Free Usach Orchestra in La Granja

Free Usach Orchestra in La Granja

Five glimpses of Chile at the beginning of the 20th century. From the celebrations of the national centenary in the old Cousiño Park, to the massive combats of “Tani” Loayza and Luis Vicentini in the Sports Fields of Ñuñoa, passing through chapters of the social and political life of the country: life in the El Teniente mineral, the presidential inauguration of Arturo Alessandri Palma and the funeral of the labor leader Luis Emilio Recabarren. Recorded by the silent cinema of the time, these episodes can now be evoked with music specially created for the occasion.

By order of the Usach Orchestrathe Chilean composer Jorge Pacheco (1982) wrote an original soundtrack for five documentary short films protected and selected by the National Cinematheque of Chilewhich will be released under the title Recovered viewswith the author himself in the direction.

Each short film is different, but it is very impressive to have such old images and see how people behaved in those times. They are like us, but at the same time they are so distant, that there is a whole cultural universe,” he comments. Pachecowho worked on five specific titles: The mineral El Teniente (1919), produced by the Braden Copper Company; Celebrations in Cousino Park (1910), anonymously authored; the funeral of Luis Emilio Recabarren (1924), captured by Carlos Pellegrín; The transmission of command(1921), the first animated film made in Chile, by Alfredo Serey and Nicolás Martínez: and a record of the legendary combat between boxers Tani Loaiza and Luis Vicentini (1931).

Pacheco He trained at the University of Chile, advanced at the Paris Conservatory and is currently an academic at the University of Los Lagos, where he directs the ULagos Camerata. This will be his second collaboration with the cast, who in 2023 premiered their Concerto for violaunder the direction of Rodolfo Climbing up. “I am very grateful to work with an orchestra as outstanding as the Usach. I am settled in Puerto Montt and I am proud to come to the capital to make my music,” he says.

Blues para Debussy

In the first part of the program, the Orchestra Usach will score the short film Film studio about an arabesque (1929), from Germaine Dulac (1882-1942), who is considered one of the essential figures of European avant-garde cinema at the beginning of the 20th century.

The piece, which experiments with light and images of trees, water, spider webs and parts of the human body, will be scored live with Blues for Achilleswork of Francisco Núñez which won the III Musical Composition Contest for Heritage Short Film of the Valdivia Film Festival (2023), performed by the Valdivia Chamber Orchestra (OCV).

“I think that Germaine Dulac worked on an early recording of one of the two arabesques of Claude Debussybecause the short film has a duration similar to those pieces. That’s why it’s called Blues to Achillesbecause that was Debussy’s middle name. So it’s like a return to the past, with a piece dedicated to the figure of Debussy”explains Núñezwho will also assume the direction of his work and two pieces that open the program: the Arabesque No. 1 and the famous Moonlightby the same French author.

Trained at the University of Chile and the Liceu Conservatory of Barcelona, Núñez He has conducted numerous orchestras in Chile, Argentina and Peru, in addition to composing for plays and creating hundreds of arrangements for different ensembles. His career has also had a popular focus, working with groups and soloists such as Congress y Horacio Salinas. “The Usach It is an orchestra that I have known for a long time and at a good time it carries out this activity. It’s entertaining, because probably the most massive place for a work is when it appears as soundtrack of a movie. The beautiful thing, in this case, is that they are silent films, almost without a plot, so the music is what sustains everything,” he concludes.

Program

Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Two arabesques, L. 74

Arabesque No. 1

Suite bergamasque

III. moonlight

Francisco Núñez (1980)

Blues for Achilles

Music for the short film Film studio about an arabesque (1929), by Germaine Dulac

Jorge Pacheco (1982)

Recovered views

Music for five Chilean documentaries from the early 20th century

Absolute premiere

I. The mineral El Teniente (1919)

II. Celebrations in Parque Cousiño (1910)

III. The funerals of Recabarren (1924)

IV. The transmission of command (1921)

V. Tani Loaiza and Luis Vicentini (1931)

Usach Orchestra

Guest conductors: Francisco Núñez / Jorge Pacheco