Raíces

Raíces, which means roots in Spanish, was born from a chance encounter between a crystal-clear voice and a fiery piano, Latin American nostalgia and French elegance, reminiscences of the past and roots in the present.

Soprano Mariana Flores and pianist Simon Ghraichy met in 2016. From that moment on, they were both captivated by each other's worlds. They even shared the stage briefly at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris during one of the pianist's concerts. Their musical friendship and desires converged to give birth to this programme.

He, a Frenchman of Mexican origin, and she, an Argentinean and French-speaking by adoption, continue to build bridges between the two cultures of which they are so proud. They therefore wanted to explore their Latin roots and their French heritage in music through some of the most beautiful and elegant French melodies - Francis Poulenc's Airs chantés, Ludions by Erik Satie, Les Berceaux by Gabriel Fauré, the Spanish exuberance of the canciones clásicas españolas by Fernando Obradors, Los pajaros perdidos and Chiquilín de Bachín by Ástor Piazzolla, and the lively Latin American rhythms of Guastavino and Lecuona, among many others. Raíces will end on a playful note: original arrangements for piano and voice of popular Latin American songs. This is the beginning of a very promising duo, not to be missed!