Martha Argerich joins the European premiere of Marc Migó’s Carnaval de las Indias in Barcelona

On 22 July 2025, pianist Martha Argerich performed at the Palau de la Música Catalana in the European premiere of Carnaval de las Indias, a recent work by Catalan composer Marc Migó for two pianos, chamber orchestra and narrator, with text by Argentine playwright Gonzalo Demaría.

Although the piece had previously been heard in cities such as Buffalo, Sarasota, New York, and Buenos Aires, this performance marked a milestone: it was the first time Argerich joined the project. Migó, who originally composed the work for Alan Kwiek and Annie Dutoit-Argerich, adapted the first piano part with Argerich in mind after learning of her participation — aiming not for spectacle, but for music that could reflect her expressive depth and poetic sensibility.

Inspired by Saint-Saëns’s Carnaval des animaux, Carnaval de las Indias shares its instrumentation but diverges in theme and tone. Rooted in Latin American mythology, magical realism, and colonial bestiaries, the piece unfolds as a musical and narrative journey through a fantastical landscape. Demaría’s text invents a narrator-scientist — portrayed on stage by Annie Dutoit-Argerich — who guides the audience through this imaginary world. Argerich performed alongside Alan Kwiek, with the Orquestra del Reial Cercle Artístic de Barcelona conducted by Glen Cortese.

The concert opened with Philip Lasser’s Vocalise, a lyrical work shaped by the French and American traditions of Nadia Boulanger and Narcís Bonet, and continued with Francis Poulenc’s Concerto for Two Pianos, a vibrant and playful masterpiece that remains a highlight of the 20th-century repertoire.

Currently “Artist in Spotlight 2025” of the Althafen Foundation and a graduate of the Juilliard School, Marc Migó has become an increasingly visible presence on international stages. Carnaval de las Indias — the result of close collaboration between composer, librettist, and performers — now counts Martha Argerich’s name among its history, in a performance that added new resonance to a work already shaped by imagination, humour, and mystery.

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