Costa Rica Entertainment News – “We’re very excited about coming to this country, especially as it is so well-known for both its scenery and its cultural circuits. Now we want to be there and see for ourselves what so many people are talking about.”
Flutist, Pamela de No, started the interview with this statement before going on to talk about the debut performances that she and the rest of the band, Trío de No-Claret, will be giving around Costa Rica
This Spanish classical music trio – made up by de No and the two Claret brothers, Jordi and Sergi – will be coming to Costa Rica as part of the Credomatic Festival, where they will be playing five concerts in different locations around the country.
On the 7th August, they will be in the foyer of the Teatro Nacional; on the 9th August, in Puerto Viejo in Limón; on the 15th in Monteverde; on the 17th in La Fortuna and on the 23rd in Hotel Villa Caletas.
De No mentioned that they will be premiering a new programme called ‘Music for Liberty’, in the hope that their visit will be just as unforgettable to them as to the tico audiences.
The programme will consist of: Trío número 3 de sol mayor, by Franz Joseph Haydn; Trío-sonata en re menor, by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach; Die gute alte Zeit, by Ignaz Lachner; Danza de los espíritus from the Opera, Orpheus and Eurydice, by Christoph Willibald Gluck; and Aires de Catalunya, with an additional arrangement by De No.
Speaking about their previous works
We wanted to make a historic collection. This year marked 300 years from Cataluña’s fall, and we wanted to make a special collection to commemorate this. What we did was take works by composers who were born in that year (1714); and many of them are pieces of music that aren’t that well known among the classical world. We want to sing about human freedom.
The works are very folk- and festival-orientated.
Yes, that’s exactly what we wanted – to make a collection which was a little different to what we normally produce. We wanted to start with a work by Haydn because the pieces are so fresh; they’re ideal for starting a concert because they bring so much joy. Then we’ll move on to Bach and Lachner, where the festival atmosphere will really come out because people were dancing to these works in the 19th Century and they’re the most fun.
Gluck’s work has a slightly more intimate feel and with Aires de Catalunya, we’re trying to bring in a little bit of our own culture – it’s like putting our own stamp on the collection.
What do you think is most difficult to interpret from the collection?
Each one has its own complexities; but I think the most difficult one to play is Bach’s, because it’s pre-classical and it has a complicated harmonic density. It looks like a fresh and easy set, and it really is; but we’ve had to work hard so that it all comes across as well as it should.
You re-arranged Aires de Catalunya, how did you find it?
If only you’d seen us! (Laughs) We’re not composers so we found it pretty difficult. Obviously we’ve respected the harmonies, but we also learnt that in order to write, you have to have a huge amount of talent.
Why did you decide to debut in Costa Rica?
We wanted to do something out of the ordinary; normally our collections are very traditionally classical. We wanted to make something with feeling, and everything came together brilliantly. We felt like it was the right time to do it, and what better way to mark our first visit to Costa Rica than with our debut.
What can we expect from the concert?
Well, it will only be one 55-minute long set. We like having contact with audiences, but we like improvising even more. Depending on the audience, on whether they’re willing to help or not, we’ll change a few words around and we’ll give them some points about what we’re going to play.
Normally we play our concerts in two parts, but for the Festival we’ve had to reduce the length somewhat. If we’d been able to play in two parts, we would have included one more piece into the set.
After here, where else will you be performing the new programme?
We’ll be playing in Cataluña because, as part of the 300th anniversary, they’re organising a number of concerts and endless activities which we’ve been invited to.
Translated by Leah Hendre from La Nacion
