ANDALUCÍA (Suite Nº 2) (OP 74)


Composed between December 2007 and January 2008, this work is set in my Andalucian homeland, where I spent my childhood and adolescence. It is not a descriptive work, although I have tried to capture the ambience of this beautiful region.

With the first movement, "Aromas de Sevilla", I wanted to combine various airs from this wonderful city. It starts with a Spanish Phrygian scale of 8 sounds in the bass and incorporates new instruments in the same air before moving onto some typical "sevillanas" sung by the piccolo and the cors anglais. Another small melody is taken up by the oboe, accompanied by rhythmic notes from the brass and later by tutti; another melody by the flugelhorn is accompanied by a drum and percussion rhythm, moving to a recitativo by the soprano saxophone which leads to the da capo, finishing with the sevillanas from the beginning.

The second movement is a "Dance" in 3/8 with many rhythmic breaks and with various solo performances by the oboe, clarinet, bass clarinet, piccolo, cor anglais and brass.

The third movement contains some "Bulerías" and is an adaptation of the Third Movement, "En la lumbre", of my "Sonata Flamenca" (op. 74) for Alto Saxophone and Piano. A piece which, although I do not depart completely from our Phrygian scale, is treated in a very jazzy style, in terms of its rhythm, melody and harmony.

The rhythmic, melodic and harmonic complexity of this work makes it a great challenge for any wind band. Consequently, I must heartily congratulate the Albacete Municipal Band for their excellent and laudable work in executing its world premier with a masterful and flawless performance.