Galdosiana
As we entered the 21st century, a fresh trend began to flourish, especially visible among a new generation of music creators. Composers increasingly cast aside the post-World War II European bias that demanded each work break new ground and explore uncharted sonic realms. Today, concert halls celebrate a vibrant spectrum of musical styles: some rooted in longstanding traditions, others pursuing unbounded innovation. Among those drawing from tradition is Canary Islands-born composer Laura Vega (b. 1978), whose work, firmly set in the 21st century, draws formal structure and harmonic language from the rich legacy of Western classical music. Her style, organic and unpretentious, rests on refined technique, transcending boundaries and resonating with a wide audience.
She conveyed this sentiment in her inaugural address to the Royal Canarian Academy of Fine Arts, delivered on 27th October 2012, under the title Journey to Silence: Reflections on the Concept of Inspiration in My Musical Creation:
“Undoubtedly, the first thing that reaches a viewer—whether encountering a painting, a sculpture, or a musical piece—is an emotion, not the technical knowledge underpinning it. […] Throughout the process of composing, I keep the audience firmly in mind, though the very concept of “audience” is quite ambiguous and open to debate, perhaps deserving a discussion all its own. Yet, this ideal audience remains ever-present in my thoughts, in the most inspiring sense. Perhaps it’s because I feel a certain social responsibility in musical creation, and because I see my work as a means of communication and emotional exchange. I imagine an audience that is not only receptive but, in a way, deeply engaged and participatory. I trust that within the audience, there will always be someone whose heart is open, for I see “emotion” as encompassing even the intellectual joy one might experience. For me, the greatest privilege of this profession is the chance to bring a moment of happiness to the listener. That feeling is priceless and brings profound personal fulfilment—a kind of immense, almost transcendent happiness”.
Born in Gran Canaria, Laura Vega studied under composers such as Daniel Roca, Xavier Zoghbi, José Luis de Delás, and José María Sánchez Verdú. From 2008 to 2011, she served as President of the Las Palmas Association of Composers, Promuscán. Between 2003 and 2021, she was a professor in the Composition Department at the Canary Islands Higher Conservatory of Music, and in 2016, she earned her doctorate in Art History and Philosophy from the University of La Laguna. Since 2011, she has been a full member of the Royal Canarian Academy of Fine Arts, and in 2023, she began teaching at the Professional Conservatory of Music of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
The renowned conductor Lucía Marín, after years of study and close observation of Laura Vega’s career, emphasizes the emotional depth of the Canarian composer’s style:
“Laura Vega’s music is, above all, an immersive sensory experience, engaging not only the senses but also the intuition and intellect. Her compositions are almost tangible, evoking rich images, flavours, and fragrances that linger in the mind. A master of musical form, Laura draws from the finest classical traditions to build an emotional architecture uniquely her own—an architecture rooted in the very essence of music. Through this, she weaves an intangible yet powerful thread that holds the listener’s attention from start to finish. This intuitive structure, a defining element of her style, along with her Canarian heritage, presents a profound challenge to performers, demanding mastery on technical, musical, and emotional levels”.
Laura Vega’s repertoire spans more than seventy compositions, with her orchestral works standing out prominently. Since 2021, she has become one of the most frequently performed composers by Spanish symphonic ensembles. This album, Galdosiana—named after one of her signature, widely celebrated pieces—showcases three works that reflect Vega’s recent creative explorations. A recurring theme runs through her work: each composition draws inspiration from an extramusical source, whether a literary text, a painting, a landscape, a particular performer, or a piece from classical or contemporary repertoire. The orchestral Galdosiana (2020), alongside Caelum in Terra for piano and orchestra and Luz, Amor y Éxtasis for guitar and orchestra (both from 2022), offers a glimpse into the composer’s mature phase through a variety of instrumental approaches and configurations. Together, these pieces make a rich and multidimensional contribution to Spain’s musical heritage.
Laura Vega
She was born in Gran Canaria, Spain, in 1978. She began her musical studies at the age of four, studying with Francisco Brito at the Music School of her native town. Later, she was accepted into the Conservatorio Superior de Música of Las Palmas, receiving composition lessons from Daniel Roca and Xavier Zoghbi. After graduating in piano, oboe and music theory, she pursued further studies with José Luis de Delás in the University of Alcalá de Henares (Madrid, Spain) and with José Mª Sánchez Verdú in the Music School Soto Mesa (Madrid, Spain). In 2016 she completed her doctoral studies at the University of La Laguna (Tenerife, Spain).
Her catalogue has over seventy works. Her recording works appeared in labels such as NEOS, Naxos, RALS, Piccolo, Centro de Documentación Musical de Andalucía, SGAE, Fundación Autor, etc. Amongst her orchestral woks, some outstanding highlights are the Concerto for oboe and two orchestal groups (commissioned by the Autor Foundation, SGAE and AEOS), «Imágenes de una isla» for orchestra and gomero whistle (commissioned by the Council of La Gomera), the concerto for piano and orchestra, In Paradisum (commisioned by the 26th Canary Islands International Music Festival), Pater noster for choir and string orchestra (an honourable mention from the 4th Sacred Music International Competition), «Angel of Light», double concerto for percussion, string orchestra and harp (commissioned by SGAE Foundation and AEOS), «Galdosiana» for orchestra (commisioned by the Canary Islands Youth Orchestra and Spanish National Orchestra) and «Light, Love and Ecstasy», concerto for guitar and orchestra (commissioned by the 39th Canary Islands International Music Festival). Her music has been performed by orchestras such as the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquesta Nacional de Colombia, la Orquesta Nacional de España, la Orquesta de Radio Televisión Española, la Orquesta de Extremadura, la Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla, la Orquesta de Córdoba, la Oviedo Filarmonía, la Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra, la Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria, la Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife, la Orquesta Sinfónica de Las Palmas, la Joven Orquesta de Canarias, among others. She has worked with conductors as Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Michail Jurowski, Lü Jia, Pedro Halffter, Georg Fritzsch, Juanjo Mena, Antoni Ros-Marbà, François López-Ferrer, Carlos Miguel Prieto, José Luis Temes, Maxim Emelyanychev, Lucía Marín, Manuel Busto, Lucas Macías, Guillermo García Calvo, Andrés Salado, José Luis Gómez, among others.
From 2008 to 2011 she was chairwoman of the Las Palmas Composers Association (PROMUSCAN). Between 2003 and 2021 she was teaching composition in the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Canarias. Currently she is teaching harmony in the Conservatorio Profesional de Música de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. From 2011 she has been member of the Royal Canarian Academy of Fine Arts (RACBA).
Lucía Marín
Lucía Marín (Linares, 1982) es una de las más destacadas directoras de orquesta españolas de la actualidad. Reconocida por el periódico El País como ¨uno de los valores de la dirección de orquesta española¨, y por la Revista Ritmo como ¨arte y pasión en el pódium para el siglo XXI¨, su carrera se extiende tanto en el panorama nacional como internacional.
En su debut en 2019 con la Orquesta Nacional de España la prensa especializada dijo de ella:
¨Lucía Marín logró que la ONE sonara suntuosa y brillante y sobre todo, logró conectar con el público, con una interpretación efectista y empática. Tiene Marín un gesto amplio y seguro, y una fuerza elegante que transmite a los músicos, a los que parece no imponerse, sino guiar con firmeza. ¨
En otoño de 2024 ha sido la primera directora española en dirigir en State Opera South Australia, con gran éxito por parte de la crítica:
¨La dirección de Lucía Marín fue impecable. Su comprensión del nivel de energía requerida para cada escena de la ópera es de manual, es una directora que entiende el tempo. ¨
Lucía Marín ha dirigido un gran número de las orquestas españolas cosechando grandes éxitos, entre las que destacan: la Orquesta Nacional de España, Orquesta Sinfónica de Radiotelevisión Española, de Galicia, de Castilla y León, de Tenerife, del Principado de Asturias, de Euskadi, Bilbao, Filarmónica de Málaga, de Córdoba, de Gran Canaria, Oviedo Filarmonía, de Valencia, Ciudad de Granada, de Navarra, Sinfónica de Madrid, Joven Orquesta de la Comunidad de Madrid, de Canarias y Orquesta Joven de Andalucía. También ha dirigido la Antalya Symphony Orchestra en Turquía, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra en Australia, y la joven orquesta nacional de México – Orquesta Escuela Carlos Chávez en México.
Esta directora cuenta con un amplio repertorio sinfónico y lírico, habiendo dirigido recientemente en el Teatro de la Zarzuela dirigiendo Yo te querré de Francisco Alonso, La Traviata de Verdi en el Teatre Principal de Palma, Amahl y los visitantes nocturnos de Menotti en el Teatro Real, El Rapto en el Serrallo de Mozart enla ABAO de Bilbao, El Barbero de Sevilla de Rossini en el Teatro Campoamor y Lucia di Lammermoor de Donizetti en State Opera South Australia. Entre sus futuros compromisos se encuentran importantes orquestas y teatros de ópera nacionales e internacionales.
En diciembre de 2024 ha lanzado su primer trabajo discográfico con la Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra, un disco monográfico de la compositora canaria Laura Vega y el sello IBS Classical.
A lo largo de su carrera ha sido distinguida con los premios de la Real Academia de Bellas Artes de Santa Isabel de Hungría de Sevilla 2006, Premio ¨Andaluces del Futuro 2009¨, Premio ¨Jaén Joven¨ de las Artes del Instituto Andaluz de la Juventud 2014, Premio Cultura Viva ¨Artista Revelación ̈ 2017, Premio Ideal de Cultura 2019, Bandera de Andalucía 2020, y desde 2024 es académica de la Academia de la Música de España.
Su amplia formación académica incluye el doctorado en dirección de orquesta por la Universidad de Kentucky, master en dirección de orquesta por la Universidad de Illinois, y master en gestión y emprendimiento de proyectos culturales en la Universidad Internacional de la Rioja. Estudió la carrera de piano con la pianista Pilar Bilbao en el Conservatorio Superior de Sevilla, y la carrera de dirección de orquesta en el Centro Superior de Música del País Vasco siendo su maestro Enrique García Asensio y obteniendo las más brillantes calificaciones.
Durante el periodo de estudios superiores en Estados Unidos dirigió en distintos países como Italia, Portugal, Austria, Rumanía, China y Estados Unidos. También fue directora titular University of Kentucky Philharmonia y dirigió la University of Kentucky Symphony Orchestra & Opera Theatre haciendo títulos como Las Bodas de Fígaro, Don Giovanni, La Boheme, Suor Angelica, Los Miserables, Sweeney Todd, El Fantasma de la Ópera, Ainadamar, El Cascanueces con el Ballet de Moscú. Lucía Marín amplió sus estudios durante el periodo estival asistiendo a importantes instituciones como la Accademia Musicale Chigiana de Siena, la Riccardo Muti Italian Opera Academy, y la Internationale Sommerakademie Mozarteum, así como recibiendo consejos de maestros como Gianluigi Gelmetti, Jorma Panula y Peter Gülke.
Maria Esther Guzmán
Maria Esther Guzmán was born in Seville. She descends through the maternal line from the extensive dynasty of musicians with the last name “Guervós”, from the Netherlands. Continuer of that dynasty, She performs her first concert in public at the age of 4 at the Lope de Vega Theater in her hometown, at 11 she obtained the 1st Prize on RTVE with Maestro Joaquín Rodrigo being president of the jury, at 12 she is heard in private audition by Maestro Andrés Segovia, receiving his praise and advice. She has obtained 19 national and international awards of great importance, such as the “Regino Sáinz de la Maza International Competition” in Japan or the “Andrés Segovia Competition” in La Herradura. A tireless traveler, she performs concerts in the most important venues in Europe, Africa, Asia and America, such as the Teatro Real and La Zarzuela in Madrid, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the National Auditorium in Madrid, the Palau de la Música in Valencia, the Santander Festival Palace, Sala Cemal Resit Reg of Istanbul, Nacional of Buenos Aires and Costa Rica, Maestranza and Lope de Vega of Seville, etc., as soloist, with orchestra and in several chamber ensembles. Is notable for her annual tours and recordings in Japan since 1988.
She has recorded 1 LP, 33 CDs, 4 videos and 1 DVD. “Andalusia Young Music” Culture Award 1994; Award from RITMO magazine for her CD about Julián Arcas. Since 2002 she has been a Numerary Academic of Fine Arts of Sta. Isabel de Hungary in Seville; “Trujamán” guitar award for her artistic career (Palau de la Música de Valencia 2011); Andrés Segovia Medal, awarded by the A. Segovia Foundation (Linares 2012). She has premiered works by Joaquín Rodrigo, Carlos Cruz de Castro, Tomás Marco, among others. In 1993 she premiered “Paseo de los Tristes” by J. García Román with the Córdoba Orchestra conducted by Leo Brouwer. She has made the Asian premiere of J. Rodrigo’s Toccata (2008); the Concerto for guitar and orchestra by Carlos Cruz de Castro with the RTVE Orchestra (2009); and the “La Herradura Concert” by Eduardo Morales-Caso, with a live recording (2012).
At the end of 2014 she founded her own Publishing House, where she publishes her numerous transcriptions and arrangements for solo guitar and chamber music. Master’s Degree in Musical Research from UNIR (2017). She teaches masterclasses in Seville and Master Classes around the world.
Marta Zabaleta
At the age of 16, Marta completed her musical studies in San Sebastian where she was awarded First Prize in piano. She then went on to continue her studies at some of the most prestigious European academies: the National Superior Conservatory of Music in Paris under Dominique Merlet, the Reina Sofía College of Music in Madrid with Dmitri Bashkirov, and the Marshall Academy in Barcelona with Alicia de Larrocha. She received many prizes at international competitions such as the Santander ‘Paloma O’Shea’, Darmstadt, Premio Jaén and the Pilar Bayona International Piano Competition in Zaragoza.
In her long career as a concert pianist, Marta has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the English Chamber Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, the Deutsches Symphony Orchestra (Berlin), the Basque National Orchestra, and the Spanish Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra (RTVE), as well as the symphony orchestras of Bilbao, Extremadura, Castile and León, Murcia, Community of Madrid, Galicia, Málaga, Granada, Valencia and Reina Sofía, amongst others. She has performed under the baton of outstanding conductors including Sir Colin Davis, Daniele Gatti, Harry Christophers, S. Comissiona, C. Mandeal, M. Venzago, G. Varga, G. Neuhold, J.C Spinossi, G. Pehlivanian, J. Mena, D. Wilson, L. Pfaff, J.M. Encinar, J. Amigo, M. Bragado, G. I. Ramos, and C. Wilkins. Marta has been invited to significant international festivals and concert halls, debuting in the Carnegie Hall with cellist Asier Polo.
Marta has made a number of recordings, which include the works of Joaquín Rodrigo, recorded by EMI; F. Escudero, with the label CLAVES; chamber works with Asier Polo under the label BBK; and M. Pompey’s Concerto for Two Pianos with the Spanish Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra (RTVE). She has also recorded an album “Pecados de juventud” (“Sins of youth”) with compositions by Alicia de Larrocha, and has recently released two new albums: “Goyescas and El Pelele” by Granados, edited by La má de Guido, and works for cello and piano by Rachmaninov and Franck with IBS Classical.
In addition to her performing career, Marta has a great deal of experience and recognition in piano pedagogy. She has given masterclasses at Trinity Laban College of London and at universities in Bogota and Medellin, among others. Marta is currently professor of piano at Musikene (the Higher Academy of Music of the Basque Country), and, at the wish of her predecessor Alicia de Larrocha, she is the current director of the Marshall Academy in Barcelona. In this prestigious Academy, Marta gives regular piano masterclasses in interpretation and virtuosity, and in particular the Spanish piano repertoire.
She recently won the Albéniz Medal granted by the Fundación Pública Isaac Albéniz.
