Ramillete de flores (Bouquet of Flowers), for piano

Ramillete de flores is a collection of my works adapted for the piano at the suggestion of my wife, the pianist Carmen Fiastre. I selected pieces that I knew she particularly liked. The generic title alludes to Renaissance and Baroque pieces that adopted this unique title, indicating a special compilation due to their character or uniqueness for subsequent publication, and that is more or less what I have done:

– Song from Cabiria (the song that comes from Cabiria – a symphonic poem I composed for the film by Giovanni Pastrone). The theme that appears in this piece is taken literally from a version I made for oboe and string orchestra, which was recorded by the Moscow Chamber Orchestra for the NAXOS label. In this case, it is reduced in its total length, as the original oboe version lasts about 8 minutes.

– Cinque Terre. The piece takes up the second theme of the third movement of my Mars Symphony for wind orchestra. The title of the piano version alludes to the Italian towns of Cinque Terre, which my wife liked so much.

– Tema ‘Third Symphony’ (Third Symphony Theme). It is the second theme of the third movement of my Mercury Symphony for wind orchestra.

– Vals ‘Jupiter Symphony’ (Jupiter Symphony Waltz) This piece has a somewhat peculiar origin: it is the waltz from my Jupiter Symphony for wind orchestra but with some harmonic and melodic modifications to adapt it for piano. My wife requested it because she liked it very much when she heard it in its original version; however, I doubted its adaptation due to the intricate polyphony initially used in the symphony. Nevertheless, with her insistence, I managed to make this adaptation, which I am very happy with. This piece is explicitly dedicated to her.

– Galop Gosiantonio. This piece was also suggested by my wife as a wedding gift for our dear friends, the pianist Antonio Narejos and his wife, the Polish singer Gosia. Both names create a play on words that reminds us of the name Jose Antonio, hence the title. It was performed at their wedding at the Alicante City Hall, and in the piece, which has a humorous and carefree character, the two classic wedding marches by Mendelssohn and Wagner appear, somewhat distorted.

Ramillete de flores was recorded by the pianist Alberto Picó for the Novus Promusica label. The same pianist held his absolute premiere at the ADOC auditorium in Elda. When it was released on Spotify in 2023, it spent some time on the platform’s playlist.

Playlist CD Alberto Picó Soriano

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