LACO SUMMERFEST 2021:
Juan Pablo Contreras + Gerónimo Giménez
Virtual Event
PREMIERED OCTOBER 22
LACO SUMMERFEST 2021:
Juan Pablo Contreras + Gerónimo Giménez
Virtual Event
Juan Pablo Contreras‘ Mariachitlán for chamber orchestra was commissioned and premiered by LACO at The Music Center’s Walt Disney Concert Hall on June 26, 2021. Contreras wrote the original version of Mariachitlán for symphony orchestra in 2016, which was nominated for a Latin GRAMMY.
Watch Executive Director Ben Cadwallader and Juan Pablo as they talk about the inspiration behind Mariachitlán.
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OUR EVENT SPONSOR
Program
Juan Pablo Contreras
Mariachitlán
Gerónimo Giménez
Intermedio de La Boda de Luis Alonso (encore)
Artists
conductor
concertmaster
assistant concertmaster
violin I
violin I
violin I
violin I
violin I
principal second violin
acting associate second violin
violin II
violin II
violin II
violin II
viola
viola
Principal Cello
associate Principal Cello
cello
cello
Principal Bass
Bass
Acting Principal Flute
Flute/Piccolo
Principal Oboe, Allan Vogel Chair, Endowed by the Henry Family
oboe
Principal Clarinet
Clarinet
Bassoon
Principal Horn
Horn
Principal Trumpet
Trumpet
acting principal harp
timpani
percussion
percussion
librarian
personnel manager
About THE PROGRAM
LACO’s 2019-20 Sound Investment Composer, Juan Pablo Contreras, is a Los Angeles-based composer known for combining Western classical and Mexican folk music in a single soundscape. He wrote the original version of Mariachitlán for symphony orchestra in 2016. It is a dynamic and award-winning work, which was nominated for a Latin Grammy. This new version is a commission from LACO, an arrangement of Mariachitlán for chamber orchestra. As the composer explains, “Mariachitlán (Mariachiland) is an orchestral homage to my birthplace, the Mexican state of Jalisco, where mariachi music originated.” In particular, the work reflects the experience of hearing multiple mariachi bands vie for listeners’ attention in the Plaza de los Mariachis in Guadalajara, the capital of Jalisco. To create a sense of this sonic experience, Contreras weaves into the piece several strands: the traditional rhythm of canción ranchera (ranchera song), the vals romántico—a romantic waltz in triple time, and the son jalisciense, a traditional song from Jalisco that alternates between a swinging compound meter and a simple triple meter. To further evoke the Mariachi sound, we will hear soloists on the trumpet, harp, and violin. Contreras also translates the strumming vihuelas into the string section and the lower-sounding guitarrones to the contrabasses. A whistle near the end represents the police calling for order, only to be shouted down by the rowdy crowd. Mariachitlán ends with brilliant flourishes, celebrating the vibrancy of mariachi music in Jalisco.
-Christine Lee Gengaro, Ph.D.
About LACO SummerFest 2021
LACO SummerFest began as a response to the lack of in-person concerts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Starting July 2020, LACO released five special musician-curated programs bi-weekly, utilizing COVID-19 safety guidelines for film and television production in Los Angeles County. These 30-minute broadcasts allowed LACO to connect and engage with supporters while also building an online audience.
We are continuing SummerFest in 2021, featuring performances from our first in-person concerts in 15 months since the pandemic at The Music Center’s Walt Disney Concert Hall and The Huntington Library.