Joan

Joan Cererols Fornells

Martorell , 1618
Monistrol de Montserrat , 1680

Composer, Performer i Teacher

Composer, organist and teacher

He studied at L'Escolania de Montserrat with Joan Marc. He spent his life in Montserrat: first as a monk (1646), then as as Kapellmeister (after spending a few months in Madrid), and finally as Mestre de l'Escolania from1658 (succeeding J. Marc). He played the organ, the harpsichord, the harp, the archlute, the violone and the tromba marina. The fire of 1811 that destroyed the archive of the monastery is assumed to have destroyed part of his output. Nevertheless, other Catalan archives hold 78 sacred vocal compositions. Among these compositions, the ones in Latin use counterpoint and homophony, have a severe style similar to that of Schütz, but also that of Victoria and the Roman school. Other compositions for double choir have an instrumental bass for the cantus. His Spanish vilancets, he used popular melodies and some freedom. The musicological research of D. Pujol and G. Estrada has contributed to the appreciation of the composer as a prominent figure of Catalan Baroque music.