“Harmonizing Traditions: A Fusion of Written and Oral Musical Worlds”
Work: Chants Tchèques
Composer: Juan Arroyo
Duration: 12 minutes
Instruments: for traditional music singers (or mezzo-soprano) and ensemble
Written during the confinement and composed of six chants, this piece is the result of an escape, a fictional journey, a traverse to distant places, within my imagination at my work table. This piece, composed of six chants, embodies an audacious challenge: to bring together two strongly contrasting musical traditions. On one hand, the written tradition, with its rigor and demand, and on the other hand, the oral tradition, rich in spontaneity and emotion. The idea was to create a symbiosis between these two worlds, to make them coexist and dialogue within a single work. I dedicate these Czech Songs to Bruno Letort, without whom this musical adventure would not have come to life. Thanks to him, I was able to break free from borders and venture far from cloistered territories. The premiere of this work took place on November 29, 2022, at the Ars Musica Festival, with the participation of the Grunik and Fractales ensembles, at BOZAR in Belgium. It was an unforgettable moment, and I am delighted to share this experience with you today.