The skiers and hikers who, on the last weekend of February, skirted the Cavallers dam to head through the mountains of the Vall de Boí, stopped in surprise when they saw a group of musicians with their instruments in tow, a double bass, two guitars, a violin, and all the equipment necessary to offer a concert at more than 2,200 meters above sea level. The singer Elisa Mas; double bassist Landry Riba; the violinist Pep Massana, and Jordi Font, on guitar, cheered on by an enthusiastic group of followers, invested all their energy in a climb that was not easy due to the weight they carried on their backs. At times the sun appeared and at times snowflakes fell, a preamble to the expected Pyrenean snowfalls. Halfway there, Pep took the violin out of its case and gave the respectable The Winter of Vilvaldi’s The Four Seasons, the succulent appetizer of the feast that awaited at the destination, the refuge of Ventosa i Calvell.
“When we get to the top we will have to tune the instruments, the cold and dryness do not suit them at all,” warns Landry, double bassist, trained veterinarian and now Secretary of State of Andorra for relations with the European Union. Experienced in adventure raids, mountain races and skiing, he moves with ease despite the more than 30 kilos he carries. Landry and Elisa, from Igualada, form the hard core of this particular band, Mountains of Music, whose connection is the love for the mountains and music.
The discomfort that comes with the entire operation of a high-altitude concert dissolves when caressing the first chords in a shelter or on a peak, after unloading the backpacks and taking off the skis or snowshoes.
Jordi Font, composer and guitarist who plays in the string quartet Barcelona Rock Strings and in the Mashup Party Band, puffs at every step, he is the least experienced hiker of the four, but his hobby is in crescendo. Next to him, Pep, violin teacher at the Igualada municipal conservatory and member of the Massana-Bonjoch duet, feels happy. He explains that with the group Amants de Lulú he already visited refuges in the Pyrenees years ago.
Late in the afternoon they see the needles of Travessani and the Estany Negre, at this time frozen, to reach Ventosa i Calvell shortly after, after four and a half hours of walking and overcoming 400 meters of slopes. The guards, Belén Ortiz and Miquel Sánchez, wait in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on dinner for more than 50 diners. Lovers of good music, this is not the first time they have organized concerts. The guitarist of the Australian band The Church, Marty Wilson-Piper, has passed through here; la Vella Dixieland, or the Californian Bart Davenport, among others.
The shelter is full. Many of the attendees are hikers who follow the band on their outings. Some help them transport some of the material. Elisa takes out the cables from the microphone, the amplifier, the tablet and the guitar to start setting up the small stage with her colleagues. They tune the instruments and get together with the public and friends for dinner. The party starts early, shortly after eight.
With mountain clothes and Crocs on their feet, they settle in a corner to reel off an eclectic repertoire of folk, rock, Irish popular music…, on a stage that could be the living room of your house. From Je veux by Zas to Country Roads by John Denver, I will wait by Mumford
Shortly after 10, as the shelters schedule, the last chords sound. Everyone will share a bedroom and the next day, in completely winter weather, some will ascend the peaks of the area to go down skiing and the musicians will descend back to Cavallers. The tour will continue on the 16th at the Amitges refuge and on April 20, at the Cap de Llauset refuge, both in the Pyrenees.