In 2009, Marco Mezquida (Menorca, 1987) graduated from the Catalonia College of Music (ESMUC). Since then, he has not stopped growing. The concert he offered last Wednesday in the Oriol Martorell hall of L'Auditori de Barcelona is simply and plainly a turning point in the music of this country. This pianist, if not a prodigy, is very close.
The reason for the gathering was the presentation of Tornado, his new self-released album. At the end of the memorable session, part of the audience, who at all times showed their admiration for the musician, queued for Mezquida to sign their album. This allows us to reveal some concepts, sensations, and emotions of what happened in Sala 2 of L'Auditori. The announcement of the evening indicated that the trio is "a musical and stylistic hurricane with three very strong and differentiated personalities on stage." Simply and plainly. Just like that.
If you consult the musician's website, you can read a succinct definition: Marco Mezquida ---musician, pianist, improviser, and composer---, all these aspects are true, but not entirely accurate. The Menorcan does not appeal to music, as such, although it may seem contradictory. He does not ask to know about music, nor to know how to read sheet music. The pianist manifests himself from the highest point of creation. Beauty. And the best of all is that he does it with knowledge, sense, feeling, and opportunity.
The members of the trio perform like gods and transmit like humansThere is more: his music is accessible to anyone who is capable of being struck by the game of the seven notes. With a terrifying ease. Those of us who dedicate ourselves to tracing, monitoring, and mapping music, use the word artist with a frightening lightness. If we agree that one of the characteristics of art is its ability to move, we are obliged to deeply review that the qualifier of artist has a manifestly exclusive charge.Mezquida, by his own merits, is part of this select club. Instead, a very high percentage of colleagues much more applauded than the Menorcan do not enjoy that condition.
From the very beginning, the trio clearly demonstrated that they express themselves without subterfuge. The songs of Tornado not only transmit beauty, "intense heartbeats," as the interested party himself indicated in one of the speeches addressed to those present. The trio works from truth. The chosen ones have effectiveness as a working tool; that is, they are accessible. They interpret like gods and transmit like humans. They modify the aesthetic in each note, in each dialogue, in each solo, what a piece of a musician the Japanese double bassist Masa Kamaguchi is. Yes, Mezquida is known in Japan.
The rhythmic and compositional personality of drummer Ramon Prats ---author of Buen baile tenemos--- and his magnificent percussive sobriety sustained the musical framework, as was evident from the beginning of the evening. The opening was a mini-set that exceeded twenty minutes, composed of the songs Tornado, Buen baile tenemos and Fellini, in honor of an esteemed cat of the pianist, as a dance of harmonies and melodies. Nobody hid. Giving it all, they say. The pulsations of the notes seemed a pleasure in combustion. The audience attentive and, perhaps, uneasy before the hurricane or typhoon that was coming upon us. Blues, groove, songs or standards. And free. Mezquida in no case spoke of jazz. However, if we combine free with jazz we get free jazz, that sonic rumor of the late 50s and early 60s. Intense and impressive, at the same time.
Before, we talked about efficiency, the concert had magnificent sound quality, something that doesn't happen as often as we would like and, also, with precise, charming, and sober lighting. Before a full house, with an attitude that honors him, the musician said that perhaps part of the audience was going to hear "Mezquida with Andrea Motis, again at the Palau de la Música, in April, or Sílvia Pérez Cruz's ---he paused---, they are listening to another Mezquida." He said it to explain Self Portrait. A standing ovation. He also explained the reason for Adiós abuela. Feelings on the surface. Sincerity and conviction are characteristic of the great, who seamlessly penetrate a little-explored territory. The magic of the brave becomes present. Tornado, as a concert, is one of the highlights of the year that concludes, and which rightfully enters the history of the event, and Tornado, as an album, is one of the best albums of 2023, they sound completely different. And they please equally.
The composer said goodbye with a "Thank you, from the bottom of my heart!", placing his hand on his chest. In case there was a speck of tenderness, technical ability, conviction, and delicacy left, the trio gave, in the encores, Otosan and Beibita. The musician thanked the festival for the trust it had placed in him. Marco Mezquida, Masa Kamaguchi, and Ramon Prats ---co-authors of Taifü--- understand beauty and emotions as dynamic elements that they are, creating sonic surprises at every moment. Come back whenever you want.