02.29.2020 — Exhibition: Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of Josep Martí i Cristià’s Death

Daniel Blanch couldn’t imagine that he was going to rediscover the music of the Catalan composer Josep Martí i Cristià (1884-1918) when the handwritten scores of that musician - also an artist, poet, educator and teacher - were given to him. They arrived, as it happens, from the hands of the son of Eduard Martí, who is Josep Martí i Cristià’s nephew. 

But it wasn’t until later, when Daniel started to play the pieces, that he realised that they were really interesting and of great quality. That’s why he decided to reach out to Claudi Cuchillo, the current president of the Associació d’amics de Josep Martí Cristià, and Eduard Martí who, at that time, were in the process of establishing the association. As soon as they were set, they proceeded to record and publish a first CD called “Música per a piano” (Music for Piano) and, later, a second one called “Somni d’un poeta” (Poet’s Dream) which was also published to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the composer’s death. 

The celebration was an excellent opportunity to disseminate information about the life and work of a poet and musician who was, by then, quite forgotten despite his remarkable influence on Catalan musical fundations for what would later become the Catalunya Noucentista. 

The exhibition, inaugurated on the 21 September 2018 in Can Cortès, at Palau-solità i Plegamans, was designed by Cristià-Blasi. Six display panels of different colours, with text, photographs and other images, outlined the life and work of that figure who is considered a role model of romantic music. Nature and love were two of his inspirations and nostalgia was the driving force that led him to create captivating melodies of great ease.

Together with the exhibition, other events were organised, including a lecture about the musician’s life, a concert and a recital of his poems. 

A presentation of the last published CD took place later at the Biblioteca de Catalunya where the composer’s archive is preserved. The CD contains works for piano and chamber music drawn from that repository.