This CD presents itself before us like a photograph, still in development, of a part of the vital outline of Jesús Torres (b. 1965). It shows us his essential characteristics, his concerns, and the solutions he has adopted throughout the more than twenty years covered by this volume (1997-2018). The main body of the work was written between 1997 and 2004, the time of the composition of the Variations for cello and piano, but his resources already outline and anticipate a future whose culmination – at least for the moment – we can see in his vocal music and his opera, Tránsito (2020). And not only that, he also takes us into his personal relationships with musicians with whom he shares trajectory and who have been patrons of his music. Torres composes with specific musicians in mind, amplifying their technical and expressive qualities.

The technical difficulties of this repertoire are extremely taxing. Fortunately, for this CD, Alberto Rosado, promoter of the project, has brought together a group of exceptional performers, who offer absolutely brilliant interpretations. José Luis Estellés (Fantasía for clarinet and piano), Miquel Bernat (Splendens), María Zubimendi (Accentus), David Apellániz (Variations for cello and piano), Clara Andrada (Sonata for flute and piano) and Robert Silla (Silentum amoris) all make their corresponding interventions in exquisite and referential versions. Because after all the technical difficulties of this music, the desired reward comes to the fore. Torres offers unsurpassable moments of expressive beauty that take the performer and, therefore, the listener, to the expected Ithaca: towards pure enjoyment.