The Perelada Easter Festival expands its mystical and intimate musical proposal

Holy Week is a time for rest and reflection. The Perelada Easter Festival, taking advantage of the mysticism offered by these festive days, will offer a series of concerts of sacred baroque music in the intimacy of the Gothic Carmen Church of the Empordà castle. Intimate and spiritual proposals that create a very different atmosphere from that of the summer edition of the festival.

The intention is to demonstrate that Castell de Perelada, beyond its wines and artistic richness, is alive throughout the year. "With the Easter edition, we manage to stimulate the imagination of those music lovers who seek special moments throughout the year," summarized the festival's artistic director, Oriol Aguilà, during the presentation of its program. "This is a different format from the summer one, which seduces another type of audience and has shown that it has not been a flash in the pan," Aguilà emphasized. In fact, this year's edition will expand the number of concerts and days, going from the four concerts of the previous edition to six in this one, incorporating a matinée on Sunday.

The third edition of the Perelada Easter Festival, which will be held from April 17 to 20, seeks to contribute to the recovery of baroque classics, but at the same time, betting on new creation. Oriol Aguilà, quoting the writer J. V. Foix, has recognized that the organizers "are exalted by the new but are in love with the old" and that this dichotomy is precisely the soul of the festival. One of its highlights of this edition will be the premiere of the Holy Week Responsoria, a new work commissioned from the composer Bernat Vivancos, performed on the night of Friday, April 18, by the Latvian Radio Choir, considered one of the best choirs in the world, under the direction of Sigvards Klava. Vivancos has described this commission as "the culmination of a dream," since he always wanted to write his own version of these texts since he sang them as a child in the Escolanía de Montserrat.

However, this will not be the only premiere of the festival. One day before, on Holy Thursday night, the festival will open with Sanctus Petrus et Sancta Magdalena, by German composer Johann Adolph Hasse, known for his dramatic works. The piece, an unusual Baroque gem that has been rarely performed in the world and never before in Spain, can be enjoyed under the direction of Dani Espasa and his musical ensemble Vespres d'Arnadí. In addition, it will feature the voices of Valer Sabadus, Marie Lys, Maria Espada, Rafael Quirant and Anna Alàs, and the participation of the Cor Infantil Amics de la Unió. Dani Espasa and his ensemble will star in another of the festival's highlights alongside Benjamin Appl, recognized as one of the most brilliant lead singers, and will perform Baroque songs by Bach or Zelenka on Friday afternoon.

This concert series will also feature the performance of the world-renowned cellist Pablo Ferrández accompanied by pianist Luis Valle on Saturday afternoon. The duo will offer emotional and virtuous pieces such as Kol Nidrei, by Max Bruch, or Beethoven's Cello Sonata No. 3.

On the night of that same Saturday, the polyphonic ensemble Cantoría will perform Membra Jesu Nostri patientis sanctissima, by Dieterich Buxtehude. Ten singers and a large instrumental ensemble composed of two violins, viola da gamba, violone, theorbo and organ, will fill the Carmen Church with "pain and illumination," said Cantória's director, Jorge Losana. The third edition of this concert series will close with a matinee on Sunday, a novelty this year, with singers Mélissa Petit and Ann Hallenberg, who will debut at the festival alongside the Il Pomo D'Oro orchestra.

Beyond these concerts, the festival will offer a series of conferences "to savor and delve into the festival's proposals," as its artistic director has remarked. These activities, which will be held in various spaces and institutions such as the Museu de Música de Barcelona or the Reial Cercle Artístic, will be a way to approach and understand the historical context of the songs that will be performed during the festival. In addition, on April 2, a conference will also be offered on the painting Saint Catherine of Alexandria, by the painter Giampietrino, a disciple of the renowned Renaissance artist Leonardo Da Vinci. This artistic gem has been recently rediscovered in the collection of the Castell de Perelada Museum and, according to the organizers, illustrates "the fusion between music and classical art that characterizes the festival."