In 1982, the Spanish composer Ramón Barce (1928-
2008) premiered Oleada, a work for solo voice, on
texts from the Ancient Greek’s Argonautica. The main
idea was to create a work that would develop different
kinds of vocal techniques to expand resources for
contemporary singers.
Obviously, Cathy Berberian’s legacy, not only as a
singer but as a composer was an essential inspiration
for any musician in front of a solo voice project. During
the 1960s and 1970s, she was the pioneer of a new way
of understanding singing, showing composers a series of
new resources dedicated to the voice.
In Spain a new generation began to compose with an
eye to the European avant-gardes. That group of
composer was known as New Music Generation, and
they began their careers at the end of the 1950s.
Ramon Barce was one of the most important
representatives, not just as a composer, but as an
organiser, offering an image of intellectuality and
excellence..
In Oleada, the singer uses various resources such as
singing, crying, speaking, laughing or whispering… all
of which have been developed in a complex work.
From references to Ancient Greek literature to
contemporary roles like Soldier Schweick between
others, Oleada is divided in four segments: I. Catálogo
de los Argonautas; II. Gesta de Orfeo; III. Teseo en el
Hades; IV. Editores, intervención de Schweick y
conquista del Vellocino. Music for solo voice which
presents a fully contemporary aesthetic work with a
dense and precise style. The performance lasts
approximately 15 minutes.
This proposal will be Oleada’s first perfomance in
Ireland and is a part of a bigger work who obtained
some years ago a Fulbright scholarship.