The charm of Joly Braga Santos’ music was revealed to the public in the 1940s. He was then a pupil of Luís de Freitas Branco and overflowed with a talent that would guarantee him a place among the best. His creations were spontaneous, but carefully crafted; they were intense, but immediately apprehensible. This concert celebrates this legacy, in the very month that marks the 100th anniversary of his birth. It begins with a concerto for strings from 1951. It continues in the 1960s, with the music for a ballet premiered at the Teatro Politeama in 1968 and a transcription of Vathek, his master’s famous symphonic poem. Finally, Staccato Brilhante, from 1988, an impressive manifesto of youthfulness at the end of his life.
On the Joly Braga Santos Centenary
Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra
Joly Braga Santos Concerto for Strings in D
Joly Braga Santos Suite for ballet Encruzilhada
Luís de Freitas Branco Vathek (version for chamber orchestra by Joly Braga Santos)
Joly Braga Santos Staccato Brilhante
Pedro Neves conductor
