David Bowie’s last masterpiece shines on in Barcelona

No matter David Bowie died on January 10 last year; his music keeps evolving and shining on in new shapes and textures. Bowie’s most recent album, “Blackstar,” as well as his all-time classics “Space Oddity” and “Let’s Dance,” were brought back to life on Thursday 14 July by the Barcelona Symphony and Catalonia National Orchestra (OBC).

Directed by the American composer Evan Zipory and with Maya Beiser as the soloist cello, the orchestra played Bowie’s last record from beginning to end. “I realized his voice is in the same singing range than a cello, and that his last record was very colorful and so much like an orchestra already,” said Zipory after addressing the public at Barcelona’s Auditori.

The whole idea of the project came when Zipory realized following Bowie’s death how sadden not only he was, but everybody else he knew, and particularly musicians. In his own words, “Bowie Symphonyc” is his attempt to “spend a little bit more time with David Bowie’s music.”