For many years, the Charlatans were perceived as the also-rans of Madchester, the group who didn't capture the Zeitgeist like the Stone Roses or the mad genre-bending of Happy Mondays. Of course, they were more traditional than either of their peers. Working from a Stonesy foundation, the Charlatans added dance-oriented rhythms and layers of swirling organs straight out of '60s psychedelia.
The corona distancing rules meant that Symphonia Momentum did not play in early August 2020. Instead, on the initiative of concert master and soloist Joel Bardolet, a trio of Catalan musicians who knew each other well but had never played together before came together in Munich. Astonishingly quickly, they found their own sound, and in intensive work, a polyphonically complex, highly demanding program was rehearsed, performed in a private concert and recorded within a week.