| Description |
I grew up in Chile during the 70's, and early 80's, a time of political upheaval and economic distress in Chile, and this has probably exerted as strong an influence on my musical outlook as any other aspect of Chilean culture. While I distrust "political art," I do have an abiding desire for my music to somehow directly address the needs of the community, as presumptuous as this may seem. The tension between my populist point of view and my personal need to create music that is clever and original, shapes my musical language. In the last movement of Cuarteto Claroscuro, for example, intricate contrapuntal, chromatic, pitch-class, and proportion games are used to create a tuneful, rhythmic, quasi-diatonic, and formally straightforward surface. The title of the string quartet reflects the generally dark harmonic coloring of the music, which throws into relief passages of brighter harmonic quality. The quartet begins in half-light (Penumbra) with the cello presenting a dark, brooding |
