The heroic lives of artists are debated in the Palau's videopodcast in the Rehearsal Room
Composer Raquel García-Tomás and writer Jordi Lara champion the role of artists as role models and the uniqueness of their works
Can art change the world? The video podcast "Rehearsal Room of the Palau de la Música Catalana" delves into the courage of those who make music, exploring what it means to be a hero or heroine in the creative world. Composer Raquel García-Tomás and writer Jordi Lara discuss past labels and new ways of creating with Richard Strauss and his Hero's Life As a backdrop, a work in which the composer played with this concept, reviewing his biography with large doses of irony.
"I think the idea of a hero or heroine implies this acceptance of suffering, of resilience, and it has many risks. I am a person who has strived a lot, who strives, who wants to continue striving and overcome my comfort zone, but perhaps leaving aside the idea of heroism," begins Raquel García-Tomàs, composer-in-residence at the Palau de la Música for the 2024-2025 season, winner of the 2020 National Music Prize and the 2024 National Culture Prize from CoNCA.
In fact, Jordi Lara explains, "you can abdicate heroism. At times we are all heroes in some area of life, not only in creation, but in other areas as well, and then we behave like anti-heroes, or even, as I like to say, counter-heroes for being an anti-hero, which also brings many burdens."
The constant struggle an artist faces to surpass themselves weighs as heavily as the sword of Damocles. This individual struggle, so characteristic of artists, is often driven by social pressure, but "fortunately, we are increasingly abdicating it," Lara adds.
The Romantic Imaginary
The romantic ideal speaks of the great creator, which, in Raquel García-Tomás's opinion, "is a very dangerous idea." The figure of the genius who is resilient to excess is counterproductive. "I am a great advocate of resilience, but everything in its place because it involves human suffering, economic hardship, poverty, misunderstanding, and so on." Between the romantic notion of "nobody understands me" and having to fight for greater professional stability, there is a middle ground. "How beautiful your life is creating, but so is having a better quality of life." "I maintain that we must update this idea of the romantic artist because creators also have labor rights like other workers," she emphasizes.
Lara reflects on what truly drives an artist to create and rejects grandiose visions of art as a mission to "save humanity" or to be recognized by posterity. Creating, she says, is not a response to lofty heroism, but to the intimate need to be true to one's own nature and to express what is inside. Each creator brings a unique and unrepeatable perspective to the world, and that value lies in singularity, not necessarily in artistic excellence. The singular value of the artist is as valuable as, or even more valuable than, everyday work. That's why, "I deeply admire the guy who comes to my house and fixes my blinds, because I don't know how to do it myself. Therefore, the idea of heroism, this notion of considering art a sublimation of the human soul, I think is a thing of the past."
From Hero to Role Model
“Those who see you as a hero or heroine see you as unattainable. On the other hand, the idea of being a role model, understood from a horizontal perspective, interests me much more,” explains Raquel García-Tomás. Jordi Lara speaks of singularity because “talent is the tool to be worked on and nurtured,” and that is what gives meaning to so many hours of work, effort, and solitude, says Raquel. Her international profile as a musician and a woman is “more than a responsibility, but I see it as an opportunity and try to downplay it, not because I don’t want to value what is said about me, but because otherwise it would be unbearable.” Furthermore, she considers, “it may last for a while and then it may not.”
"What's clear is that in the end, it's the work that gives it value, not the person," explains Jordi Lara, who cites as an example the "magic" of Don Quixote, which endures as a masterpiece over time, even though Cervantes' work "doesn't entirely interest me because, for me, he wasn't always a great writer, so he hasn't always been a great writer. However, I like this certain relativization of the artist's craft. An artist, first and foremost, must love their work," but the impact it may have is "much more relative."
Too much noise to create
In a contemporary context marked by hyperconnectivity, information overload, and constant noise, creative processes are profoundly affected. "I think what truly sets us apart from other eras is the constant access to information, and that destabilizes me tremendously," comments Raquel García-Tomás. Conversely, for Jordi Lama, the 21st-century artist must learn to discern within the noise because "there are things that can become part of your art, although it's much harder to know which ones." Both champion silence as a fundamental space for creation and as a form of contemporary heroism.