The groups participating in the Section One of the International Music Band Contest «Ciudad de Valencia» 2019 will have to interpret the “La Rosa del Desierto” score by composer Francisco José Martínez Gallego as a mandatory work.
FRANCISCO JOSÉ MARTÍNEZ GALLEGO
Native of San Antonio de Requena (Valencia). He began his musical studies at S.M. «La Armónica» of San Antonio, later moving on to the Conservatories of Murcia, Torrente and Valencia, where he earned an advanced degree in Clarinet Performance.
In the field of musical composition, he would further his education under jazz composer Daniel Flors, Miguel Ángel Matéu and Teo Aparicio Barberán.
Later on, he completed his advanced degree in Musical Composition at the Conservatorio Superior de Castellón under master composers such as Ferrer Ferrán, César Cano, Miguel Ángel Berbis, Claudia Montero, Jesús Vizcaino and Emilio Calandín.
He also studied conducting under J. R. Pascual Vilaplana. His main activity as conductor has been with S.M. «El Arte» de Sinarcas (Valencia), recently winning First Prize and Honourable Mention at the 39th Certamen Provincial de Valencia (Provincial Competition of Valencia) and First Prize and Honourable Mentions at the 37th Certamen de Bandas de la Comunidad Valenciana (Valencian Region Band Competition).
In 2000 he won First Prize at the 1st Concurso Nacional de Música Festera de Altea (National Festival Music Contest of Altea), in 2002 he won the First Prize at the 2nd Concurso de Composición de Música Festera de Calpe (Festival Music Composition Contest of Calpe).
In 2000 he won First Prize for a Musical Composition for Symphonic Band (Finestrat), First Prize at the Concurso de Composición de Pasodobles de Sant Joan de Moró (Pasodoble Composition Contest of Sant Joan de Moró) in December 2009. He has also won the 5th Concurso de Composición «Vila de Muro» («Vila de Muro» Composition Contest) in 2015. He has also received numerous first runner-up prizes, second prizes and participation in many composition contest finals.
In 2014 he travelled to the U.S. where he recorded his Sinfonia nº. 1 «Kaprekar» with the Illinois State University Wind Symphony for the Naxos record label.
He is currently professor of Composition Harmony, Analysis and Fundamentals at the C.P.M. «Mestre Molins» de Quart de Poblet («Mestre Molins» Conservatory of Music of Quart de Poblet).
COMPULSORY PIECE: «LA ROSA DEL DESIERTO»
«La Rosa de Desierto» follows «El Agua Prodigiosa» in the trilogy that the composer dedicated to Johan and Pirluit, two characters from the Middle Ages created and drawn by comic book artist Pierre Culliford, a.k.a. «Peyo». The relative obscurity of these two characters is undeserved, as it was this comic book which introduced those little blue and white characters known as the Smurfs.
In this story, Johan and Pirluit get caught up in battles, celebrations, robberies, desert treks, and other episodes, finally rescuing a beautiful princess, the daughter of the Islamic Emir, who had given the Emir’s warrior a metal rose as a gift.
The score makes use of an eclectic idea to describe each situation, mixing different languages and styles ranging from modal passages of all kinds to atonal passages.
This piece shall serve to pay tribute to these two likeable characters, forgotten by some and unknown by the majority.