Vicenç Bou i Geli (19 January 1885 – 6 January 1962) was a

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

Spanish composer. He was most well known for his compositions of the traditional sardanes, which he wrote with great fluency and little sophistication, but with a gift for charming and ingenious melody.

Biography

Vicenç Bou was born in Torroella de Montgrí. His father was Genis Bou Carreras and his mother Rita Geli Fontanet. He had his first music lessons from his father who was a

fiscorn A fiscorn () is a brass instrument. It is a bass flugelhorn in the key of C. In the cobla, it has the deepest sound among the brass instruments. Background Originally played in polka bands throughout Germany and the former Czechoslovakia, as we ...

player of the town cobla band ''La Lira'', one of the oldest in Catalonia. Later he learnt his principal instrument, the flabiol, with Pere Rigau. However he first joined the ''La Lira'' band at the age of 15, as a trombonist. He learnt violin with Josep Reixac and composition with Josep Maria Soler and Josep Pi, completing his formal musical education in 1906. In 1906 he married Teresa Robau, with whom he had five sons.

Sardanas

In 1909 he composed the first of his more than 175 sardanes, which are the works he is most well known for. Among his most popular are * ''Esperança'' * ''Cants de maig'' * ''L'anell de prometatge'' * ''Voliaines'' * ''Angelina'' * ''Continuïtat'' * ''Girona aimada'' * ''Festamajonera'' * ''Mimosa'' * ''Mar de xaloc'' * ''Revetlla'' * ''Esclats de joventut'' * ''Tossa'' * ''Flor de mar'' * ''L'espigolera'' * ''De Sant Feliu a S'Agaró'' * ''Els meus de Barcelona'' * ''La somrienta'' * ''Montserrat'' * ''Regalims del cor'' * ''Èxtasi'' * ''Mariagna'' * ''Sospirs d'amor'' * ''Otília'' * ''Flor de llevant'' * ''La mare cantora'' * ''Mirambell'' * ''Tonades de pastor'' * ''El saltiró de la cardina'' * ''Llevantina'' * ''La cardina encara salta'' * ''Pescadors bons catalans'' * ''Torroella vila vella'' * ''Record de Calella''

Musical legacy

In 1984 the family of the composer donated his personal archive to the Arxiu Historic de Torroella de Montgri. This consisted of 250 works in manuscript, 150 books and 200 written works. His sardana ''El saltiró de la cardina'' with words by Josep Maria Francès (composed 1912) is played in the 1957 film Spanish Affair. Extracted and translated from the Wikipedia page in Catalan

References

External links

*
Vicenç Bou i Geli, Biography and works in ''Musics per la Cobla'' (CA)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bou i Geli,Vicenç 1885 births 1962 deaths 20th-century classical composers 20th-century Spanish male musicians 20th-century Spanish musicians Composers from Catalonia Sardana Spanish classical composers Spanish male classical composers