On Saturday 23rd March 2024, Victoria Musicae, conducted by Josep Ramon Gil-Tàrrega, premiered the programme “In Memoria Aeternam” in the Rodrigo Hall of the Palau de la Música de València.

After centuries of oblivion, the sacred polyphony composed by the chapel masters of the Cathedral of Valencia between 1495 and 1643 was brought back to life in all its splendour. This was a performance of great musicological rigour. This journey through the history of our musical heritage included Guillem de Podio, Juan de Sanabria, Pedro de Pastrana, Vicente Lerisa, Ginés Pérez, Ambrosio Cotes, Vicente García, Juan Sebastián and Juan Bautista Comes. The case of Vicent Lerisa’s magnificent “Caligaverunt oculi mei” has the added interest of being the composer’s only surviving work. In addition to the polyphonic works, the programme offered two pieces for organ by one of our composers.

To provide the necessary historical context, each work was preceded by a brief explanation and a translation of the Latin texts into Valencian and Spanish, which are available online.

This programme highlights the richness of the Valencian musical heritage, disseminates musicological knowledge and represents one of the hallmarks of Victoria Musicae: recovering unpublished ancient compositions and offering them in concert to today’s audiences.