Com un núvol lleuger

An old Chinese poem by Li Ho (791-817), in a Catalan version by Marià Manent, has triggered the composition of this short work for ensemble. If it’s true that after a first reading the presence of Nature is obvious (water sounds, wind, birds singing, clouds and forest), a deeper approximation reveals the extinction of an ancient world: of that which used to be, but it is not anymore. Looking at the remains one can get reminiscences of the concept of nostalgia in front of present decadence that the poet suggests and, at the same time, it presents the idea of time passing and the futility of human life - in the end it seems that Nature is recovering everything that belonged to it. 

The music begins with a reference to the last sentence of the poem -“like a light cloud blowed by the wind”- and explores memory passages, dreams and reminiscences of songs and dances. The work creates a kind of fusion between the aforementioned materials, while keeping a recurrent pattern -which may remind one of the rondeau form. 

The work, in loving memory of composer Joan Guinjoan, was comissioned by Plural Ensemble, and was premiered by this group conducted by Fabián Panisello in Espacio Turina (Sevilla) on November 4th 2022.

https://pluralensemble.com/english/portfolio/friday-november-04-2022-national-tour-seville-xi-encuentros-sonoros-festival/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEoIm5INA-E