USA Projects

Compadre Huashayo is a project that would send Latin Grammy award-winning composer Gabriela Lena Frank to Quito, Ecuador to work with the 38-member ensemble La Orquesta de Instrumentos Andinos (Orchestra of Andean Instruments) to create an original evening-length piece of music.  Inspired by the Ecuadoran huashayo, an individual appointed to hire musicians for a special celebration, the collaboration would entail an initial extensive workshop in the summer of 2012 between composer and instrumentalists, exchanging ideas in the spirit of fusing stylistic traits from both western classical and non-western traditional  music.  Armed with firsthand information on such traditional instruments as the bamboo quena flute, the quintessential sikuri panpipes, and the small guitar-like charangos, Gabriela will then spend several months composing a large-scale finished work that will receive its world premiere in Quito in November of 2012 by the OIA. 

The impetus behind the project is personal – As a Peruvian-American with recent forbearers in Lithuania and China, Gabriela has long been fascinated by cultural identity.  Classically trained, her critically acclaimed compositions for symphonies, chamber groups, and the voice frequently draw on Latin American indigenous idioms.  She has been performed and recorded by major orchestras and performers, and is a member of the multicultural and genre-bending Silk Road Ensemble under the direction of cellist Yo Yo Ma.  She finds a perfect partner in the OIA, a national cultural treasure of Ecuador, that performs both traditional music and classical transcriptions.  Together, they will create new music designed to be picked up and performed by the next generation of musicians in an ever more multi-cultural world. 

Compadre Huashayo will also see the participation of award-winning Chilean conductor Alejandra Urrutia and Emmy-winning filmmaker Aric Hartvig who will create a documentary of the project in its entirety to be aired on PBS.  INTAKE, an award-winning non-profit organization that advocates bringing together classical and traditional music, will serve as administrating stewards.   

Although many costs are currently pledged and covered, funding is still sought for such expenses as travel, production costs of music score and parts, materials for the filmmaker, and modest payments for all artists who are turning down other work in order to participate in Compadre Huashayo.  All contributions are welcome and none are too small!  As incentives for our generous donors, our tokens of gratitude range from early access to an ongoing blog (written and audio-video) of the creative process by composer/conductor/filmmaker, to newly-composed ringtones by Gabriela to be performed by musicians from the OIA, to instruments crafted by OIA musicians, to a private screening of the documentary with composer and filmmaker… and more.  Furthermore, donation pledges can be combined if more than one incentive/gift is desired.  We sincerely hope that you will consider becoming a supporter of this unique and ambitious project.    

Recent articles (Spring of 2012) on Gabriela Lena Frank:

Los Angeles Times (April 22, 2012): http://articles.latimes.com/2012/apr/22/entertainment/la-ca-gabriela-lena-frank-20120422

San Francisco Classical Voice (April 17, 2012): http://www.sfcv.org/article/journey-into-faith-the-creation-of-holy-sisters

Chicago Tribune (May 15, 2012): http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-05-15/entertainment/ct-ent-0516-classical-musicnow-20120516_1_principal-conductor-cliff-colnot-cynthia-yeh-jennifer-gunn

Baltimore Sun (May 8, 2012): http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/classicalmusic/2012/05/weekend_roundup_annapolis_symp.html