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============================================================= Jeune Fille au Jardin is the last piece of the cycle Children scenes ( Escenas de niños). It is a quiet piece that provokes an image of late evening in the shades in the garden. Its ABA form is typical of Mompou (1893-1987) and here the extra repeat in the B section was inserted by Mompou after its publication. Xavier Turull was an outstanding violinist, student of Pau Cassls and Yehudi Menhuen. Late in life he began to compose and produced an odd 30 compositions for string combinations and voice. This piece is a transcription of a song form the cycle L’amor Incert, that he prepared for Mac McClure to perform in a concert that Modest Cuixart organized around the composers of Callea (a small town on the coast north of Barcelona where Turull, Montsalvatge, Mompou and Valls spent their summers). Carlota Garriga, studied in the Marshall Academy in Barcelona with Frank Marshall and Alicia de Larrocha. She studied composition with Xavier Montsalvatge. This Preludio was written just after having finished her studies at the Marshall Academy and beginning a career as a pianist. It was part of a suite for piano dedicated to Federico Mompou. The Pajaro triste and Secreto, are from the suite for piano Impersiones intimas. Short musical moments that express subtle moods and nostalgic memories; pajaro triste ( Sad bird), is a memory of a caged bird that Mompou frequently saw at the home of friends in Barcelona. The bird only sang two notes, easily recognisable in the piece, and finally died a sad death, alone in his cage. Ricard Lamote de Grignon,(1899-1962) composer, conductor, taught for a time at the Marshall Academy in Barcelona. He wrote a suite (Migajas meaning smatterings or crumbs) at the petition of Marshall to educate expression and a cantabile style of playing. The Escarabajo, (the “black beetle”) is a Catalan folk song typical of the Plaça del Pi in Barcelona that sings about the dance of Giants of the Pine Square. Mompou wrote a total of 13 preludes of a period of 20 years between 1942 and 1957. The first 17 bars are a long lush memory of a far away place. The 5th , 6th and 9th are all in ABA form the 6th being a spectacular demonstration of what the left hand can do alone. Enric Morera, (1865-1942) taught composition at the Barcelona conservatory, and was a major force behind the creation of a Catalan Lyric/opera tradition. Among his students were Xavier Montsalvatge and Xavier Turull. The L’orfeneta, the Little orphan girl, is from a collection of pieces written for piano, and a piece that Mercedes Roldos often taught at the Marshall Academy in Barcelona. Manuel Blancafort (1897-1987) together with Mompou began to explore a new world of sound and shared ideas on their early attempts at composition. This Polka is form the suite for piano El Parc d'Atraccions. It is a jolly dance in ABA form that was a favourite encore of the pianist Ricardo Viñas. Oscar Espla (1886-1976) was a great admirer of Mompou and close personal friend, Mompou was always on the jury of the International Composition competition that Espla organized in Alicante. This little Berceuse is from the Suite of small pieces written in 1916. Cants Magics is an important work in the catalogue of Mompou. Written at a time in his life when he had refused the use of bar lines, this music exploits the primitive power of ancient civilizations and images that re creates tribal ceremonies. Antioni Massana (1980-1966) was a member of the Jesuit order in Barcelona, studying piano with Granados and Marshall; he composed a large number of religious works as well as operas and oratorios. These two pieces are from his suite No. 1 for piano. The Three Variations, are a magical look at different ways to see the same theme. There is very little development as the theme rarely changes from variation to variation , what is magical is the way the themes is dressed. Mompou often suggested playing the theme with one finger. The exposition of theme is clear and straight forward. The first variation is a march that is followed by a nostalgic moment that is surely a memory of his time in France. The final variation returns us to the dark calm of night, with the theme still unchanging form its initial line. Joaquin Nin-Cumell,(1908-2004 collected popular music from all over Spain and wrote a collection of Tonadas in four volumes that recreated this popular music. Cancion otoñal (Vascongadas) is a slow song in a typical folk rhythm of the Basque country, and the Jota estremeña is a lively dance form the region of Extremadura. Frank Marshall (1883-1959) talented pianist, student of Granados and professor of Alicia de Larrocha, was the first to organize an all Mompou concert in Barcelona. In 1907, he won a competition with his Suite Catalonia (collection of short pieces in romantic style). These pieces are strongly influenced by the Catalan dances forms popular at the turn of the century. Juan Torra (1920-1982) studied piano with Frank Marshall, and later served there as sub director of the Marshall Adedemy. Married to Alicia de Larrocha, he wrote this Sardana for his home town Viladrau located in the Montseny near Barcelona. It is a classical Sardana that won an award for best composition for Cobla (typical Catalan folk group that performs Sardanas) in 1972 Carlos Surinach (1915-1997) composer and conductor, moved to the US in the early 50’s. He composed a large number of ballets, and these two pieces are from the Ballet Acrobats of god. After hearing the ballet, Alicia de Larrocha commissioned Surinach to extract a piano suite from the ballet that she premiered in 1982 in New York. All of these composers were part of Mompou’s world, some of them life long intimate friends. Listening to this music we find an atmosphere that creates a moment, a special moment in the musical life of Barcelona, the same way that Mompou creates a magical world through sound and colours, through a nostalgia that keeps the past alive as a treasured memory. .

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