Gabriela Ortiz
As a classical musician, a lot of the music that I have seen and played so far comes from incredible composers, but the fact remains that there is indeed a lack of representation of diversity in the classical world. There is greater music to be explored that doesn't revolve around the eurocentric classical style.
After doing individual research for a previous school assignment, I encountered an amazing and talented composer from Mexico that I enjoyed learning about, Gabriela Ortiz. And after freely looking and listening to many of her works, I was inspired and impressed by the way she naturally includes elements of our culture (and other cultures) into her pieces that I would like to share.
“I hear your music and I know it’s you”- Sarah Gibson at 75th Ojai Music Festival
Biography
Gabriela Ortiz was born in Mexico City in 1964 to musician parents, who were both folk musicians and dancers to the notable music ensemble Los Folkloristas, which was founded in 1966 to preserve and record the traditional music of Mexico and Latin America. At 5 years old, Ortiz began to play the guitar and she later studied composition at the Ecole Normale de Musique in Paris, the National Conservatory of Music in Mexico, and the University of London.
Ortiz has written music for opera, chamber groups, dance, and theater among others. She has demonstrated that to her, it is important to bring awareness to social justice issues, environmental concerns, and the phenomenon of multiculturality.
Ortiz has also been awarded the National Prize for Arts and Literature, which is considered the most prestigious award for writers and artists recognized by the government of Mexico. Other honors include but are not limited to the Bellagio Center Residency Program, Civitella Ranieri Artistic Residency, and the Banff Center for the Arts Residency. Ortiz currently teaches composition at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in Mexico City.
“I think that music is very interested in other latitudes and other cultures, that the future is no longer limited to European aesthetics, as we were taught in the past” -Gabriela Ortiz (2021 Ojai Music Festive)
The Ojai Music festival has been held for over seven decades in Ojai, California, and each year a distinct music director will have the freedom to create a four-day musical event. Throughout the decades, the music festival has included renown soloists, first-rate chamber ensembles, and world-class orchestras in the events. All these individuals provide an opportunity to experience the intersection between musical styles and ideas.
In the Ojai Music festival held in September 2021, Gabriela Ortiz was amongst one of the composers that was invited to Festival, having her works performed by John Adams. One of Ortiz’s pieces that was exhibited was Rio de Mariposas (Butterfly River) for two harps and steel pan.
Rio de las Mariposas
In Gabriela Ortiz’s interview, held by Sarah Gibson at the 2021 festival, Ortiz discusses the inspiration behind Rio de Mariposas. At 9 years old, when her parents had been touring with Los Folkloristas, she found herself in Veracruz, a state in the lower part of Mexico. She remembers encountering a huge river, called “Papaloapan”, meaning “river of the butterflies” in Nahuatl. Because the traditional folk music of Veracruz (jarocho) uses the harp, she decided to include the instrument in the piece.
It was heartwarming to hear the context behind this composition, it is evident that Rio de Mariposas reflected her personal memories of when Ortiz was younger and exploring new places with her family. I also think it’s beautiful that the piece has many elements that represent important parts of culture, such as the harp with jarocho music.
Únicamente la Verdad
Another work of Gabriela Ortiz that I encountered that astounded me as I learned more about, was her opera Unicamente la Verdad-La Autentica Historia de Camelia la Texana (Only the Truth-the Authentic history of Camelia la Texana). The opera alludes the song Contrabando y Traición from the famous Narcocorrido Mexican band Los Tigres del Norte. Narcocorrido’s are a genre in which themes such as drug trafficking, border-crossing, and cartel war are expressed in the form of a ballad.
The song Contrabando y Traición, follows the narrative of a young woman- Camelia la Texana and her lover- Emilio Varela, who smuggle marijuana from Tijuana, Mexico to Los Angeles, California. The ballad emphasizes how Camelia was head over heels for Emilio to the point where she was willing to risk her life for him. Immediately after the drug exchange in L.A, Emilio confessed to Camelia that she was free to leave and have a fresh start at life, since he was heading towards San Francisco to be with the love of his life; he no longer needed her. The ballad states that seven gunshots were heard and when police arrived there was only Emilio’s body and a gun found at the scene.
In contrast, the opera begins with a reported suicide (based on a true event), of a man committing by laying on the train tracks in the City of Juárez, Mexico. After circulating through the newspaper Alarma!, many hypothesize that Camelia la Texana is not a mythical character, but a real person. Throughout the opera, many men talk about their encounter with Camelia to a journalist-Cesar who is attempting to reveal the actual truth of the mysterious suicide.
The opera has many unique elements aside from the plot. The telling of the story isn't linear and is built by a series of vignettes (a short descriptive scene), such as television and radio interviews, internet blogs, and publications that contradict each other making it difficult to establish a single version of reality. Additionally, we find that the journalist is based on a real-life journalist from the real Alarma! newspaper establishment, Cesar Güemes. Ortiz uses elements of narcocorrido’s in the libretto and the music, electroacoustic segments, and video segments called “video opera” for central parts of the story.
The opera was performed at the Compañía Nacional de Opera in 2010 and the Long Beach Opera in 2013. Unicamente la Verdad was nominated in 2014 for the Latin Grammy as the best classical contemporary composition.
As I mentioned previously, I was genuinely surprised when I first learned that the opera was inspired by the narcocorrido song Contrabando y Traición. While I had been introduced to the genre of narcocorridos at an early age (I grew up with my parents and family playing countless of these songs), I was so shocked at the intersection of opera and a song from Los Tigres del Norte. This has definitely deepend the admiration I have for Gabriela Ortiz and her ability to incorporate such themes and cultural elements into her works.