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Revueltas Festival
Reviews:
Helsinki Sanomat
"I'll Always Suggest Revueltas"
Gisèle Ben-Dor Wanted to Conduct the Music of Mexico's
Great Composer Silvestre Revueltas in Finland.
The name of Mexican composer Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940)
is well known to Finnish musical audiences thanks to
Esa-Pekka Salonen, who has recorded with the Los Angeles
Philharmonic a fine Revueltas disc nominated for the
Grammy awards.
A real Revueltas specialist, though, is Uruguay-born
Gisèle Ben-Dor, who is visiting for the second time
as director of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra.
This great talent is, according to a Los Angeles Times
music critic, "just the conductor we have been waiting
for to make a really persuasive case for Latin composers."
Gisèle Ben-Dor would gladly have conducted Revueltas'
music in the Helsinki concert, since this year Mexico
celebrates Revueltas' 100th birthday. He was born on
the last day of 1899, so Mexico chose the year 2000
to celebrate the centennial.
"I suggested Revueltas' music to the Helsinki Philharmonic
Orchestra," [she says,] "and I always will - or [the
music of] Alberto Ginastera from Argentina - but the
orchestra had other ideas, and wanted me to conduct
Haydn, Mozart, and Tschaikovsky. I agreed easily, and
did not push Revueltas."
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra representative Helena
Ahonen remembers the proposal for Revueltas: "The program
was locked in when we secured Gisèle Ben-Dor. The association
with her was so nice that we will surely invite her
back, and next time there will be room for Revueltas."
Ben-Dor became acquainted with Revueltas only eight
years ago, when she was asked to conduct "Sensemaya,"
Revueltas' most famous orchestral work.
Near Los Angeles in tiny Santa Barbara, Ben-Dor only
recently directed a four-day festival of Revueltas'
music, the first outside Mexico. The Santa Barbara Symphony's
talented director had almost full-page coverage in the
Los Angeles Times, with numerous sidebars.
With the Santa Barbara Symphony Orchestra, Gisèle Ben-Dor
has recorded Revueltas' last work, the ballet music
of "La Coronela" (The Lady Colonel).
"When we record Revueltas," [she says,] "I will stress
quality over quantity. The famed 'Sensemaya' has been
recorded many times."
"Sensemaya" (Snake-Killing Song), recorded by Salonen,
is an enticement. Ben-Dor is familiar with the recording
and treasures it.
"The Los Angeles Philharmonic is the first top orchestra
to record Revueltas," [she says.] Salonen and his orchestra
have brought to the public much-needed exposure to Revueltas'
music."
In Uruguay, the country of her birth, Ben-Dor learned
to play the piano, and fell in love with Latin-American
popular music. To play it, she prcured a guitar, and
began playing left-handed without changing the position
of the strings, which were thus upside-down; and to
this day, that is how she plays the guitar.
In 1973, the family moved to Israel, where Ben-Dor
continued her musical education. She received her diploma
as a conductor from Yale University in the U.S., where
she had studied for two years.
"The quality of America's young culture is open-heartedness,"
[she says,] "therefore even as a woman I had no problem
performing."
The bad part of America's young culture is a lack of
recognition for their own popular music.
[Ben-Dor states:] "If an American composer uses America's
classical music - that is, jazz - he is not taken seriously.
European music is always taken seriously, even though
it may have been popular music or folk music."
Gisèle Ben-Dor is taking a stand against that [attitude],
and wishes that music education would be brought back
into [U.S.] schools.
FYI:
- Mexican Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940), a very
talented musician, started very young. When he was
five, his father bought him a violin and sent him
to Texas to learn music. Later he studied in Chicago.
- Revueltas was an excellent violinist. In 1929 he
founded the Texas Symphony Orchestra in San Antonio.
From there, Carlos Chavez, director of Mexico's National
Conservatory of Music, asked him to become co-director
of the Mexico City Symphony Orchestra and professor
of violin at the National Conservatory.
- Revueltas was an idealist who believed socialism
was the cure for his country's ills. He organised
concerts for children and workers.
- In his composition, he explored thoughts and expressions
from the forces of nature. He tried everything, the
natures and rhythms of life.
- Revueltas' boiling and explosive works were rhythmic
and melodic, with country and city music, Indian lamentations,
children's songs, military fanfares, influenced by
Europe and modern composers [like] Stravinsky, Bartok
and French neo-classicists.
- Roberto Kolb-Neuhaus, professor of music at Mexico
City University, regarded Revueltas' music as "organized
chaos" and a musical "flea market."
- In 1937 Revueltas became Chief Secretary for the
Writers and Artists [Movement] during Spain's revolution.
He followed the Republican heroes' devastating battles
and during the Civil War gave many successful concerts.
- At the end of 1937, Revueltas returned to Mexico.
The Spanish Civil War had affected him so deeply that
he became manic-depressive, which ultimately led to
his death. Alcoholism added to his depression. He
was hospitalised for alcoholism as well as mental
imbalance, for which he received electro-shock therapy.
- Revueltas kept composing until the end, and wrote
film scores. He believed his music had a future.
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