Ricardo Llorca premieres cantata “Oficio de Caminantes” at Santiago de Compostela Cathedral in an homage to pilgrims.
This July 20th Spanish-American composer Ricardo Llorca premiered his work “Oficio de Caminantes” commissioned by the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral in the Auditorium of Galicia in homage to the pilgrims who made the pilgrimage on the Way of St. James. This cathedral is a component of the World Heritage Site in Galicia, Spain and significantly marks the traditional end of the Way of St. James or Camino de Santiago, a pilgrimage route and UNESCO World Heritage Site across the North of Spain and Western Europe in use since the Middle Ages.
The program of the cantata included pieces such as “Tu, Que el Mar Galileo” with text from the Codex Calixtinus, “Monologo II” with the words from the Homily of Pope Francis in his first mass in the Sistine Chapel as Pontiff, and “Bendicamus de Santiago” combined with “Monólogos de Concha Llorca” featuring the “Diarios de Peregrinación” of Concha Llorca Zaragoza.
“Oficio de Caminantes” was premiered with a renowned assortment of musical talent: Susana Cordón, Soprano; José Luis Sola, Tenor; Eva Guillamón, Narrator; Fernando Buide, Organ; the Chorus “Ángel Barja” JJim-Ule, Directed by Aitor Olivares; and the Royal Philharmonic of Galicia with Conductor Alexis Soriano.
The Royal Philharmonic of Galicia was born as an ambitious cultural project in Santiago de Compostela in 1996, and makes an effort to bring classical music to all audiences across ages and the city of Santiago de Compostela. Since January 2023, Baldur Brönniman has been its principal and artistic director, and the orchestra is made up of fifty musicians of 17 different nationalities.
The premiere was well attended with high-ranking clergy and a cultural Galician crowd. Begonia Santos, the Executive Director of the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute was in attendance and remarked, “This beautiful and evocative classical piece recalled a richness of musical tradition and invited reflection. I would love to hear it again and expect new audiences of future performances to hold the same sentiment.”
Ricardo Llorca (Alicante, 1958) is one of the most recognizable Spanish-American composers on the international music scene.
Llorca is a graduate and professor at The Juilliard School of Music since 1995; composer-in-residence for the contemporary dance company Sensedance (New York City); NYOS Composer-in-Residence (The New York Opera Society); since 2008 he has been a composer for The Manhattan Choral Ensemble and fellow composer at The Argosy Foundation and MetLife/Meet the Composer Series.
His work includes operas such as “Las Horas Vacías” premiered in stage version in Madrid in 2021 at Los Teatros del Canal in co-production with the Teatro Real de Madrid, The New York Opera Society, and High C Music; and the opera “Tres Sombreros de Copa”, premiered at the Sao Pedro Theater in Sao Paulo in 2017 and later at the Tratro de la Zarzuela in Madrid in 2019. Llorca is also a composer of symphonic music, chamber music, choral music, and music for theater, film and television.
Llorca is also a member of the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute’s Cultural Advisory Committee in the cultural area of music and has taught with and collaborated prolifically with the Institute in recent decades.
