Music, movement, and words alongside the chiaroscuro of light.
All of this habiting the space. In solitude and companionship.

We speak of an ancient malady. Of an ailment so significant that it warranted study since antiquity, as humans have sought to heal the afflictions within. We speak of melancholy. Once considered an ailment centuries ago, it endures in our present days. Its symptoms, causes, and remedies are the subjects of our focus in this creation. Melancholy and how to combat it.

Carles Magraner has discovered a path of melodies that will lead us into ourselves. Looking into the mirror that tells us who we are and what we feel, what distresses us or robs us of our happiness. Each one of us. Our goal is to help you be a little happier. But first, we will help you look where you never look. We will use art as a means. We won’t be overly ambitious. We’ll only try to move you. And perhaps alleviate this malady that persists in the 21st century. Music, movement, words, and light. All of this is in an artistic alchemy. Thus, we can make our own the words of Robert Burton: “Live joyfully, O my friends, free from worries, perplexity, anguish, mental suffering. Live joyfully, heaven has created you for delight. Again and again, I ask you to be happy; if anything disturbs your choirs or distresses your souls, ignore it and condemn it, let it pass. And I tell you, be joyful.”

Robert Burton (1577-1640) published in the dawn of the chiaroscuro century his work “The Anatomy of Melancholy” (1621), which would gain great popularity. In this work, melancholy appears for the first time as a fundamental aspect of the mystical experience. Capella de Ministrers proposes a journey through the music of the first half of the 16th century linked to the melancholic sentiment. A repertoire of English music with songs, laments, and fantasies by Dowland, Hume, Corkine, and other anonymous

pieces.

Toni Aparisi

Delia Agúndez, soprano
Toni Aparisi, dance and choreography
Carles Magraner, viola da gamba and direction
Robert Cases, Renaissance lute and theorbo

The music from this project is part of the soundtrack for the film “El cercle en l’aigua,” directed by Vicent Monsonís based on the play “La Estancia” by Chema Cardeña.