For Immediate Release -- GIAN-CARLA, the acclaimed
Bolivian singer and arranger brings her debut project:
'Canciones de Cambio - Songs of Change: Love,
Folklore, Revolution and the Songs that Inspired Latin
America' to New York Cornelia Street Cafe
(New York, NY) -- On November 26th, 2011 GIAN-CARLA will bring
the sound track of some of the most beautiful epochs of Latin
American history to the performance space at The Cornelia
Street Cafe in New York's West Village. When Carlos Puebla
wrote Hasta Siempre Comandante, youth across Latin America
paid homage to Che Guevara with dreams of liberty, justice
and educated rebellion. Gracias a la Vida has moved
the souls of Latin Americans for more than 40
years with its tribute to the simplest things
in life. Besides presenting songs from the
protest and revolutionary movements that
swept Latin America in the 1960's and 70's -
'Canciones de Cambio' also brings the love songs
that conform the romantic longings and folk traditions of Latin
Americans from the 1800's and into the 20th Century: Historia de un
Amor, Esperame en el Cielo, Alfonsina y el Mar, Mujer Nina y Amiga and Mala-
guena Salerosa are just a few, exemplifying music from Argentina's and Chile's 'Nueva
Cancion' movement to the Mexican 'Son Huasteco' and famous 'Boleros' from Panama and Puerto
Rico. Boleros that defined Latin American identity in the 1930's, 40's and 50's, before the revolutions
that changed its history.
From Cuban 'Guajira' to Latin American Folklore and 'Trova', 'Canciones de Cambio' is a musical and socio-artistic experience where GIAN-CARLA's arrangements of Latin American songs are passionately charged with her operatic and folkloric singing fused live with the virtuosic improvisations of renown jazz artists.
Raised in Bolivia and the United States, influenced by both her classical training and the music that inspired her bohemian generation in Bolivia, GIAN-CARLA found the third piece to her artistic puzzle when she moved to New York City. Trained as an opera singer and classical pianist, she moved to New York with her dreams packed in four suitcases and her mother's blessing still shining on her forehead. She was completely mesmerized by the international array of artists playing in the subways: world music artists on instruments she had never seen before, musicians playing on anything they could find, opera singers belting out arias and even South American musicians mixing the music of their 'charangos' and panpipes with rock n' roll. She delved into the wondrous jazz and contemporary music scenes of the city, pushing herself into the late nights necessary to listen to jam sessions or to experimental artists playing during a late set.
As an opera singer and classical pianist she had found her flexible voice and her knowledge of music. But all the innovative and exciting music making in New York opened her mind and challenged her to find a new expression. She wanted to sing with her full voice, celebrate her inescapable Latin roots and channel it all through a modern medium of free and virtuosic interpretation. After many late sets, hundreds of hours spent with traditional and experimental musicians and countless days locked up in her small studio in Brooklyn - 'Canciones de Cambio' was born.
August 2010 / The Scotsman.com
Edinburgh International Music Festival
Jan Fairley
It's a moot point that possibly the only piece of music recognizably Bolivian in conventional terms came right at the end of this beautiful concert when, for the encore, Florilegium director and flautist Ashley Solomon produced an Andean bamboo quena flute and played a traditional piece learnt from a Bolivian master, while the four singers
became percussionists marking the rhythm with llama-hoof shakers.
While Caima, lyai Jesus - sung in delicate style by soprano Karina Troiano - was in an unnamed indigenous language, its form was undeniably European. Yet there was something about this concert that evoked that other 'new' world populated for the most part at the time by Amerindians.
It could be the way that, from the opening Sonata Chiquitanas XVIII, the musicians played this music culled from important missionary collections with extraordinary attention to subtle interplay, quiet dynamics and fine timbres.
The rapport between all including Manuel Minguillan Nieto on long-necked lute theorbo was palpable.
The singing was almost bird-like in sensitivity, the four voices like filigree decoration for the exquisite Si el amor and Gian-Carla Tisera singing the coloratura parts for Quis me a te and Beatus vir with thrilling yet superbly refined emotion.
January 2010 / The Straits Times
Baroque in Singapore Festival, Esplanade Concert Hall
Steering clear from the usual suspects of Bach's Brandenburg Concertos and Vivaldi's Four Seasons, the groundbreaking Baroque in Singapore series opened with a stiff dose of the obscure. British chamber group Florilegium with four Bolivian singers presented music from the Jesuit missions that operated deep in the Andes during the 17th and 18th centuries.
Indian natives were taught European music, composition and performance, resulting in a large corpus of works whose composers remain unknown or anonymous. Listening without preconceptions, these sounded much like Italian and continental music, without a trace of indigenous influences. Latin was used although some motets were sung in the Indian languages of the Chiquitos and Moxos.
However what distinguished was a lack of pretense and an unalloyed joy. The polyphony in Stella Coeli Extirpavit (Star of Heaven Brought Forth) and Tota Pulchra (Mary without blemish) was uncomplicated, with all four voices (left) blending with a purity that was simple yet touching. In the secular number Si El Amor (If Love Falls Asleep), each singer took turns to sing a strophe followed by a chorus of Let Him Sleep, which lent a touch of the theatrical.
The solos were also impressive. Soprano Gian-Carla Tisera negotiated treacherous Handelian runs in the florid motet Quis Me A Te (Who Will Part Me) while tenor Henry Villca exuded a casual, almost nonchalant, declaration of faith in Caima, Iyai Jesus (Today, Lord Jesus). Spinto-soprano Karina Troiano's intimate refrain of thanksgiving in Aqui Ta Naqui Iyai (Here Our Father is Present) was hard to resist, contrasted with mezzo Katia Escalera's fuller and voluptuous tone in In Hac Mensa (At This Table).
July 2011 / NiteLifeExchange.com
Midtown International Theater Festival
Rob Lester
The Excellent Musical, "Children of God," Is a Theatre-Goer's Prayer Answered
Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! There's a musical in town briefly --- but, I suspect, ripe and ready for a long run delighting audiences, that is satisfying in the ways we want musicals to be. If this show, looking at the intertwined members of a church, is preaching, it knows just how to weave in the gospel according to a class in Introduction to Musical Theatre Success. Let me testify.
Children of God lets us care for the congregation members' struggles by wooing us with comedy. Mixed into the hotbed of family tensions and teen angst with the congregation of spectacular talent that is its multi-ethnic, multi-talented cast. And they are given strong material and characterizations that make the people real, with idiosyncrasies, very recognizable human traits, challenges, and the common sin of pride. As directed with a sure and compassionate hand by Ben Harney, this tight cast and tight show are loveable and the battle of wills and stubbornness, standing ground and standing up for one's self and for what's right is involving and entertaining. And it never apologizes for or soft-pedals its religious faith. In other hands, the plot could curdle into soap opera movie-of-the-week weepiness and holier-than-thou finger-wagging or too cute. Instead, everyone is human and fleshed out, with faults and, rather than take sides, we see and sympathize with each person's point of view. All are treated with respect, rather than one person painted as right or righteous and the adversary of the moment being wrong or foolish. Embrace this one as it embraces life as anything but an ongoing struggle, but be just as ready to laugh your head off one moment and be moved, surprised, intrigued, and tearful the next. This show has everything, not the least of which is dynamic singing.
CB Murray, who wrote the strong songs and script, also passionately plays the dedicated pastor whose family could crumble before his struggling church does. Money is tight for church and step-son DC's college possibilities and he's more interested in a pop music career. DC is played with alternating wonderful kinetic, jangly short-fused nerves and puppy dog sweetness by Nathan Lucrezio, who also boasts a rangy singing voice. In the middle is the pastor's wife, with Ashley Taylor revisiting the role she's played before and imbuing her conflicts with a slowly-flowering strength. DC's equally testy high school peers prominent in his plan for "American Idol"- like overnight discovery in a talent hunt are played with firecracker feistiness by the likeable Keith Antone whose rap is rapturous and Jennie Harney, the director's supremely talented daughter who is endlessly hilarious as the don't-mess-with-me, filled with attitude and an evil eye for days. And, oh, can she sing and light up a stage! She lives with her grandma, no slouch herself in the area of strong-willed, determined women. Starlett Brown, thrillingly delivering inspirational numbers that soar and soothe, is divine and she can deliver a killer of a well-timed comic line, too.
Gian-Carla Tisera and Paul Geiger are appealing as a married couple having their personal problems and Stephen Glavin, also the show's producer, is engaging as a big pop star coming back to his alma mater when the music contest is about to take place. There is no weak link in the cast and each character gets strong moments and strong songs, with strong motivations. If some exposition and initial scenes of conflict seem a bit belabored, it's possibly because the cast members so crisply and economically define who they are and what their relationships and conflicts are. Sharp numbers include two of the teens confessing to themselves and each other that they are "Crushin'" on each other and one with the two married couples demonstrating how they put their "Church Face" on, no matter what may be troubling them on the inside (this song might be even better placed earlier). The two contemporary showpieces for showcasing the teen talent in the talent contest are terrifically entertaining and get my vote, too. So does this whole show, in every possible way. The only remaining questions are: (1) Are those tears of sympathy, tears from laughing til we cry, or tears of joy from being moved?; (2) How does Jennie Harney throw back her head and sing and do all those facial reactions without that ever-present, in-character gum she chews falling out of her mouth?; (3) What theatre will hold Children of God's run and hold on to its roof?
August 2008 / Valladolid, Spain – Transculturación
Rosa Sanz Hermida
En el año 2003, el flautista inglés Ashley Solomon hizo
unas pruebas para seleccionar cantantes aborígenes
que interpretaran música de las misiones bolivianas
de Chiquitos y Moxos. Con buen criterio pensaba
Solomon que el repertorio ganaría en pureza y
frescura al contar con voces autóctonas
susceptibles de imprimir un carácter más
«auténtico» a la interpretación. El elenco
resultante quedó integrado por las sopranos
Katia Escalera y Alejandra Wayar, la mezzo
Gian-Carla Tisera y el tenor Henry Villca,
que se incorporaron inmediatamente al
plan de trabajo de Florilegium; en menos
de un año grabaron un primer disco monográfico
con la Chanel Classics -«Baroque music from the
missions of Chiquitos and Moxos Indios»-, muy bien
acogido por la crítica, y comenzaron una gira internacional
que precisamente acaba de traerles a la iglesia de San Pablo
de Valladolid, dentro del ciclo «Música y Patrimonio» de la Fundación
Caja Madrid. El programa recogía algunas obras incluidas en la mencionada
edición discográfica, así como otras piezas procedentes de los ricos archivos
coloniales; sin duda una sustanciosa muestra del barroco americano en el que es
más llamativo la impronta europea que el color indígena, a pesar de lo que puedan
sugerir algunos de sus títulos. De hecho, a excepción del villancico de Juan de Araujo y del
motete «Stella coeli», gran parte del repertorio responde al estilo operístico italiano, con arias
da capo, de bravura, fragmentos en concitato, etc. Incluso la cantata sacra «In hoc mundo»
(que erróneamente figura en el programa como «motete») se ciñe a esta característica formal,
claro exponente de la circulación ultramarina de partituras y músicos en esa época. Florilegium y
los solistas bolivianos ofrecieron una interpretación muy notable, con un criterio paradójicamente
muy inglés: música muy bien hecha, de impecable factura, ajustada en los tempos y dinámicas, bien
empastada, de fraseo elegante (especialmente la flauta y el primer violín), compacta sonoridad y
aquilatada afinación. Los cantantes abordaron el repertorio también desde una técnica muy «inglesa»,
que confirió al experimento de Solomon un sabor netamente europeo. En definitiva, un viaje musical al
Nuevo Mundo con billete de ida y vuelta.
June 2007 / Austin, Texas
11th Annual Austin Chamber Music Festival
Michelle Schumann, Artistic Director
Welcome to the 11th Annual Austin Chamber Music Festival. We have an extraordinary line-up of artists
and concerts this summer and I can’t wait to experience them all with you! For the first time, the chamber
music festival presents an opera: mezzo-soprano Gian-Carla Tisera and Festival Artists will perform the
“The Diary of Anne Frank,” by Gregori Frid, using Frank’s own words, and conducted by Andreas Mitisek.
Continuing the spirit of crossover collaborations, this festival brings dance together with chamber music
in a performance by American Repertory Ensemble, made up of principal dancers from Joffrey, San
Francisco, and Atlanta ballets performing alongside top-tier Austin chamber musicians. I look forward to
seeing you during this stellar summer of concerts. In our 11th year we’ll set the bar for the greatest
chamber music experiences you can imagine. Be there with us when it happens!
* This performance was cancelled.
May 2007 / Los Angeles Times
L.A. Philharmonic plays the sounds of the 'thaw'
GREEN is the color of renewal - grass, trees and all that - and the shade of a not healthy face. Green
stands for progressive politics. Through a quick search of the Internet, I learned about Green Christianity,
which treats our ecological crisis as a spiritual one.So it makes a kind of sense to think of Stalin's shadow
as casting a queasy green pall - nauseating but also compelling spiritual rebirth. Such was the pall cast at
Walt Disney Concert Hall on Tuesday night for the Green Umbrella component to the Los Angeles Philhar-
monic's "Shadow of Stalin" series. Schnittke's Symphony No. 4, written in 1984, was the evening's big work.
It is an unconventional chamber symphony with lots of bells and gongs as well as big parts for piano,
celesta and harpsichord and small parts for four vocal soloists.Describing the score, Schnittke, who died in
1998, said that it represents the rosary and includes "five happy, five tragic and five miraculous episodes
from the Mother of God." In it, Schnittke brilliantly combined the musical traditions of Russian Orthodoxy
with the grandly dissident symphonic tradition of Shostakovich. Short vocalises by tenor Timur Bekbosunov
and mezzo-soprano Gian-Carla Tisera, respectively, ended the first and second sections. Soprano Karen
Hogle Brown and bass-baritone Aaron Cain sat patiently for 40 minutes until the symphony ended with a
numinous vocal quartet and bells fading into the distance. Mickelthwate, who is nearing the end of his
tenure as the orchestra's associate conductor, led a masterful, commanding performance.
January 2007 / Pasadena, California – Society
Pasadena Symphony To Present ‘No Strings Attached’
The Pasadena Symphony will ring in the New Year on Saturday, Jan. 20, with a musical toast to one of the
most revered composers throughout the ages, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as well as a modern day artist,
John Adams, whom reviewer David Lynch of the Austin Chronicle likens directly to Mozart. The presentation
is entitled “No Strings Attached,” featuring Mozart’s Serenade No. 10, K. 361 Grand partita for woodwinds
and Adams’ Grand Pianola Music for two pianos, voices and a wind ensemble. Soloists will include pianists
Robert Thies and Gloria Cheng, sopranos Jamie Chamberlin and Michele Eaton, and mezzo-soprano
Gian-Carla Tisera. “The entire program, which we have titled ‘No Strings Attached,’ is also a tribute to the
woodwind and percussion families of instruments,” O’Connor said. “The Grand partita is scored for wood-
winds and double bass while Grand Pianola Music calls for a wind ensemble, voices, and not one but two
pianos. We hope the community will take advantage of this opportunity to enjoy a very unique evening of
glorious music.”
June 2006 / Aya _rini Museum, Istanbul
Since the group was founded in 1991, I Florilegium has been taking early music all over the world, earning
a reputation as one of the most accomplished ensembles in its field. In the festival this year, the ensemble
will be accompanying 4 Bolivian Soloists in a programme that includes the works Sonata Chiquitanas XVIII,
Stella Caeli, Aria In Hac Mensa Novi Regis, Caima Iyai Jesus, La Folia, Exaltate Regem Regum, Pastoreta
Ychepe Flauta, Tota Pulchra and Aqui Ta Naqui Iyai, together with D. Zipoli’s Motet In Hoc Mundo and
Beatus Vir. Based on the theme of ‘Baroque music from missions of the Chiquitos and Bolivia’s Moxos
Indians’, the concert promises to be one of most unique and interesting evenings of the festival. The line-up
of soloists features sopranos Katia Escalera and Alejandra Wayar, tenor Henry Villca and mezzo-soprano
Gian-Carla Tisera. Garnering awards and critical acclaim for their performances both in Bolivia and latterly
the USA and Europe, the four Bolivian soloists have also made a number of popular recordings with
I Florilegium. This evening of Bolivian Baroque is recommended in particular to festival goers with an
interest in vocals and chamber music.
December 2005 / LA Weekly
The Festive Muse
No sooner had the stardust settled from the morning performance of the Adams glory than siege was laid
to the Disney stage by the assembled forces of the ineffable P.D.Q. Bach and his scarcely more effable
doppelgänger, Peter Schickele. A newly fangled P.D.Qcantata, “Gott sei dank, dass heute Freitag ist,”
figured clamorously among the offerings: “God be thank that today Friday is” (which indeed it was). The
Schickele/P.D.Q. team has been at it lo these many decades; everyone I spoke to the other night had his
own memories, usually involving Great Entrances: down the high wire, up from the Hollywood Bowl lagoon,
the post-deadline tumultuous dash down the center aisle. Friday’s mere mosey out from the wings at
concert time seemed a letdown. Okay; muscles get old, and stiff. I might have thought the audience (near-
capacity, as usual) would be mostly old-timers reliving memories. The high percentage of teens and college-
age kids was encouraging.The muscles have stiffened; the brain has not. A tiny set of Shakespeare settings
was ascribed to Schickele, not to P.D.Q., but in reality it had a delightful mix of both: elegant, literate poetic
bits (soliloquies from Macbeth, Romeo and Hamlet and Marc Antony’s speech from Julius Caesar musicked
to tiny shards of jazz, boogie-woogie, blues, etc., but none lasting more than a sneeze). Two choral pieces –
one delectably titled The Art of the Ground Round, the other a clutch of anti-Christmas ditties – nicely
underscored the underlying marvel of this whole P.D.Q. Bach business: an unerring sense of humor
combined with the musical knowledge to reinvent an imitation, just slightly skewed musical style so close to
the victim of its satire that you just never know the which from the what. A supporting orchestra, mostly
Philharmonic players, went nicely along with the gags under Joana Carneiro’s direction. Soprano Michèle
Eaton, tenor profundo David Düsing and an enchanting small handful of mezzo-soprano named Gian-Carla
Tisera made up the vocal contingent.
December 2005 / Los Angeles – La Cañada Valley Sun
Let the holiday season begin! That was the message at last Friday evening's fabulous USC Thornton
School of Music "Charles Dickens Dinner" held at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.
The festivities began curbside when guests, alighting from their cars, were greeted by a brass busker band,
reminiscent of a street group of musicians from Victorian England.A town crier, also dressed in Victorian-
style clothing, announced that the tables had been set and the feast was to begin. Trumpeters heralded the
opening of the doors to the grand Crystal Ballroom, which was aglow with candlelight and beautiful flowers.
Claude and Al Mann were the dinner chairs who coordinated this wonderful event.Rob Cutietta, dean of the
USC Thornton School of Music, stepped to the podium to welcome the formally dressed crowd. He raised
his glass in a toast to all attending and the upcoming holiday season. His wife Marybeth looked radiant in
her gown fashioned from burgundy-hued velvet.The evening, in essence, was a showcase of the talents of
the many USC Thornton School of Music students ranging from opera to jazz, with the addition of students
from the Theatre School.The dinner, the most successful in its 19-year history, honored Joan and John
Hotchkis with the John C. Argue Dickens Medals of Honor and violinist Robert Mann with the Magnum
Opus Award.Mezzo-soprano Gian-Carla Tisera received the Joan and John Hotchkis Award. She was born
in Bolivia and immigrated to the United States as a child. It was with great pride that she introduced her
mother to the guests, saying that as a single mother she had worked as many as three jobs in order to pro-
vide her with music education.Gian-Carla has sung throughout the world as a soloist and is looking forward
to performing with Florilegium in the Baroque Festival of Miami and will travel with them in the Bolivian
Baroque world tour. She is currently completing her master's degree in vocal arts at USC and studies with
Elizabeth Hynes. Dressed in a vibrant green gown, Gian-Carla enchanted the guests by singing "Una voce
poco fa" from "Il Barbiere de Siviglia" by Gioachino Rossini.
September 2005 / New Jersey - Overtures
A Triumph of Nerve and Verve: NJOT’s 2005 Season
by:Ruth Zalesk
In its second consecutive season, NJOT performed an enticing trilogy of operas, including Mozart’s glo-
rious Le nozze di Figaro, Rossini’s hilarious Il Barbiere di Siviglia, and Massenet’s charming Chérubin.
Each libretto derived, either directly or circuitously from the plays of Pierre de Beachmarchais. The season
opened on August 12 the season opened with Le nozze di Figaro conducted by NJOT’s principal conductor
Michael Recchiuti and directed by David Grabarkewitz. On August 14 Rossini’s, Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Bar-
ber of Seville) entered the repertoire, conducted by Brent McMunn and directed by Rhoda Levine. Finally,
on August 18 Massenet’s Chérubin debuted, conducted by Mark Flint, and directed by Marc Verzatt. Rossi-
ni’s Barbiere was sung with great gusto and true feeling for the composer’s keen sense of absurd silliness.
Jason Kaminski as the barber Figaro showed complete ease with the patter passages and stage business.
Jorge Garza was a valiant Almaviva. Gian-Carla Tisera made Rosina’s coloratura seem effortless. She
exhibited a rich, creamy mezzo voice well suited to this spunky role. Stepanos Tsirakoglou and Richard
Cassell, the Don Bartolo and Don Basilio, were hilarious as self-absorbed senior citizens.
Margaret O’Connell proved that Berta can be sung with great charm.
August 2005 / Princeton, New Jersey – Courier Times
Rossini's "Barber" still packs 'em in
The New Jersey Opera Theatre, in only its second
season in Princeton, has scored a brilliant coup with a
production of a well-loved classic that is notable for its
freshness, canny characterization, and brilliant singing
from a promising young cast. With its first performance
of Gioachiano Rossini's "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" sold
out, NJOT will host two more performances, August
17 and 19.One delightful aspect of the NJOT
production is that the singers are relatively
near the ages of the characters they
portray, though their vocal talents show
maturity and polish. Tenor Jorge Garza's
Count is lithe and eager, and enters
into the tomfoolery with spirit. Baritone
Jason Kaminski's Figaro takes the
stage with youthful exuberance, as he
announces himself to be "the factotum of the town."
Indeed, everybody looks to himto get things done,
and he is padding his pocket with the proceeds.
Gian-Carla Tisera has a dramatic beauty to match
her rich mezzo voice, and she makes easy work of
the runs and trills that dot Rosina's arias. Bass-
baritone Stephanos Tsirakoglou portrays Don
Bartolo with dash, and the two have a good rapport
in their comedic confrontations.Smaller roles are
nicely filled by Margaret O'Connell as Berta, Bartolo's
maid; Joel Herold as the Count's minion; and Richard
Cassell as Don Basilio. A responsive ensemble of ser-
vants, soldiers and policemen round out the mayhem.
Brent McMunn leads the orchestra with verve without
over-powering the singers. Stage director Rhode Levine
mines the script for comic opportunities that delight the
audience. Hannah Price provides a stage set that meets
every need without being fussy, and Marie Miller provides
the attractive period costumes.
August 2005 / Princeton, New Jersey - TimeOFF
'Il Barbiere di Siviglia' by Stuart Duncan
The action takes place in Seville in the 1920s in this production,
staged by New Jersey Opera Theater. Il Barbiere di Siviglia
(The Barber of Seville) was a fiasco on its opening night in Rome
on Feb. 20, 1816, but a runaway success ever since. The work — with
a text based on a Beaumarchais novel and music by Gioachino Rossini
— has long been favored by coloratura sopranos, despite being subjected
to disfiguring cuts. Recently it has taken on a new lease on life (hardly
needed) as coloratura mezzos have sung it — as Rossini originally intended.
The composer, who wrote "serious" operas, here shows off his wit and musical
invention. And it is with this spirit that New Jersey Opera Theater has brought us
its version at the Berlind Theatre at McCarter. Director Rhoda Levine not only has
moved the action of the evening to Seville in the 1920s, but filled the stage with witty bustle
(each of the scruffy band of local musicians in the opening scene, for example, comes on stage
with a decided character of his own). Later the same group will become the local soldiers, each
again with individual characters and mannerisms.Nor has Ms. Levine forgotten the principals: the
handsome Jason Kaminski as Figaro, and the lovely Gian-Carla Tisera as Rosina, singing like the
proverbial bird with stunning power and warmth. Richard Cassell as Basilio is ready to change sides
and allegiances at the toss of a few coins, and Stephanos Tsirakoglou, as Dr. Bartolo, is at once imperious
and conceited, humble and outwitted. Ms. Levine plants her seeds of humor and watches them sprout, much
like slander from a whisper.Conductor Brent McMunn shows right from the start that he admires Rossini. The
overture is a thing of real beauty (even if legend is correct that he stole it from another of his operas). In his
program notes, Mr. McMunn points out that Rossini was only 24 years old when he penned the entire opera
in an unbelievable 13 days. In another paragraph he notes the composer's use of melody shades and rhythms
to create stage characters and points to Rossini's imaginative use of "crescendos." An evening of delight and
admiration of the young talent.
August 2005 / Santa Cruz, Bolivia – El Nuevo Día
Ya se empieza a respirar a música barroca. A siete meses de realizarse el VI Festival Internacional de
Música Renacentista y Barroca Americana “Misiones de Chiquitos” la Asociación Pro Arte y Cultura (APAC),
entidad que organiza el encuentro, ya definió la fecha de su realización, entre el 27 de abril y el 7 de mayo
de 2006.Además, ya tiene listo el afiche que identificará a la fiesta barroca, el cual se presentará oficial-
mente el martes venidero en un acto especial en el que también se lanzará el Cd y DVD “Barroco boliviano
de Chiquitos y Moxos”, disco interpretado por el grupo inglés Florilegium y cuatro solistas bolivianos: Katia
Escalera y Giancarla Tisera, de Cochabamba, y Alejandra Wayar y Henry Villca, de La Paz.El afiche del
Festival 2006 se basa en un óleo realizado por la artista plástica Guiomar Mesa, inspirado en la sirena de
madera que se encuentra en el púlpito de la iglesia de San Miguel, única sirena barroca en la Chiquitania.
Por otra parte, el disco y DVD “Barroco Boliviano de Chiquitos y Moxos”, el cual tiene una presentación de
lujo que incluye fotografías que muestran las Misiones, se hizo realidad gracias a gestiones APAC y las
fundaciones holandesas Príncipe Claus y Doen. El proyecto se llevó a cabo en Concepción con un grupo
de expertos del sello holandés Channel Clasics. En este material se hallan los archivos musicales de
Chiquitos (Santa Cruz) y de Moxos (Beni).El ensamble debutó en el V Festival “Misiones de Chiquitos”,
convirtiéndose en la “producción estrella” del evento y el resultado de la grabación es este CD y DVD, el
mismo que ya se lanzó en Europa y ganó varios premios importantes tales como el Editor´s Choise y el
Early Music.En Bolivia se lanza con una producción totalmente nacional: la diagramación es de Gutiérrez
& Nallar, las fotografías de Jimena Pereda y Sol Mateo, el DVD fue realizado por la empresa Tupac Pro-
ducciones y el copiado del disco fue responsabilidad del estudio Cantus.
2004 Prince Claus Artistic Productions
Bolivian Baroque Music: An audio CD production and concert tour
The Prince Claus Fund financed the release of a CD of 17th century Bolivian Baroque music that has never
previously been performed or recorded. Florilegium, the British baroque chamber orchestra, and four Boli-
vian singers Katia Escalera, Alejandra Wayar Soux, Henry Villca Suntura and Gian-Carla Tisera are creating
a global platform for this music from the Moxos region.It was in 2001 that the Indian population first revealed
the 17th century Baroque music of Moxos to the outside world. Only the Baroque music of Chiquitos had been
known to exist until that time. European Jesuits and, subsequently, Franciscans had introduced this music to
Moxos, and the local inhabitants had then begun to create new compositions.The people of Bolivia have con-
tinued to make and play various stringed instruments, including the violin and cello, until this very day. This
17th century music has survived because the Indian population of Bolivia has carefully preserved its scores,
and the archive now contains approximately 10,000 original examples.On 3 May 2004 the Bolivian Baroque
music was performed at La Paz cathedral as a part of the Apac Festival (Association Pro Art and Culture).
The concert was attended by an audience of 2,000 people that included President Carlos D. Mesa Gisbert of
Bolivia. To promote the CD, the orchestra and singers will embark on a European tour, visiting cities such as
Amsterdam, London and Vienna in 2005.Prior to this European tour, the Prince Claus Fund contributes to the
international training programme of the four singers.
Bolivian Baroque music in Concert Hall Amsterdam:
The first European concert of Bolivian Baroque music will be held in the Main Auditorium of Amsterdam’s
Concertgebouw on Monday, 31 January 2005 and will be performed by Bolivian soloists and the English Ba-
roque ensemble Florilegium. Auditions were held in Bolivia this spring and led to the discovery of the natural
talents of Katia Escalera, Henry Villca Suntura, Alejandra Wayar Soux and Gian-Carla Tisera. Accompanied
by Florilegium, these singers performed the concert’s world premiere in May during the APAC Festival of
Latin American Baroque Music in Santa Cruz. The performances are the result of a collaboration between the
Asociación Pro Arte y Cultura (APAC) of Santa Cruz (Bolivia), the Prince Claus Fund and the DOEN Foun-
dation. This co-operation included the restoration, conservation and circulation of this unique Bolivian musical
heritage. In 2001, thousands of pages of late 17th century scores, which were partly the work of Indian com-
posers, were discovered in former mission areas in the Amazon region. The renowned Dutch label Channel
Classics made CD recordings and the CD will be launched at the concert in Amsterdam.
Bolivian Baroque: a musical surprise:
Bolivian Baroque music has a natural allure. It is joyous music, and the scores are structured in a clear and
symmetrical way. Chiquitos and Moxos belonged to the Jesuit missions in the east of Bolivia, where this mu-
sic was developed throughout the 18th century. Following the forced departure of the Jesuits in 1767, the
population carefully preserved the scores and continued to compose Baroque music and to produce string-
ed instruments. The Chiquitos and Moxos archive contains ten thousand pages of original scores dating from
this period. Since the 1990s, APAC has been actively collecting and interpreting this musical heritage, and
supports the setting up of youth orchestras and choirs in this area. In addition, it has been organising a bi-
ennial festival of Baroque music in Santa Cruz and the former mission areas of Chiquitos, Moxos and Gua-
rayos since 1996. In 2004, participating ensembles included 15 from Latin America, ten from Europe and
several from the United States and Japan.
South American press praises soloists at spring 2004 concert:
The four Bolivian soloists were selected at the auditions held in January 2004. There are only limited oppor-
tunities for musical training in Bolivia. The soprano Katia Escalera and mezzo-soprano Gian-Carla Tisera
trained in the United States. Soprano Alejandra Wayar Soux attended the La Paz conservatory in Bolivia.
Tenor Henry Villca Suntura has no formal training but has worked as a singer of Mexican Mariachi and other
traditional music. It was in this capacity that he was discovered and asked to participate in the auditions. The
new ensemble – consisting of the soloists and Florilegium - gave concerts in Concepción, Santa Cruz and La
Paz during the APAC Festival in April of this year. The music for these concerts was selected by Piotr Nawrot,
a musicologist and APAC’s musical director. The South American press in Santiago, Buenos Aires and Mon-
tevideo unanimously declared the four Bolivian singers to be the major surprise of the 2004 festival.
First European tour in January 2005:
A series of concerts will be held at the beginning of 2005 in Amsterdam, London and Vienna, during which
the CD will also be launched. To prepare for this tour, the Bolivian soloists attended an extensive training
program that included a series of master classes. The Prince Claus Fund: This project embodies the Prince
Claus Fund’s appreciation of the Bolivian musical heritage. During this undertaking, the Fund has scouted
and encouraged exceptional talent, and is presenting, at an international level, work that has never been
performed before. Contact was established with APAC in 2002, when the Fund honoured Marcelo Araúz,
APAC’s founder, with a Prince Claus Award for his activities on behalf of the preservation and circulation of
the Bolivian musical heritage.
The DOEN Foundation:
The DOEN Foundation strives to make the world a better place to live in. With the support of the Dutch Na-
tional Postal Code Lottery, it funds organisations and projects that specialise in the areas of mankind and
nature. DOEN feels that it is important that Bolivian Baroque music - the cultural heritage of the indigenous
communities - should be made accessible at an international level so that it can receive recognition both in
Bolivia and the West. This extraordinary international collaboration represents an important contribution to
this process. In addition, the partnership between the four Bolivian singers, Florilegium and the organiser
APAC has ensured that the ‘ownership’ of Bolivian Baroque music has been established as a part of Bolivian
culture. Here, the CD and the tour represent an additional stimulus for Bolivian music. These activities have
motivated DOEN’s support for this exceptional project.
April 2004 / Santa Cruz, Bolivia – El Deber
Erick Ortega
El conjunto artístico Florilegium llegó a Santa Cruz de la Sierra y ultima los detalles para su participación en
el Quinto Festival Internacional de Música Renacentista y Barroca Americana.No es la primera vez que los
músicos actúan en el festival. Dos años atrás su espectáculo causó sensación entre los espectadores cru-
ceños. Debido a esta razón, el público acude a las ventanillas de la Asociación Pro Arte y Cultura con varios
días de anticipación. “Es el grupo que más se vende hasta el momento”, afirma María José Parejas, coordi-
nadora del evento.“Es un honor que esto suceda”, manifiesta Ashley Solomon, director y fundador del grupo.
El éxito de lo barroco en Bolivia, según Solomon, se debe a que la variedad de música que ha sido descu-
bierta y su interpretación produce sensaciones únicas de experimentar, “La persona que cierre los ojos en
los conciertos podrá hallar vida a las partituras que encontramos y que rescatamos. Esta música tiene alma.
Tiene alegría, frescura, yo espero que el público pueda sentir lo que nosotros expresamos. El director se re-
fiere con respeto a la música que se compuso en la época barroca: “No tenemos una máquina del tiempo
para volver a escuchar la música, pero es como creemos que sonaba”.Además de la música barroca, que
los encumbró hace un par de años, en la versión 2004 festivalera, Florilegium incorporó voces bolivianas
para su espectáculo. “Son voces únicas, que no pueden ser encontradas en otros países.
Estas voces bolivianas son capaces de provocar un ensamble
singular en la música barroca”, manifiesta Solomon.Para la
elección de las voces se realizaron pruebas de canto
durante tres días y se eligió a los cuatro cantantes,
luego de haber escuchado a 15 postulantes que
llegaron de diferentes regiones del país. Katia Escalera,
Alejandra Wayar, Gian Karla Tisera y Henry Villca,
los músicos nacionales escogidos por Solomon expresa-
ron su alegría al participar en el evento. “Es una
gran experiencia. Es un servicio a la patria y es abrir
las puertas para que otros bolivianos también puedan
triunfar en el extranjero”, manifestaron emocionados.
Durante su estadía en el festival, Florilegium grabará
un disco compacto con las interpretaciones de los bolivia-
nos. Se prevé que la producción esté concluida hasta
octubre próximo. Luego empezarán las giras musica-
les por el Viejo Mundo. Será la ocasión propicia para que
las voces sean escuchadas en las distintas capita-
les de Europa. La pasada temporada Florilegium, junto
a Emma Kirby, presentó un grupo de repertorio de
música de Chiquitos y Moxos en el Wigore Hall de Londres.
El éxito de este concierto fue muy alentador, por lo que este
año están realizando junto a cuatro cantantes bolivianos la
grabación de un CD, para el sello Channel Classics, con música
de Moxos. El grupo espera el lanzamiento de esta grabación, a
principios del 2005, para ofrecer conciertos en Europa.
March 2004 / La Paz, Bolivia – Bolivia.com
Cantata "Bolivia" conmemorara logros históricos de la Sinfónica
La Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional (OSN) iniciará su primer
programa de la Temporada 2004 denominado con el estreno
de la Cantata "Bolivia" de Erich Eisner en el marco de
"Recordamos y Celebramos la Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional
y su Historia", que se llevará a cabo los días martes 23,
miércoles 24 y jueves 25 de marzo a horas 20:00, en el
Teatro del Centro Sinfónico Nacional, calle Ayacucho 366.
David Händel, director titular de la Orquesta Sinfónica
Nacional, aseguró que la mejor manera de celebrar los
avances y la historia de la OSN será presentar la Cantata
"Bolivia", escrito por el Maestro Erich Eisner, primer Director
Titular de la Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional, y letra de la
poetisa boliviana, Yolanda Bedregal.También el programa
oficial consigna el estreno mundial de la obra "Quincuagésima
Puerta" de David Winkler que fue comisionado por la Fundación
Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional. Winkler es uno de los compositores
más destacados de la actualidad a nivel internacional. Otra
obra musical incluida será "Kol Nidre" de Max Bruch, con la
participación de Eduardo Vargas en el cello. La OSN compartirá
escenario con la Sociedad Coral Boliviana y destacados solistas
como Karina Stepanian (soprano), Gian-Carla Tisera
(mezzosoprano), Henry Villca (tenor), Germán Salinas
(barítono). Además, la Coral Adventista "Los Andes".
November 2003 / La Paz, Bolivia – La Razón
"Amor sin barreras" estará tres días en el teatro La Paz
Este 4, 5 y 6 de noviembre, las melodías de West Side Story,
de Leonard Bernstein, recordarán la llegada de este músico a Bolivia hace
45 años."Las melodías de amor más conocidas", es la frase que invita al público
a ver a la Sinfónica Sincopada con West Side Story (Amor sin barreras), de Leonard
Bernstein, que se presentará en el Centro Sinfónico de la calle Ayacucho, ex cine
La Paz, los días 4, 5 y 6 de noviembre a las 20.00. Se trata de un repertorio
norteamericano del siglo XX que cuenta la historia de amor entre Tony y María
durante una guerra de pandillas entre locales y puertorriqueños –Jets y Sharks–
en una clara versión de Romeo y Julieta de Shakespeare, ideada por Bernstein y
Jerome Robbins que finalmente fue estrenada en 1957 con éxito en Broadway.
El siguiente año Bernstein fue nombrado director de la Filarmónica de New York y
pasó por Bolivia, dejando como constancia una dedicatoria que data del 16 de mayo de
1958. 45 años después, la Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional (OSN) y la Sociedad Coral Boliviana
(Socobol) se unen para presentar un concierto en que el público podrá interactuar con los
solistas. El papel principal es el de una muchacha latina muy tradicional, María, encarnado
por Gian-Carla Tisera, una cantante lírica cochabambina que vive en Los Ángeles.
"Es muy emocionante para mí y un reto, pues se trata de un personaje más bien recatado,
pues generalmente me suelen dar roles más agresivos o de tipo sensual", comenta Tisera,
quien ensayó un par de semanas para realizar el personaje que se enamora del brazo derecho
de los Jets, Tony, interpretado por el tenor Carlos Flores. Mabel Rivera se encarga de la puesta
en escena, mientras que Carmen Castro marca la coreografía y Álvaro Lanza Segurola dirige la
Socobol. "Estamos en la obligación de ofrecer la mayor calidad posible, además de levantar la autoestima
del público y demostrar que seguimos avanzando", acota Pamela Sotelo, encargada de Relaciones Públicas
de la OSN."Salimos del marco habitual con una música extrovertida, con melodías que todo el mundo conoce
y con una orquestación que llega a ser popular, con el uso de batería y saxo. Es la oportunidad de disfrutar
una presentación espectacular, en una obra escrita justamente cuando Bernstein estaba en Bolivia.”