Debussy Stravinsky Mäkelä

“Fragrances may be amongst the most fleeting and ethereal sensations most sentient beings experience in their daily lives,” wrote Peruvian Jimmy López Bellido (b. 1978) about Ephemerae, which explores the world of smell. It was written for the Spanish pianist Javier Perianes and is a commissioned work for the Oslo Philharmonic, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Sao Paolo State Symphony Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Klaus Mäkelä conducted the London premiere in February 2022.

Claude Debussy had hardly set foot in Spain when he wrote Ibéria, his musical tribute to the country, in the years 1905–08. According to Spaniard Manuel de Falla, he nevertheless hit the bull’s eye: “The echoes of the villages…the intoxicating magic of the Andalusian nights, the joy of people in celebration who dance to the merry chords of a band of guitars and bandurrias…all of this whirls in the air, approaching, receding, and our imagination, held continuously on guard, remains dazzled by the power of music intensely expressive and richly nuanced.”

Manuel de Falla was born in Cádiz in Andalucia, in the southernmost part of Spain. As an adult he moved to Madrid and it was there that he became seriously interested in the Flamenco tradition from his home region. He later moved to Paris where he became acquainted with, among others, Igor Stravinsky, Claude Debussy, and the Russian impresario Sergei Diaghilev. The ballet The Three-Cornered Hat, which contains strong elements of traditional Spanish music and dance, was a collaborative effort with Diaghilev and it premiered in London in 1919.

Igor Stravinsky was instrumental in the success of Diaghilev’s Russian ballet company in Paris. The ballet The Firebird was an enormous success at its premiere in 1910, while in 1913 The Rite of Spring was both a milestone in music history and a spectacular scandal. Petrushka (1911) drew its inspiration from traditional Russian puppet theatre, and the combination of Stravinsky’s phenomenal music, costumes, choreography, and scenography made the performance an artistic triumph. At this concert, the 1947 orchestral version of Petrushka will be performed.