September 20, 2023
IT’S NOT OFTEN YOU HEAR OF AN ORCHESTRAL COMPOSER WITH EXPERIENCE TURNING TCHAIKOVSKY SCORES INTO HEAVY METAL! WE SAT DOWN WITH MECHICANO COMPOSER JUAN PABLO CONTRERAS TO ASK HIM ABOUT HIS JOURNEY TO BECOMING A MEXICAN AMERICAN CITIZEN, HIS INTRODUCTION TO ORCHESTRAL MUSIC THROUGH FAMILY AS WELL AS THROUGH SYMPHONIC METAL, AND HOW HIS EXPERIENCES HAVE INFORMED HIS UNIQUE…
September 13, 2023
In his career with California Symphony, it’s not common for Principal Percussionist Allen Biggs to play drum kit during concerts—let alone for two different pieces on the same program! In season opener COPLAND—AMERICAN TRADITIONS, Wynton Marsalis’ Violin Concerto in D and Juan Pablo Contreras’ MeChicano both feature drum kits of various sizes and playing styles, reflecting…
September 5, 2023
Juan Pablo Contreras (b. 1987) MeChicano (2022) Juan Pablo Contreras joins a distinguished line of Mexican-born composers who have brought their sensibilities to concert audiences everywhere: consider Carlos Chavez, Silvestre Revueltas, Manuel Ponce, Arturo Marquez, and Gabriela Ortiz, and many others. Contreras brings his own particular approach to fusing Mexican folk music with the Western…
