That folklore is not at odds with high culture is ratified by Béla Bartók's Piano Concerto No. 3, in the rigorous and passionate interpretation that Pablo Heras-Casado and Javier Perianes offer alongside the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra at the Palau de la Música, after a successful recording for the Harmonia Mundi label. In the same way, we verify that professionalism is not at odds with friendship or with the sense of humor that these figures of interpretation radiate. Approachable and open figures, who explain themselves with the same degree of detail and expressiveness as in their musical interventions, trying to find the most appropriate word, knowing that the universality of musical language understands and semantically surpasses any grammatical proposition.
Music is the vehicle of expression in which the confluence of Culture, formed by everything that constitutes the symbolic universe of a society, and popular cultures, also called folklore, which often have a mythical or unknown origin, is best manifested. While culture draws an era, folklore gives it color. Thus, in music, it happens that both intertwine perfectly to create a more elevated expression, as we can find in the music of some of the main avant-garde composers: Stravinsky, Enescu, Falla, or Bartók himself. This composer, of Magyar origin – a people especially subjected to invasions and, therefore, to influences from other cultures throughout history – is the musical core of our video.
The absolute protagonists, both Andalusian, reveal Bartók's fascination with popular tones and rhythms, comparable to those Falla imprinted on his music. Furthermore, both Heras-Casado and Perianes do not hesitate to recall the link between training and opening horizons, showing the necessary transfer or artistic exchange between regions with such a rich cultural background. At the moment of greatest international momentum in their careers, both maintain their personal and professional roots with Catalonia: Perianes achieved his first musical successes in Barcelona, and Pablo Heras-Casado carried out part of his training linked to Catalan choral ensembles, one of the most solid axes of Catalan folklore.