With Sonata Española, violist Alberto Reguera and pianist Marc Piqué present not a sunny collection of Spanish clichés, but a carefully constructed musical portrait of a country that knows as much shadow as light. In works by Cassadó, Turina, de Falla, Toldrà, Sarasate and Montsalvatge, a richly varied world unfolds in which folk music, modernism, melancholy and refinement continually flow into one another. The album breathes Mediterranean warmth, but equally introspection and dramatic tension. For Klassiek Centraal, Werner De Smet spoke openly with Alberto Reguera and Marc Piqué about the artistic vision behind the project, about beauty as an artistic necessity and about the search for an authentic Spanish sound beyond the folkloric décor.
A musical affinity
The collaboration between Reguera and Piqué arose almost by chance. Both musicians had been moving within the same professional circle for some time, but it was only during their first joint session that they discovered how natural their musical dialogue felt. "From the very first moment we felt a strong musical affinity", Reguera explains. "We share not only a passion for the repertoire for violin and piano, but also a similar way of thinking about music." However, this naturalness does not mean that the creative process unfolds without tension. On the contrary: it is precisely in the search for balance between expressive freedom and technical discipline that the duo finds its own identity, without losing their individual personalities in the process. This understanding grew particularly quickly into a form of intuitive communication in which words became increasingly unnecessary. It is precisely this intense listening to each other that is the essence of chamber music for them.
Spain beyond the cliché
The idea for Sonata Española came about during a concert project in Cádiz in early last year. Together with programmer Pedro, Reguera and Piqué selected works that could form a coherent whole not only stylistically but also dramaturgically. What stands out is how consciously the duo distances itself from the stereotypical image of Spanish music. No casual folklore or tourist romanticism, but a much more complex musical landscape.
"Simply by choosing the works, we discovered how versatile and nuanced this music actually is", says Piqué. "Each composer may start from folk music roots, but then transforms them into a very personal musical language." This continual tension between tradition and innovation forms the red thread of the album. Cassadó, Turina, de Falla, Toldrà, Sarasate and Montsalvatge belong to different generations, but according to Piqué they share the same instinct: the ability to elevate folk music to a refined art form without losing its original soul.
For both musicians, the project meant even more than a discovery – it was a reaffirmation of Spain's enormous cultural wealth. According to them, these composers, despite their divergent styles, share a common sensibility that stems from the same geographical and cultural foundation.
Between precision and freedom
Striking about the interpretations on the album is the combination of technical control and great lyrical freedom. Piqué does not view this as a contradiction, but as the essence of this music. "Spanish repertoire allows for enormous contrasts", he explains. "Those typical melodic turns, the alternation between major and minor, the Andalusian cadences: they create space for spontaneity and colour." Yet the score always remains the starting point. The duo constantly seeks the right balance between vitality and refinement, between rhythmic power and transparent sound culture.
The lack of an extensive recording history also played an important role here. Some works, such as the Cassadó sonata, are rarely performed and have few reference recordings. Precisely because of this, Reguera and Piqué could approach this music with greater freedom, without fixed interpretative models, but always from a great respect for the score and the composer's intention.
Silence also plays a crucial role in this approach. "In silence the music breathes," says Reguera, "more than that: the drama intensifies there. Music arises not only from the notes themselves, but also from the relationship between the notes and the silence around them." This vision is closely aligned with a statement by Pablo Casals, who argued that technique only becomes meaningful when it serves expression. Reguera fully endorses this: "Technique without musical intention ultimately remains nothing more than a coordination exercise. The desire to truly sing, to honestly communicate something, must be central. Technique is necessary to achieve freedom, but should never become an end in itself. The best technique is ultimately the one that remains invisible."
A chamber music breathing
That intense listening to each other forms the core of their collaboration. According to Reguera, an almost intuitive communication developed during the recording of the album. "We work very intensively on the scores, but once we play together, something happens that hardly needs any words anymore." The recording conditions helped considerably. In the studio of sound technician Albert Moraleda, the duo had sufficient time and access to a Steinway grand piano of exceptional quality.
Especially during the recording of the sonata by Gaspar Cassadó (1897-1966), the musicians experienced how the studio made a new balance possible. "In a concert hall, that equilibrium is harder to achieve," says Piqué. "Here we could create an almost orchestral grandeur without losing the transparency between violin and piano."
From the beginning, the duo also deliberately considered how this music would sound in different spaces: in a small hall, a large concert hall, or a studio environment. That search for an ideal acoustic balance helped determine their approach to the repertoire. At the same time, a recording process remains a mental challenge. Concentration, fatigue, and time pressure are constant concerns. "The greatest danger is that you lose freshness and spontaneity," he admits. "You have to learn to pace yourself."
Piqué emphasizes that their relationship with Cassadó's sonata continued to evolve during the recording process itself. Where they initially approached the work rather cautiously, gradually a greater freedom and conviction in the interpretation developed.
The Mediterranean light of Toldrà
Within the program, Eduard Toldrà (1895-1962) occupies a special place. Outside Spain, his music is rarely performed, something Reguera finds particularly unfortunate. "Toldrà possesses an exceptional instinct for lyricism," he says. "In Oració al maig you hear how a simple melody grows into an almost spiritual experience. It's as if Mediterranean light itself becomes music."
Gaspar Cassadó also fascinates him precisely for that combination of emotional intensity and virtuosity. "His music constantly balances between fiery passion and deep melancholy," Reguera says. "Sometimes it almost seems as if he wants to show too much, but that is exactly what makes his language so human." In Manuel de Falla (1876-1946) he admires the ability to not only preserve folk music but also transform it. "Falla is the great alchemist of Spanish music," he says. "He elevates the folk musical tradition to something universal."
Sarasate as a bel canto composer
One of the most striking insights from the conversation concerns Pablo de Sarasate (1844-1908). Too often his music is reduced to mere virtuoso fireworks, whereas Reguera emphasizes precisely its vocal quality. "I see the violin tradition first and foremost as a form of bel canto," he explains. "Sarasate was a master of melody. His music has something distinctly operatic about it." In this connection, he refers to his former teacher Gonçal Comellas, who constantly repeated during lessons: "Sing, sing!"
"That search for beauty of sound fascinates and haunts me daily," admits Reguera. "What is sometimes called 'old school' nowadays, I prefer to call the great school."
Montsalvatge and the modern horizon
Within the dramaturgy of the album, Xavier Montsalvatge (1912-2002) functions as a kind of window into a more modern musical world. His style brings asymmetrical rhythms, bitonality, and French harmonic influences into the program. "He is perhaps the most eclectic composer on the album," Reguera says. "But despite that modernity, there is always a Mediterranean clarity present." As a result, Montsalvatge forms, according to him, an essential part of the musical story that Sonata Española wants to tell: a Spain that is simultaneously rooted in tradition and open to international influences.
Piqué also hears in Montsalvatge a form of refined neoclassical clarity that sometimes reminds one of Stravinsky or Les Six. Precisely through this, his music opens within the album a new horizon in which Spanish identity and international modernity meet.
Spanish music on the international stage
According to Piqué, this repertoire deserves a more prominent place on international concert stages today. He refers in this regard to musicians such as Alicia de Larrocha, who were crucial for the international recognition of composers such as Albéniz, Granados, and Mompou. At the same time, he notes that increasingly more international top musicians, including Daniil Trifonov and Yuja Wang, are including Spanish music in their programs. For Reguera, this proves how recognizable and unique the character of this music remains, even within an increasingly global concert landscape.
Beauty as artistic necessity
Remarkable is how often the concept of beauty recurs during the conversation. For Alberto Reguera, beauty remains a fundamental artistic principle, even though it seems to be under pressure today. "The search for beauty is often devalued nowadays," he says. "Of course, beauty is subjective, but at the same time, humans possess a kind of intuitive ability to recognize beauty: in forms, in proportions, but also in sound." He fears that musical intuition is sometimes too easily sacrificed to rationality today. "When that balance is lost, artistic expression ultimately suffers as well."
He does not regard this search for beauty as nostalgia, but as an essential part of musical communication. Especially within the violin tradition, the ideal of bel canto remains central for him: the desire to make the violin truly sing.
Further deepening of the repertoire
For Alberto Reguera and Piqué, this project has not radically changed their view of the violin-piano repertoire, but has deepened it. Working on lesser-known or rarely played pieces repeatedly confronted them with unexpected compositional solutions and new ways to communicate musically. The repertoire therefore does not feel like a closed canon, but as a continuously evolving field of possibilities.
When the duo looks ahead to how they want to remember the album in a few years, they formulate it simply but meaningfully: "We hope this recording continues to define us as musicians, and that this repertoire continues to inspire us as it does today."
Music as attention and presence
In a time when music is increasingly consumed quickly, Alberto Reguera sees this repertoire choice almost as an act of resistance. "The world around us barely leaves room for contemplation anymore," he says, "but music creates its own time. It forces us to be present in the moment." According to him, there is no shortcut to essence in music. "If you force it, something breaks."
For Alberto Reguera, music is moreover a kind of parallel reality, a form of meditation in which complete attention becomes necessary. In that sense, it asks not only for listening, but also for a consciousness in the moment itself, as if time in music follows a different logic than in everyday life.
Perhaps that very thought sums up the essence of Sonata Española: an album that does not aim for immediate effects, but for attentive listening. Not an exotic postcard from Spain, but a deeply breathing musical space in which light and shadow continuously meet.