De la memòria al present

The concert cycle "Vespres musicals. De la memòria al present" aims to establish a dialogue between the living history of the monastery and the music that has accompanied the spiritual, cultural, and artistic life of Europe and the Mediterranean. The three concerts propose a sonic journey that crosses time—from the Middle Ages to contemporary creation—and transform the monastery spaces into a meeting place between heritage and artistic expression. Along with the two concerts offered during the inauguration of the centenary events, this year music from the seven centuries of its history will be performed in the monastery. The first concert, by Cantoria, one of the most recognized ensembles in the performance of Iberian Renaissance vocal music. The program will be dedicated to ensalades, a genuinely Hispanic genre from the 16th century that combines polyphony, theatricality, and humor. These pieces, full of contrasts and extraordinary expressive vitality, evoke the cultural richness of the Spanish Renaissance and connect with the humanist and artistic dimension that also forms part of the monastery's history and of which some of the current cells around the cloister are a witness. The second concert will take us even further back in time, to the refined universe of Italian medieval music. The organetto and percussion duo Unda Sonora, formed by Catalina Vicens and Pere Olivé, will perform works by Magister Piero, Giovanni da Firenze, Francesco degli Organi, Jacopo da Bologna, and anonymous pieces linked to the ars nova of the 14th and 15th centuries, a period contemporary with the very origins of the monastery. The delicate sound of the organetto and the rhythmic dimension of the percussion will create an evocative atmosphere that will allow imagining the soundscapes that resounded during the time of Pedralbes' foundation. The cycle will culminate with the third concert, with the contemporary proposal of Magalí Sare, who will present, accompanied by Sebastià Gris and Albert Dondarza, the repertoire of her new album, Descasada Vol. 1. With a free and deeply personal artistic vision, they make the author song, jazz, Mediterranean musics, and current soundscapes dialogue. Their presence in this cycle symbolizes the living continuity of heritage spaces: places that preserve memory, but that also welcome contemporary creation and new forms of expression. This activity is framed within the commemoration of the Monestir de Pedralbes Year. More information on the Monestir de Pedralbes website.