2023-05-31 05:42:55
They are two young talents. Although both admit that they were never clear that their path was music, at their young age they have become one of the most promising musical couples on the local scene. First-year students at Musikene, the flutist Alejandra Cortijo (Oviedo, 2006) and the pianist Tomás Vidal (Ciudad Real, 2005) form the Veles Duo, which this Wednesday (7:00 p.m.) performs at the Sociedad Bilbaína. They will perform a “very French” program that will include Jules Mouquet’s ‘Pan Flute’, Philippe Gaubert’s ‘Fantaisie’, Dutilleux’s ‘Sonatina’ and César Franck’s ‘Violin Sonata’.
– They are 17 years old. There are very few cases of students being allowed to enter Musikene without reaching the age of majority.
– Alejandra Cortijo: I had to do some maturity tests before taking the entrance exams. But I have just finished first year of distance learning Baccalaureate and I make it compatible with Musikene.
– Tomás Vidal: In my case I had the Baccalaureate, so I was able to enter thanks to that.
MANAGE THE PRESSURE
«It scares me more and more to go on stage. When I was little it was more like a game and now you see that you are at stake a lot more»
– And why did you choose to study here? What caught your attention?
– TV: The teachers, above all, they are incredible. In my case, I wanted to come to study with Marta Zabaleta, but they had spoken to me very well regarding the center. They were all good references.
– AC: In a summer course I met who are now my teachers and already then I said: I want to study with Miguel Ángel Angulo and Álvaro Octavio, please!
– There are those who say that they are going to give a lot to talk regarding, I don’t know if that generates more enthusiasm, motivation or pressure.
– TV: Very excited. I like to move and play in different places, I think that as a musician that is the most important thing. But also, beyond playing the instrument, learning to relate to others, which is why we chose to study communication with María José Cano.
– Because today that is part of the musician’s job.
TV: Definitely. And in classical music more if possible, because we have to compete in the world. There’s a bit of an absurd elitism around the classic because it’s really not that far away, but it depends a lot on the way you present it.
– Where does the name of the duo come from?
– AC: From despair (laughs), because we mightn’t find any. Most of the groups took names from Greek muses so I started looking up Slavic mythology and I told Tomás: «there is a god called Veles who is the god of music and 50 other things, do you like it as a name? ?».
– And how did they form it?
– AC: We really like to play together, we are very compatible.
– TV: We didn’t know each other, although we had a friend in common, but we hit it off very well and, when the tests for the Musical Fortnight came out, we decided to introduce ourselves almost as a joke.
– And they have remained as first substitutes. If any group falls, they will debut at the festival.
– AC: Yes, we showed up to try and without any hope, in fact we prepared without a teacher or anything. Although, I’m not going to lie to you, when you stay there regarding to make it a little angry to be substitutes.
REQUIREMENT IN THE ELITE
«Music is super competitive but I try not to compare myself with others, only with myself»
Alejandra Cortijo
Flutist
– What would you like to do? Where do they see themselves in the future?
TV: Ugh! The truth is that I have no idea. I’m very young and now what I want is to try all kinds of different things, I don’t see myself in anything specific… I still have to find out, and that’s why I came here.
– AC: I love playing in an orchestra and I’m considering teaching, but I would like to be a performer. Both things are compatible with chamber music.
– Music, has it forced you to mature faster than the rest?
– TV: Of course I do. In the end you have to learn from a very young age to manage many different emotions, both successes and failures. And to give up, because you leave many things behind for the amount of time you invest in the instrument. The profession of the classical musician is a roller coaster. Not only because of the sacrifice, but because you never expect the things that happen to you. Suddenly you find yourself in a situation that you never imagined and you have to get out of trouble.
– And wait for the reward in the long term, because results are not seen every day…
– TV: In fact, almost no day you see results. But, when they arrive, it is much more rewarding.
– AC: Yes, but music is super competitive and it’s hard to see that there are many people much better than you out there.
– And how is all this managed?
– AC: I try not to compare myself with others, only with myself and see my improvements.
– TV: It happens to me that it scares me more and more to go on stage. When I was little it was more like a game and now you see that you play much more and you have to make a good impression on whoever listens to you. But I don’t know how you manage that… I guess having a life apart from music.
– Because, as the pianist Iñaki Salvador says, «music without life would be a mistake».
TV: Totally. I like to go for a run in the morning through La Concha and that helps me a lot to let off steam, as well as to establish relationships with people. Music is a communicative art and it is important to have someone to communicate with.
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