Asís Márquez – Clavecinista, continuista, arreglista y compositor.
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Created by Asís Márquez and Vanessa Pérez Carvajal in 2024 following the publication and presentation of the book “Doce miniaturas para clave a cuatro manos” the Harpsichord Lab Collective project aims to stimulate and encourage the creation and performance of ancient and contemporary music for one or more harpsichords, accompanied or not by instruments.
The contemporary creation of pieces written by both teachers and students using historical languages (Baroque, Classical, free modal, Romantic, etc.) is seen as an immense source of learning, experimentation, and enjoyment, as well as possessing enormous pedagogical significance when used in the classroom with harpsichord and/or composition students. The book “Doce miniaturas para clave a cuatro manos” published in April 2024 (which contains music composed or arranged by Asís Márquez and recorded with Vanessa Pérez Carvajal), is a clear example of this.
Among the main objectives of this mission is to present to the public, in concert format, new music for harpsichord or harpsichords, written by harpsichordists and/or composers, which capture and develop the instrument’s powerful sonic and emotive capabilities, such as resonance, rhythm, the timbral variety of its registers, etc. The composition and arrangement of pieces for educational purposes is one of the fundamental pillars of the project.
In addition to exploring the historical repertoire for harpsichord or harpsichords and subsequently performing it in concert, Harpsichord Lab Collective also creates arrangements for one or more harpsichords (accompanied or unaccompanied) of pieces from the general repertoire. Through the craftsmanship of arrangement, harpsichordists, students, and teachers explore the languages of the great music we have inherited and the world of the harpsichord’s sonic capabilities, putting all its musical tools to work in the creation of interesting, beautiful, and carefully crafted music.
Another of the project’s fundamental objectives is to experience, promote, and disseminate, in concert or at gatherings, the true and powerful idiomatic and emotive capabilities of the harpsichord as an instrument. Resonance (the voice of the harpsichord) and its shaping are the starting point and sine qua non of musical creation, study, and performance in concert. The student or composer will create specifically harpsichord-related music, familiarizing themselves with its language and style of singing. The harpsichord student will delve deeper into how to achieve the desired effect in their music. The performer will use their musical talents to make the harpsichord sing and resonate virtuosically, sharing their marvelous and expressive voice with concert audiences. In this way, the project’s backbone is revealed: to unite, in a single artistic endeavor, the craftsmanship of musical study and creation with the concert performance of old and new repertoires and the experience of live music in communion with audiences and lovers of the instrument.