Cuban Classical Piano in the Virtuosity of Mary Horta and Her Guests
From the windows of Dr. Triolet’s house, above the French Apothecary, the arpeggios of the piano took flight in the masterful interpretation of María de los Ángeles Horta and her guests, as a tribute to the 333rd anniversary of the city of San Carlos and San Severino de Matanzas.
It was a journey through Cuban piano music, deeply rooted in the Athens of Cuba, as the renowned pedagogue recalled «how since the 19th century friends would gather in artistic and home soirées, characteristic of the city,» which continued afterward in institutions such as the Sauto Theater, the José White Concert Hall, and the Pharmaceutical and Palacio de Junco museums.
The program of concert pianist Mary Horta recreated during the National Culture Days jewels of our musical literature, with contradanzas by Manuel Saumell and danzas by Matanzas-born Olga Tejeiro de Alvarado, to then delve into the classicism of Ernesto Lecuona and the breaking of tonalities in some of his impactful compositions.
More contemporary, the artist performed scores by Roberto Varela, José María Vitier, and other authors.
Invited were students from the Professional Art School: José Ángel Medina, recently congratulated with the Prize of the Ponce Project Contest in the United States, whose participation was possible thanks to the brotherhood demonstrated by the North American musicians.
And Oscar Antonio Castillo, Prize winner at the Villa Hermosa Contest, laureated in several international events.
The young people performed pieces of high complexity and necessary virtuosity by Ernesto Lecuona and, especially, by Mexican composer Manuel Ponce Cuéllar.
At the concert of the prestigious pianist María de los Ángeles Horta together with her guests, present were Marcia Brito Hernández, director of the Matanzas Pharmaceutical Museum, and lovers of classical piano in the City of Rivers and Bridges, which celebrates these days its blessed creation.
