23 March 2001

       Carmen Bravo is a very charming woman that lives in a beautiful apartment on the Paseo de Gracia in Barcelona. This was Mompou's home as well since about 1975, and it is pretty much left the way it was when he was alive. I was able to sit in his favorite armchair, where he would sit and think about music.

    Carmen is very knowledgeable about music. She is an excellent pianist and has a full understanding of her husband's music.

    I played the entire Suite Compostelana, and we discussed interpretation. Most interesting was her suggestion that I change a note in the Coral in order to be consistent with a hymn that it was based on. She also mentioned that when you play Mompou, it is like you are always walking on carpet. It is rarely virtuosic - he hated that approach. I must say that I agree with just about everything she suggested.

    After a short break, with some refreshments, I played some of the transcriptions. She seemed to like No. 11 the best.

    From what I could gather, Mompou was an angel. He was very easy to live with. Sometimes very pensive, during which times Carmen would leave him to himself. Sometimes he would walk down Las Rumblas and sit in a cafe for hours. I do not think he was any kind of a slave to composition - it just kind of flowed out of him. He was an avid reader - mostly deep literature and philosophy.

    Carmen was very passionate about the composer's influences - not so much Ravel or Debussy, but definitely Faure. He was good friends with Erik Satie, but that's about it - just friends. I was interested to learn that one of his best friends was also Miguel Llobet - the great Spanish guitarist and composer.

    I feel that she was very enthusiastic about the whole project. We got along extraordinarily well, and plan to stay in touch.