Trilogía Jabao by William Ortiz Chamber Music - Digital Sheet Music

SKU: A0.1479281

“Trilogía Jabao” for String Orchestra was written in 2014 for the North/South Consonance Orchestra and its’ director Max Lifchitz. The work, in three movements, defines and summarizes to some extent the three mayor influences that have informed most of my music and identity. Each movement represents a particular aspect of my musical interest, aesthetics and technique.
 
      The term “jabao” is used in the Caribbean to refer to a person with mixed racial characteristics. “Jabao”, as it is used in this trilogy, refers to the juxtaposition and combining of the following musical and programmatic elements found in each of the three movements:
 
      The first movement – “Sobre el Puente de Brooklyn” (“Over the Brooklyn Bridge”), rhythmically conveys the hustle and bustle of city life and is an vibrant musical impression of what one might feel growing up in New York City. This everlasting impression and influence has left an indelible mark on my music in general.
      “Satori”, the middle movement, is in complete contrast to the outer movements. The meditative clusters, long lines and glissandi hope to evoke a spiritual connection, a contemplative mood and reach a higher consciousness. “Satori”, in the Zen Buddhist tradition translates as enlightenment.
      The third movement “Las siete potencias” (“The seven African powers”) refers to the religious tradition called “Santería”. It is of African origin that developed in Cuba and has spread throughout the Caribbean. The Yoruba often used the iconography of the Catholic saints to express their devotion to Yoruba spirits called “orishas”. Santería teaches that the seven powerful “orishas”, the “siete potencias”, control every aspect of life. Each has different characteristics and play different roles. Likewise, the strings in the orchestra are divided into seven parts - two first violins, two second violins, violas, violoncellos and contrabass. Each has different characteristics and play different roles, but at the same time they act as a group to chart the destiny of the musical discourse and thus unleash the musical power of the “orishas”.