Josep Vicent will lead the Belgian National Orchestra with guitarist Pablo Sainz-Villegas in a trio of performances starting Wednesday at the National Auditorium in Madrid, followed by events in Barcelona on the 13th and Zaragoza on the 14th. Tickets are nearly sold out across all three cities.
The program, conducted by the Alicante-born maestro of the ADDA Simfònica de Alicante, features works that traverse a spectrum of moods. César Franck’s cursed hunter opens the program, transporting audiences to a dark, atmospheric chase. Joaquín Rodrigo’s Aranjuez’s concert follows, a cornerstone of guitar and orchestra repertoire that casts a lush, lyrical spell. The evening closes with Maurice Ravel’s Bolero and Walts, a pairing that promises forward momentum and dramatic color throughout the hall.
The conductor expressed strong satisfaction with the collaboration for ADDA after the Belgian ensemble’s success at the Bozar Festival in Brussels. There is notable enthusiasm and generous public support for a musical journey from Belgium to Spain, showcasing how French, Belgian, and Spanish musical traditions intersect through performances around Europe and beyond.
Collaborating with the Belgian ensemble for several seasons, Pablo Sainz-Villegas is highlighted as an exceptional guitarist. The Aranjuez concert is anticipated to be a standout moment, with the performance described as a historic musical event that audiences will remember vividly.
Cursed hunter, Franck’s most evocative work in Belgium, is renowned for its orchestration that conjures a dark and fantastical atmosphere, like a chase through a shadowy world.
Aranjuez Concert remains the most performed Spanish piece of all time. Rodrigo’s composition for guitar and orchestra contains some of the most beautiful and evocative passages in the repertoire, with the adagio in particular widely beloved by audiences. The program features a soloist who is recognized worldwide as a guitar ambassador, regularly performing with international orchestras and major concert halls around the globe, including Amsterdam, Beijing, Boston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Tokyo, Toronto, Vienna, and Zurich, as well as with national orchestras in Spain and Israel, in a variety of renowned venues.
Successes with Aranjuez Concert
Sainz-Villegas, a native of Logroño, performed the Concierto de Aranjuez in 2020 with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra under Kirill Petrenko, a moment that 37 years earlier echoed Narciso Yepes’s historic collaboration with the same ensemble in 1983. Invitations from prominent conductors and widely viewed recordings have propelled his reputation, with multiple world premieres including collaborations with John Williams, the acclaimed film score composer and five-time Oscar winner. His first guitar work for Williams represents a landmark in contemporary guitar literature.
Guitarist Pablo Sainz-Villegas has received more than thirty international awards and recognition from institutions such as Andrés Segovia, Francisco Tárrega, and Christopher Parkening. He has been celebrated by the Riojan Arts Council and named Riojano Ilustre, among other honors. His career has taken him to more than forty countries, with performances at major venues like Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall. Rafael Frühbeck conducted him with prominent orchestras since his debut with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra under Burgos, marking a long and influential career.
Long Orbit
The artist has cultivated a vast and vibrant artistic career, directing renowned ensembles such as Josep Vicent and leading orchestras in London, Paris, and Madrid. His work spans the Barcelona, Milan, Valencia circuits, the Palau de les Arts, and major outlets like Radio Televisión Española and the New World Symphony in Miami. His leadership extends to national ensembles in Belgium, Chile, Uruguay, and Brazil, and since 2015 he has served as the artistic and musical director of the Alicante Provincial Assembly Auditorium and the principal conductor of the ADDA Simfònica ensemble.
The Belgian National Orchestra, founded in 1936, operates under the umbrella of the Federal Cultural Institutions. Its home at Henry Le Boeuf Hall in Brussels welcomes top musicians and collaborates with the Royal Theatre La Monnaie and the Bozar Center for Fine Arts. The orchestra is guided by a series of guest and resident conductors, with programming that blends prestigious classics with innovative works and new discoveries in European and international repertoire.