Quatre cançons d'Apel·les Mestres: for mixed voices choir

The choral repertoire has a significant handful of harmonisations of traditional songs. In these works, the melody –which has passed down from generation to generation and has lived alone or in the company of various instruments– is imbued with polyphony and becomes a concert piece. It seems natural, because it has always been this way. Therefore, it is common to find traditional songs in the choral repertoire that are harmonised for a mixed voice choir. Many composers have dedicated themselves to this with great success. What is less common is the creation of adaptations of songs by songwriters, such as those belonging to the broad, intriguing repertoire of the “Nova Cançó” (the “New Song”), or songs composed by well-known authors, such as Apel·les Mestres.

Apel·les Mestres did not consider himself to be a musician. He preferred to be called a songwriter, because he only composed verses and melody. It was down to his friends, such as Frederic Lliurat or Joan Massià, to complete the harmonisation. He wrote more than one hundred songs throughout his whole life for his personal pleasure, and it was not until 1922, when he was 68, that he agreed to publish them. Performed by singers such as Mercè Plantada, Conxita Badia and, in particular, Emili Vendrell, they were widely disseminated and some even became authentic folk songs. His simple, natural melodies, which appear to emerge from the very musicality of the text, were often inspired by traditional songs.

These four songs that we offer respect all elements of the original score and are imbued with the warm vocal colour of the four-part mixed voice choir. These songs are seemingly simple and easy to perform, but they merit the same musical stringency of the great repertoire.