Premiered 100 years ago, during the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera, the work contains a subtle exaltation of Catalan identity, setting the Vallespir as an evocative landscape of an ideal of freedom. The protagonist, Eloi, a humble blacksmith, is torn between his love for Francina and his ideals, but this love is threatened by a turbulent environment marked by conflict and social tension. In the end, Eloi goes off to war and returns victorious, while Francina has remained faithfully waiting for him, in a reunion that resolves both the personal and collective conflict.

With evocations of the Pyrenean landscape and echoes of the sardana, the score includes memorable pieces that have endured in the collective memory, making the work one of the most beloved by Catalan audiences. A hymn to love, freedom and identity that, a century later, continues to move audiences and resonate deeply with them.