Desde el Límite

In Desde el Límite (From the Edge) I was inspired by the experience of my granduncle, Benedicto Chuaqui as presented in his book "Memorias de un Emigrante" (Memoirs of an Immigrant), who immigrated to Chile from Syria in the early 1900s. In the work there are disguised references to American musical sounds and styles that at various times come clearly into focus. Having grown up in Chile, these sounds are familiar, captivating, and yet somewhat foreign. The electronics are made up for the most part of white noise and electric bass and guitar sounds with much distortion, and the acoustic instruments are immersed in the artificial environment that these distorted electronic sounds create. The work begins with a noisy jet-like electronic explosion that gradually becomes a broad, static, electronic harmony from which the instruments tease out the motives that are to undergo a transformative narrative journey through the various recurring episodes of the work. Besides distorted electric guitar sounds, these episodes include references to rock'n'roll back beats, jazz, sentimental popular music, the Bach chorale "Nicht So Traurig," and even Beethoven's Lebewohl motive: a contrapuntal babble of musical memories. The 21-minute work is through-composed, and uses the continuous transformation and alternation of material as a binding thread. The journey through these episodes leads to no specific goal, but toward the end, after a short recalling of the opening music, the acoustic instruments and the electronic environment they inhabit engage in a calm dialogue. Desde el Límite was commissioned by the Koussevitzky Foundation at the Library of Congress.

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