Premiere by Xavier Pagès at the Petit Palau.

The Chamber Choir of the Palau de la Música de Barcelona premieres two works on Friday at the Petit Palau, conducted by its artistic director, Simon Halsey. The first is the world premiere of Invocation to the Earth, by the Catalan Xavier Pagès i Corella (San Pedro de Ribas, 1971), while the second is the Spanish premiere – the world premiere took place on 24 September at the Venice Biennale – of Reconnaisance, by the Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho (Helsinki, 1952).
Invocation to the Earth, for 24-voice mixed choir, is commissioned by the Fundació Orfeó Català – Palau de la Música as part of the Barcelona Creació Sonora. The composer chose the poem of the same name by William Wordsworth, according to his website, “which deals with the theme of the purification of the earth of all its evils and misfortunes through a rite performed by a spirit from beyond the grave. The work is conceived as a great melody that weaves the work from beginning to end, interwoven with textures of varying complexity that musically illustrate what the text expresses”. Stars by the Latvian composer Eriks Esenvalds (Priekule, 1977) completes the programme.

© Photograph downloaded from the website of Xavier Pagès i Corella.