Journey through the senses (2012)
Marta Rodríguez Cuervo (Musicologist)
Retta Elizabeth Dawson (English translation)
The majority of the music which can be heard on this CD is related wholly or in part to the artistic thoughts of Ailem Carvajal (La Habana, 1972). They come together to make us reflect on a replete idea which unites the pieces despite their apparent diversity. They offer a wide range of sonorous possibilities with determinate features, which, although are not always the same, nor without appearing in all the pieces in the same way, unite the music through clarity, subtle fantasy and sensual suggestion.
Her music offers special importance in the use of rhythmic metre and, with a marked intent, the initial pieces recreate the simplicity of traditional Cuban music with its particular melodies and rhythms. In her creative journey she maintains a constant mode of reference to the aforementioned features, not only in the titles, but also throughout the music itself, albeit with the freedom which fantasy bestows and is thus not limited by predictably rigid preconceptions.
On the present CD, under the title Isla/ Island, the pieces centre around Ailem Carvajal’s evolution within a very concrete geographic, cultural and temporal framework : that of La Habana, where she undertook her studies in piano, composition and orchestral direction and, of Italy where she continued her studies in composition and currently practices professionally. Her training, as well as her experience through the knowledge of the work of other artists do not explain the nature of the music which emerges in these environments but they do make us aware of the flow of interchanging ideas which have shaped the author in her search for constant experiences.
This framework, which could be defined as obvious for someone who creates, is the characteristic which most defines the composer from her beginnings, open and vigilant before the paths along which the course of her output takes her.
Tres miniaturas/ Three miniatures, for solo piano, was the first work in her catalogue, conceived when she was still studying the instrument. These small pieces were written in 1988 and finished in 1991 and, despite the fact that the author was merely 16 years old, the miniatures constitute a magnificent example of the creative transformation of a traditional folklore, which with equal legitimacy in the work of Bartók, one could call imaginary. The versatile and experimental edge which characterizes Carvajal’s work can be appreciated in these pieces, with an air of fresh modernity and expressive strength found in their contrasts. One should note the skill with which the themes pass from one register to another and how they develop from an architectural structure which is formally classical but at the same time embraces an exultant freedom not exempt from the personal style and dynamic joy to be found in such a talented young person.
A similar example is found in the Suite Insular/Insular Suite, for piano, (1992). If colour were the great organizer of form, Carvajal places the listener before a world of sensations suggested in her titles to transport us towards symbols and atmospheres full of emotional character which she herself experienced during her time on The Island of Pines. Without disregarding the theme as the constructive beginning, these short pieces are intense and capture the spirit of the pianistic tradition of Cuban music in the 19th century. Continuing with her cycle of allegories and images, in 1993 Carvajal composed a suite of traditional Cuban themes under the title of Identidad/Indentity. On this occasion, for clarinet and bassoon, two instruments which, when combined together, magnificently exploit both technical skills and sound and offer a perfect symbiosis in which the virtues of both play their part. As the title alludes to, Identidad/Identity contrasts Carvajal’s reworkings of songs and singing from African and Hispanic origins shown here in a seven part collection. These magnificent pieces were awarded the National Prize for Composition by the National Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC) in 1993.
Since 1994, a distinctive characteristic in Ailem Carvajal has been her way of transforming all types of material into sound, creating a type of music which although appears to remain faithful to tonality, also underpins its attraction in other values e.g. timbre, colour and density, as well as functional harmony. This, she also does in her pieces written for voice and piano which reinforces her lyricism and expressivity.
Canción del Infinito/ Song of Infinity (1994) maintains her expressive intentions as in the works of Schumann, although she picks up on the atmospheric sound of the Post-romantic period with a melodic contour in the vocal line still in keeping with the discourse. The unión of piano and voice presents us with music which reflects the text both in declamation and emotion and thus appropriately transmits the sentiments of the aphorism of R. Tagore which served as inspiration to the author.
Pájaros Perdidos/Lost Birds (1995-96) submerges itself in poetic surroundings of the greatest depth. Its direction is different in relation to the previous piece. Here, in three songs of three maxims by the Hindu poet, the composer was seduced by the concisely dynamic expression of the poet and the musical images make the text even more entertaining, with echoes reminiscent of a Post-romantic lied and a composer such as A. Schönberg. The release of a note, the search for a nuance, the incisive manner of tackling a short sound or the way of extending another and making it resonate , is of vital importance here, because the result forms part of the absolute fusion of music and poetry without making either subservient to the other.
If we are talking about exploring all the potential which sound has to offer, Carvajal’s repertoire doesn’t renounce the use of electro-acoustic technology and techniques. Here, she contrasts acoustic sounds with other sources which make up the transformation and reworking of phonemes, vowels, consonants and words. On this occasion she integrates in an instrumental discourse resonant expressions from the clarinet in B-flat and tape evoking a sense of depth and intimacy produced by her appreciation and interpretation of the poem. Lutum by the Cuban writer Dulce María Loynaz. Resonancias (1999-2000) was commissioned by the Reina Sofia Centre of Art in Madrid in 1999 and has been heard in many European cities.
Continuing with the premise of integrating different poetic arts and licences into her work, in 2002 Ailem Carvajal composed a piece for cello and tape. Aè! Mañunga, was inspired by the Carnival of Santiago de Cuba. Its title is taken from a type of rumba: Mañunga and recreates musical events, rhythms and melodies of the fiesta. Carvajal evokes the immediacy and simplicity of this music, letting us hear the beating of the drums through the tape along with reworked sounds from the cello and placing the instrument within a mixture of songs and rhythms thus creating the embodiment of fiesta and dance. In the same vein, and almost as a synthesis of experiences dealt with in previous works, the author reaches a level of poetry, purity and freedom which plunges the listener into an almost hypnotic experience.
After her foray into the electro-acoustic world, almost as if from a different perspective, Carvajal wrote, in 2003, a piece for guitar which constitutes her way of paying homage to creators with whom she had shared some artistic affiliation without ever abandoning her essential beliefs. Feketék revisits her musical minituristic side and bases itself in intervallic geometric connections which recreate melodies originating from ritual songs, Yorùbá and Bantú music and belonging to the Afrocuban repertoire. Carvajal presents us with structures and fragmented motifs through these six miniatures.
Eón for E-flat clarinet and tape ( 2009) picks up the thread of an aphorism of Loynaz and recreates a biographical sketch of a city: La Habana, surrounded by sound, noise and hustle and bustle. The image endeavours to show us the contrasts which lie between the colourful idyll, the sensuality which awakens the intense and lush vegetation and its light by utilizing the diverse sounds which envelop the daily occurrences and comings and goings of people who are incessantly moving and who throw their voices and steps around in a vertiginous rhythm of rumba, thus making their habitat a reflection of its time and its ceaselessly flowing waters. The majestic finale harmoniously reunites the differences and settles the comparison between tape and clarinet, joining in one unique gesture the lyrical clarinet to the subtlety found in the magic which enshrouds, in unity, the sonorous landscape of music, poetry and dance.
With the delicate development and production of a CD which requires a special ambience, the works contained here demand the attention of performers who are capable of understanding the poetic and evocative world of the author. Therefore, the register and range nurtures and feeds itself through the diverse interpretive contributions aimed at penetrating the captivating colour found in the work of Ailem Carvajal.
Her music offers special importance in the use of rhythmic metre and, with a marked intent, the initial pieces recreate the simplicity of traditional Cuban music with its particular melodies and rhythms. In her creative journey she maintains a constant mode of reference to the aforementioned features, not only in the titles, but also throughout the music itself, albeit with the freedom which fantasy bestows and is thus not limited by predictably rigid preconceptions.
On the present CD, under the title Isla/ Island, the pieces centre around Ailem Carvajal’s evolution within a very concrete geographic, cultural and temporal framework : that of La Habana, where she undertook her studies in piano, composition and orchestral direction and, of Italy where she continued her studies in composition and currently practices professionally. Her training, as well as her experience through the knowledge of the work of other artists do not explain the nature of the music which emerges in these environments but they do make us aware of the flow of interchanging ideas which have shaped the author in her search for constant experiences.
This framework, which could be defined as obvious for someone who creates, is the characteristic which most defines the composer from her beginnings, open and vigilant before the paths along which the course of her output takes her.
Tres miniaturas/ Three miniatures, for solo piano, was the first work in her catalogue, conceived when she was still studying the instrument. These small pieces were written in 1988 and finished in 1991 and, despite the fact that the author was merely 16 years old, the miniatures constitute a magnificent example of the creative transformation of a traditional folklore, which with equal legitimacy in the work of Bartók, one could call imaginary. The versatile and experimental edge which characterizes Carvajal’s work can be appreciated in these pieces, with an air of fresh modernity and expressive strength found in their contrasts. One should note the skill with which the themes pass from one register to another and how they develop from an architectural structure which is formally classical but at the same time embraces an exultant freedom not exempt from the personal style and dynamic joy to be found in such a talented young person.
A similar example is found in the Suite Insular/Insular Suite, for piano, (1992). If colour were the great organizer of form, Carvajal places the listener before a world of sensations suggested in her titles to transport us towards symbols and atmospheres full of emotional character which she herself experienced during her time on The Island of Pines. Without disregarding the theme as the constructive beginning, these short pieces are intense and capture the spirit of the pianistic tradition of Cuban music in the 19th century. Continuing with her cycle of allegories and images, in 1993 Carvajal composed a suite of traditional Cuban themes under the title of Identidad/Indentity. On this occasion, for clarinet and bassoon, two instruments which, when combined together, magnificently exploit both technical skills and sound and offer a perfect symbiosis in which the virtues of both play their part. As the title alludes to, Identidad/Identity contrasts Carvajal’s reworkings of songs and singing from African and Hispanic origins shown here in a seven part collection. These magnificent pieces were awarded the National Prize for Composition by the National Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC) in 1993.
Since 1994, a distinctive characteristic in Ailem Carvajal has been her way of transforming all types of material into sound, creating a type of music which although appears to remain faithful to tonality, also underpins its attraction in other values e.g. timbre, colour and density, as well as functional harmony. This, she also does in her pieces written for voice and piano which reinforces her lyricism and expressivity.
Canción del Infinito/ Song of Infinity (1994) maintains her expressive intentions as in the works of Schumann, although she picks up on the atmospheric sound of the Post-romantic period with a melodic contour in the vocal line still in keeping with the discourse. The unión of piano and voice presents us with music which reflects the text both in declamation and emotion and thus appropriately transmits the sentiments of the aphorism of R. Tagore which served as inspiration to the author.
Pájaros Perdidos/Lost Birds (1995-96) submerges itself in poetic surroundings of the greatest depth. Its direction is different in relation to the previous piece. Here, in three songs of three maxims by the Hindu poet, the composer was seduced by the concisely dynamic expression of the poet and the musical images make the text even more entertaining, with echoes reminiscent of a Post-romantic lied and a composer such as A. Schönberg. The release of a note, the search for a nuance, the incisive manner of tackling a short sound or the way of extending another and making it resonate , is of vital importance here, because the result forms part of the absolute fusion of music and poetry without making either subservient to the other.
If we are talking about exploring all the potential which sound has to offer, Carvajal’s repertoire doesn’t renounce the use of electro-acoustic technology and techniques. Here, she contrasts acoustic sounds with other sources which make up the transformation and reworking of phonemes, vowels, consonants and words. On this occasion she integrates in an instrumental discourse resonant expressions from the clarinet in B-flat and tape evoking a sense of depth and intimacy produced by her appreciation and interpretation of the poem. Lutum by the Cuban writer Dulce María Loynaz. Resonancias (1999-2000) was commissioned by the Reina Sofia Centre of Art in Madrid in 1999 and has been heard in many European cities.
Continuing with the premise of integrating different poetic arts and licences into her work, in 2002 Ailem Carvajal composed a piece for cello and tape. Aè! Mañunga, was inspired by the Carnival of Santiago de Cuba. Its title is taken from a type of rumba: Mañunga and recreates musical events, rhythms and melodies of the fiesta. Carvajal evokes the immediacy and simplicity of this music, letting us hear the beating of the drums through the tape along with reworked sounds from the cello and placing the instrument within a mixture of songs and rhythms thus creating the embodiment of fiesta and dance. In the same vein, and almost as a synthesis of experiences dealt with in previous works, the author reaches a level of poetry, purity and freedom which plunges the listener into an almost hypnotic experience.
After her foray into the electro-acoustic world, almost as if from a different perspective, Carvajal wrote, in 2003, a piece for guitar which constitutes her way of paying homage to creators with whom she had shared some artistic affiliation without ever abandoning her essential beliefs. Feketék revisits her musical minituristic side and bases itself in intervallic geometric connections which recreate melodies originating from ritual songs, Yorùbá and Bantú music and belonging to the Afrocuban repertoire. Carvajal presents us with structures and fragmented motifs through these six miniatures.
Eón for E-flat clarinet and tape ( 2009) picks up the thread of an aphorism of Loynaz and recreates a biographical sketch of a city: La Habana, surrounded by sound, noise and hustle and bustle. The image endeavours to show us the contrasts which lie between the colourful idyll, the sensuality which awakens the intense and lush vegetation and its light by utilizing the diverse sounds which envelop the daily occurrences and comings and goings of people who are incessantly moving and who throw their voices and steps around in a vertiginous rhythm of rumba, thus making their habitat a reflection of its time and its ceaselessly flowing waters. The majestic finale harmoniously reunites the differences and settles the comparison between tape and clarinet, joining in one unique gesture the lyrical clarinet to the subtlety found in the magic which enshrouds, in unity, the sonorous landscape of music, poetry and dance.
With the delicate development and production of a CD which requires a special ambience, the works contained here demand the attention of performers who are capable of understanding the poetic and evocative world of the author. Therefore, the register and range nurtures and feeds itself through the diverse interpretive contributions aimed at penetrating the captivating colour found in the work of Ailem Carvajal.
