lajara.



 

Multimedia Program of Premieres by Young Composers from the Comunitat Valenciana

 

 

Bernat Cucarella (2001) – To-Kà ‘A true Samurai’? (2024)
For percussion trio, video, and tape.

 

Mar Caballer (1999) – Creta (2024)
For percussion trio and electronics.

 

Raimon Flores (1994) – Trio I (2024)
For percussion trio.

 

Joan Gómez Alemany – Río. Homage to Fernando Zóbel – Part II (2022) / **

Juan José Párraga (1999) – Sequential Mayhem (2024)
For percussion trio and electronics.

 

Pablo Andrés (1995) – Iso(lament) (2024)
For percussion trio, video, and electronics.

 

*World premiere and work dedicated to Alxarq Percussió.
** In collaboration with Rubén Lajara.

Alxarq Percussió

Alxarq Percussió is a group founded in 2013, dedicated to exploring new timbres, styles, and forms of experimentation using the percussion ensemble as a tool. As an ensemble, it has participated in numerous national and international festivals such as Le Corps à Corps (Perpignan), Festival Ensems (Valencia), and International Percussion Ensemble Week(Croatia). The group has been awarded first prizes at the International Chamber Music Competition for Percussion PERCUTE (2013 and 2019) and at the II National Chamber Music Competition of Montserrat (2014).

Carles Salvador

David Merseguer

Jesús Fenollosa