Roberto Gerhard, composer

Roberto Gerhard, born in the Catalan town of Valls in 1896, is not as well known here as he might be. At the end of the Spanish Civil War, he and his family, supporters of the Republic, were forced into exile, and Roberto Gerhard spent the rest of his life, until his death in 1970, in England. His music was banned in Spain during the dictatorship. We play his suite Soirees de Barcelone, composed between 1936 and 1938, abandoned, and only recently salvaged. Also, the Don Quijote suite from the ballet of the same name, performed by the RTVE Symphony Orchestra conducted by Carlos Kalmar.