Program:

Notes:

Alvarez: Metro Chabacano (http://www.aec.at/prix/kunstler/Ejalvarez.html)
Born in Mexico City and voted the most interesting Mexican musician born in the 50's by musicologist Yolanda Moreno Rivas, Javier Alvarez is currently a freelance composer in London and Mexico City. The seminal idea for Metro Chabacano came from an earlier piece. Alvarez had presented to his parents as a Christmas gift in 1986, "Cancion de Tierra y Esperanza." In 1990, the sculptor Marcos Limenez approached Alvarez to use this piece to accompany one of his kinetic installations that was to be displayed in one of Mexico City's busiest subway stations for three months. Alvarez then reworked this piece, renaming it "Metro Chabacano" for the subway station where the dedication ceremonies took place in 1991.

Chavez: Sonatina (http://www.schirmer.com/composers/chavez_bio.html)
Carlos Chavez was born on June 13, 1899 in Mexico. Coming of age at the close of the Mexican revolution and during a time of renewed cultural nationalism, his investigation of indigenous Indian cultures, native folk elements, and dance forms brought an unprecedented vigor and visibility to 20th century Mexican music. The "Sonatina for Piano," which has been arranged here for string quartet by David Laurence, contains elements of Indian Nationalism in the form of nodal scales, a persistent recurrence of melodic and rhythmic motives, and a brutish dissonance. This was the first published work of Chavez in the US. Aaron Copland, who performed the Sonatina for Piano in a concert in London in 1931, said of the piece that it's Mexican flavor, free from any actual quotation of indigenous themes, was achieved by the composer's "rethinking the material until only its essence remained."

Elizondo: Danzas Latinoamericanas(http://web.mit.edu/mta/www/music/aurelius/1999/al/elizondo.html)
Danzas Latinoamericanas was commissioned by Mexican cellist Carlos Prieto in 1996. The movements of this suite for two cellos are based on national dances of Argentina, Brazil and Mexico respectively. Danzas is Elizondo's homage to Latin American composers whose music has exerted a formative influence on his work. Otoño en Buenos Aires is indebted to the new concert-style tango of Astor Piazzolla, as well as the melodic drama of Carlos Gardel's songs. Pan de Azúcar echoes the sensuous music of Antonio Carlos Jobim and the exuberant vitality of the works of Heitor Villa-Lobos. And Atardecer Tapatío was inspired by Arturo Márquez's colorful "danzones" and José Pablo Moncayo's festive Huapango.

Gershwin: Cuban Overture (http://www.gershwinfan.com/home.html)
Born 1898 in Brooklyn, New York, to immigrant parents, George Gershwin's compositions are often used today as examples of the American entrance to the serious musical world of Stravinsky, Chopin, Beethoven and Mozart. Inspired by a brief vacation to Havana in 1932, "Rumba" was George Gershwin's original title for the "Cuban Overture." He was so intrigued by the percussion instruments he heard there, that he brought several of these back to New York with him. The original scoring included maracas, bongo drums, gourd and Cuban sticks, and Gershwin made a note in the music that these instrumentalist should be placed in front of the orchestra in performance. The short 10-minute work invokes a non-stop cacophony of all-night parties, raucous street sounds and Cuban dances.

Villa-Lobos: Choros No. 2 for Flute and Clarinet (http://www.alternex.com.br/~mvillalobos/)
The Choro is an instrumental musical form characterized by improvisation and virtuosity. It originated in Rio de Janeiro during the 1870s as the Brazilian way of playing European dance music like waltzes and polkas. Traditionally, Choros were played by "musica de barbeiros" (music of barbers) -- small instrumental groups consisting of two guitars and a cavaquinho (a small mandolin-like guitar). These groups have existed since the middle of the 18th centrury. Later, they were modified by the addition of the flute, clarinet, and mandolin.
      Hundreds of Choro groups spent the night playing for food and drink in the private homes and restaurants of Rio de Janeiro. The young Villa-Lobos frequently joined these musicians. He would later compose a series of fourteen Choros in the 1920s, calling them "the essence of the Brazilian musical soul." This short, charming duet was composed during the first years of Villa-Lobos stay in Paris (1923-1930) and is thought to express his nostalgia for Brazil.

Ginastera: Duo for Flute and Oboe (1945) (http://www.ny.boosey.com/composerpages/ginastera.html)
Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) occupied a leading position in the musical world of his native Argentina. Though his compositional style began as extremely nationalistic, it later grew into a flexible application of Schoenbergs serialist principles. This duo, originally written for flute and oboe, was composed during Ginasteras neo-classic period where he started using more advanced compositional techniques. Though he eventually did away with many popular elements and standard musical forms, he continues to use them here for symbolic purposes. The outer movements of the duet strictly follow the Baroque contrapuntal procedures of Bach. The first movement is an invention; the last, a fugue. The writing is bright and witty as the two instrumental lines playfully intertwine. The poetic middle movement, however, is quite somber and forms the heart of this work. Ginastera creates the illusion of space by using simple melodies and open harmonies. In his own words, this movement has the "magical, mysterious sounds reminding [one of] the cryptic nature of the country."

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