Composed for pianist Yoonie Han, this virtuoso work was inspired by the painting by John Singer Sargent. Ms. Han premiered El Jaleo in a private house concert on November 16, 2013, and recorded it shortly after for the Steinway Records. The CD will be issued in February 2014.
piano solo / 6 min.
Program Note
When Yoonie Han invited me to compose a short piece for her, I thought of her ravishing recording of Granados’ Goyescas and her love of Spanish music and art. John Singer Sargent’s painting El Jaleo – a stunning take on flamenco music and dance – soon suggested itself to me as a point of departure. I have tried to evoke the cultivation, the ornament, the vocal style, and the measured intensification of flamenco performance. The piece traces a gradual acceleration and crescendo to the frenetic moment, el jaleo, captured in the painting.
—Theodore Wiprud
