12.5% of all health problems are represented by mental disorders, a higher figure than that of cancer or cardiovascular diseases. Yet mental health remains one of society's major taboos. Fortunately, in recent decades great progress has been made toward normalizing it, but the road toward a healthy, open coexistence with mental health is still very long.

According to the Spanish Mental Health Confederation, 1 in 4 people worldwide has, has had, or will have a mental health issue at some point in their lives. Closer to home, a close relative of mine suffers from three mental disorders that shape and limit his daily life. In 2020, I decided I wanted to do something about it and began creating this project.

As an exercise for my psychological therapy sessions—which I started attending after three years of recurring anxiety episodes—I wrote a story inspired by this situation. From that story, I composed a suite for my quartet, which we've been fortunate enough to perform on stages across Europe and Asia. Since its inception, this project has had an interdisciplinary character, leading us to collaborate live with visual artists such as Irene Solé or Chen Xin.

The music of El Bosque is deeply influenced by the music I've played and listened to throughout my life. That's why audiences will find traces of flamenco, traditional Andalusian music, classical music, rock, and pop within the compositions. In addition, improvisation plays a central role, making every performance of El Bosque unique and unrepeatable.