Full Description
Carlos Chavez (1899-1978) is the central figure in Mexican music of the twentieth century and among the most eminent of all Latin American modernist composers. An enfant terrible in his own country, Chavez was an integral part of the emerging music scene in the United States in the 1920s. His highly individual style--diatonic, dissonant, contrapuntal--addressed both modernity and Mexico's indigenous past. Chavez was also a governmental arts administrator, founder of major Mexican cultural institutions, and conductor and founder of the Orquesta Sinfonica de Mexico. Carlos Chavez and His World brings together an international roster of leading scholars to delve into not only Chavez's music but also the history, art, and politics surrounding his life and work. Contributors explore Chavez's vast body of compositions, including his piano music, symphonies, violin concerto, late compositions, and Indianist music. They look at his connections with such artistic greats as Aaron Copland, Miguel Covarrubias, Henry Cowell, Silvestre Revueltas, and Paul Strand.
The essays examine New York's modernist scene, Mexican symphonic music, portraits of Chavez by major Mexican artists of the period, including Diego Rivera and Rufino Tamayo, and Chavez's impact on El Colegio Nacional. A quantum leap in understanding Carlos Chavez and his milieu, this collection will stimulate further work in Latin American music and culture. The contributors are Ana R. Alonso-Minutti, Amy Bauer, Leon Botstein, David Brodbeck, Helen Delpar, Christina Taylor Gibson, Susana Gonzalez Aktories, Anna Indych-Lopez, Roberto Kolb-Neuhaus, James Krippner, Rebecca Levi, Ricardo Miranda, Julian Orbon, Howard Pollack, Leonora Saavedra, Antonio Saborit, Stephanie Stallings, and Luisa Vilar Paya. Bard Music Festival 2015: Carlos Chavez and His World Bard College August 7-9 and August 14-16, 2015
Contents
Preface ix Acknowledgments xvii Permissions and Credits xviii PART 1 CHAVEZ'S MUSICAL WORLD Chavez, Modern Music, and the New York Scene 2 CHRISTINA TAYLOR GIBSON The Pan/American Modernisms of Carlos Chavez and Henry Cowell 28 STEPHANIE N. STALLINGS "The heartbeat of an intense life": Mexican Music and Carlos Chavez's Orquesta Sinfonica de Mexico, 1928-1948 46 RICARDO MIRANDA Carlos Chavez's Symphonies 62 JULIAN ORBON, TRANSLATED, INTRODUCED, AND ANNOTATED BY LEONORA SAAVEDRA Carlos Chavez and Silvestre Revueltas: Retracing an Ignored Dialogue 76 ROBERTO KOLB-NEUHAUS Aaron Copland, Carlos Chavez, and Silvestre Revueltas 99 HOWARD POLLACK PART II BIOGRAPHICAL AND ANALYTICAL PERSPECTIVES Chavez and the Autonomy of the Musical Work: The Piano Music 112 LUISA VILAR-PAYA Carlos Chavez and the Myth of the Aztec Renaissance 134 LEONORA SAAVEDRA Non-Repetition and Personal Style in the Inventions and Solis 165 AMY BAUER Music and the Marketplace: On the Backstory of Carlos Chavez's Violin Concerto178 DAVID BRODBECK PART III CHAVEZ'S GREATER WORLD Carlos Chavez and the Mexican "Vogue," 1925-1940 204 HELEN DELPAR Carlos Chavez and Paul Strand 220 JAMES KRIPPNER Masters Carlos Chavez and Miguel Covarrubias: A Puppet Show 237 ANTONIO SABORIT, TRANSLATED BY REBECCA LEVI The Literary Affinities and Poetic Friendships of Carlos Chavez 255 SUSANA GONZALEZ AKTORIES, TRANSLATED BY REBECCA LEVI The Composer as Intellectual: Carlos Chavez and El Colegio Nacional 273 ANA R. ALONSO-MINUTTI Portraits of Carlos Chavez: Testimonies of Collaboration 295 ANNA INDYCH-LOPEZ The Modernist Invention of Mexico: Carlos Chavez, the Mexican Revolution, and the Cultural Politics of Music 306 LEON BOTSTEIN Index 339 Notes on the Contributors 357
