Venezuelan Music, Musicians to Launch Bach Festival Society's 2015-16 Season, 10/17

By: Jul. 07, 2015
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Orlando, Fla. -- Bach Festival Society of Winter Park Artistic Director John V. Sinclair announced the launch of the 2015-2016 season with two performances of Music of the Americas, October 17, 2015, at Knowles Memorial Chapel in Winter Park. This collection of works celebrates the spirit of North and South America and includes Venezuelan composer Antonio Estevez's Cantata Criolla.

On the Program:

Antonin Dvorák | Symphony No. 9, "From the New World," Op. 95

Antonio Estevez | Cantata Criolla

Aaron Copland | "Hoe-Down" from Rodeo

Leonard Bernstein | West Side Story Suite

Composer Antonio Estevez's best known work, the 1954 Cantata Criolla, sets a Venezuelan mythic poem by Alberto Arvelo Torrealba about a singing contest between Florentino and the Devil. The Faustian legend takes on local color with Florentino's identification as a llanero (plainsman) and the contest being between copleros (singers that improvise on short poetic lines). Two soloists from Venezuela will join the Bach Festival Choir and Orchestra on this piece, beginning the Society's season exploring classical music throughout the world.

Venezuelan tenor Idwer Álvarez is closely involved in the musical life of the country and has performed this work many times. As a tenor soloist, he has performed with all major Venezuelan orchestras and throughout Europe and North, Central and South America. He recorded Cantata Criolla with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, playing the role of Florentino.

Baritone Juan Tomás Martínez, a native of Venezuela who now lives in Central Florida, has an extensive international career as a singer of opera, zarzuela, oratorios, recitals, and musicals. He won the Latin-American Luciano Pavarotti International Voice Competition in 1995. His father, Juan Martínez Herrera, was a leading figure in Venezuellan music, influential in the founding of Orfeón Carora, the first choir in Venezuella outside of Caracas; the Casa de la Cultura de Carora; and the first Children's Orchestra of Venezuela. The Martinez family has a rich history with composer Antonio Estevez.

"Antonio Estevez used to go to our home for vacations since I was a baby," said Martinez. "He was my father's mentor and was always presented to me as a musical grandfather. I learned the Cantata from him at his home in Baruta (a Caracas suburb) and have sung it over a hundred times."

Old World meets New World in Dvorák's instantly recognizable Ninth Symphony, one of the most beloved pieces in the classical repertoire. Epic in scope, the Czech composer's Ninth Symphony is overflowing with moments of drama, beauty, and just plain thrilling music. Filled with hummable melodies, bold horn calls, and an unforgettable, ever-present theme, the Ninth also evokes both Dvorák's new American home and the sounds of his native Bohemia.

Aaron Copland's ballet Rodeo is a celebration of the American West and reflects an important image of our frontier spirit and ourselves. The commission for Rodeo came, surprisingly enough, from the classically oriented Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, with the music by Copland and the choreography and scenario by Agnes de Mille. The iconic "Hoe-Down" movement is perhaps the best known of Copland's contributions to American music.

In new arrangements for the Bach Festival Choir and Orchestra, the Society pays tribute to the uniquely American form of musical theatre with selections from Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story.

The auditioned all-volunteer Bach Festival Choir is the nucleus of the Bach Festival Society, with a membership of over 160 singers from all walks of life who share a love of great music. Many members of the Choir have music degrees or advanced musical training, serve as educators in the Central Florida area, or maintain active schedules as soloists in churches and other venues throughout the community.

Tickets range from $25 to $60; $10 tickets for students can be purchased at the door, subject to availability. It all takes place on Saturday, October 17, 2015, at 3:00 pm and 7:30 pm at the Knowles Memorial Chapel, located on the campus of Rollins College, 1000 Holt Avenue, in Winter Park. Bach Festival Tickets are available by calling the Bach Festival Box Office at 407.646.2182 and online at www.BachFestivalFlorida.org.

Located in Winter Park, Florida, the Bach Festival Society is one of the longest continuously operating Bach Festivals in the country and among America's great oratorio societies. The Bach Festival Society brings the highest caliber of classical music to Central Florida. Performances are held in the intimate settings of Tiedtke Concert Hall and Knowles Memorial Chapel on the beautiful campus of Rollins College.



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