Tránsito

At a time when many Spanish republican ex-combatants and exiles still held out hope that the allied armies of World War II would put an end to the Franco regime, Max Aub anticipated the total stoppage of time to which history would condemn all of them in a labyrinth of conflicting loyalties, rifts and political and personal disappointments.

Tránsito [Transit] is a theatrical work written in 1944 and set on a restless night in 1947 during Mexican exile. It constitutes an ethical testimony of that historic moment and the literary base of this chamber opera in one act divided into twelve “instants”, written by Zaragoza-born composer Jesús Torres, the recipient of the Premio Nacional de Música in 2012. Torres’ operatic début is supported by a solid artistic career spanning more than three decades; he is an independent and versatile voice that has undergone increasing freedom, intensity and emotion with the passage of time, and a passionate connection with Spanish poetry that is always reflected in his musical production. Here, the music is dense and complex from the first strains of the orchestral prelude, a reflection of Max Aub’s unsettling text.