Program notes

To paraphrase the opening scene of Robert Redford’s film “The Last Castle”, by observing a castle and studying the key elements which make it a fortress, one can see that those key elements haven’t changed in the last 2000 years. Those elements are the location, the walls, the guard and the flag.

There are other related epic themes, such as legend and love, both of which Andrés Álvarez includes in this, his fortress. Commissioned by the Town of Tomiño to celebrate the restoration of the San Lourenzo Castle, this symphonic poem was debuted by the Goián Band in 2013, the year after its composition. In addition to the leading role of the percussion instruments, which is typical for this type of work, the trumpets and saxophones draw the listener into the thematic ideas of the piece.

The rhythmic acceleration and the displacement of the natural compass accentuation, together with the use of triplets, allow the composer’s original intent to come through. The prolonged final notes and the agitated ostinato rhythm of the wood instruments create the impulse that is characteristic of this type of work, respecting the established canons that have been approved throughout time.