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© Palau de la Música Catalana -
© Palau de la Música Catalana
Palau de la Música Catalana: Festival of waltzes and dances
Barcelona, Palau de la Música Catalana — Concert Hall
About the Event
Experience the highly‐anticipated concert at Barcelona's Palau de la Música Catalana, where the enchanting melodies of classical music will transport you into a world of pure bliss. Indulge in the mellifluous sounds of renowned composers such as Josef Strauss, Antonín Dvořák, Charles Gounod, Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff, Enrique Granados, Eduard Strauss, Johann Strauss, R. Martínez Valls, and Florence Price. This exceptional event promises an unforgettable evening filled with waltzes and dances that will captivate your senses and leave you in awe of the beauty of music. Don't miss out on this exquisite festival of rhythmic artistry.
Palau de la Música Catalana
The Palau de la Musica Catalana is a dazzling building situated in the northern part of Barcelona's Old Town. An architectural jewel of the Catalan Art Nouveau style, built between 1905 and 1908, its rich interior displays the work of the region's artisans in the form of stained-glass windows, ceramics, sculptures, paintings and blacksmithing. The extensive use of glass in the construction of the venue creates stunningly radiant interiors. The dusty red facade of the Palau is decorated with busts of great composers including Bach, Beethoven and Wagner, and colorful mosaics in floral patterns. The centre of the Palau is the magnificent concert hall, entirely lit by natural sunlight due to the extraordinary skylight in the centre of the richly ornate ceiling, which is popular for symphonic and chamber music. According to Lluís Domènech i Montaner, the architect who designed the Palau, the aim was to create a “garden for music” – an objective he definitely managed to achieve.
Antonín Dvořák
Antonin Dvorak is considered to be one of the most well-known and prominent Czechs in the world, as his musical work gained international recognition already during his lifetime. He was born in 1841 in a small Czech village into a butcher’s family. At the age of 6, Dvorak started taking violin lessons and it immediately became obvious that the boy had exceptional talent in music. Later in life, he was learning to master piano and organ as well as simultaneously working in a slaughterhouse. After Dvorak turned 16, he was admitted to the Organ School in Prague that trained future professional composers. After graduating, he stayed in Prague, joined Karel Komzak’s orchestra and started actively composing his own music. However, he struggled to make ends meet and always had to work on the side by playing music in churches and giving private music lessons. Finally, 1874 became a turning point in his life when he won a financial grant from an Austrian Prize competition for his 15 submitted works. This allowed him to quit the orchestra and devote himself fully to composing. During this period, he wrote his Slavonic Dances, Moravian Duets and Violin Concerto, which brought him sweeping success. In 1892 he was invited to teach at the New York National Conservatory, where he stayed until 1895 before returning home. He started teaching at the Prague conservatory and later became its director. Until his death in 1904, he had been a successful and well-loved composer, both in his homeland and around the whole world.
Charles Gounod
The oeuvre of Charles Gounod fostered the development of the lyrical opera genre, that tried to truthfully convey the life, emotions and the inner world of a simple man. The composer was born in 1818 in Paris and since early childhood showed great interest in music. His mother taught him piano lessons, however she did not want her son to become a musician. But it was impossible to put out Gounod’s passion for music and in 1838 he was admitted to the Paris Conservatoire. A year later he received the Prix de Rome for his cantata Fernand. That gave him an opportunity to travel to Italy where he developed great interest in sacred and Renaissance music. Being a very religious man, Gounod even wanted to become a priest in 1845, but his love for music stronger and he changed his mind. Nevertheless, he stayed a person of faith his whole life and composed a lot of sacred works, including the famous Ave Maria – a choral composition based on Bach’s Prelude n.1 from The Well-Tempered Clavier book. The premiere of his first opera, Sapho, took place by the Paris Opera at the Salle Le Peletier in 1851 but got merely a lukewarm reception. Gounod had not won any theatrical success until 1859 when wrote Faust, his grand opera and the gem of his artistic legacy. Even now Faust is one of the most frequently staged operas in the world.
Address
Palau de la Música Catalana, c/ Palau de la Música, 4‐6, Barcelona, Spain — Google Maps
