• About Jeff von der Schmidt, the Hà Nội New Music Ensemble & LA International New Music Festival

Sound Travels with Jeff von der Schmidt

~ A blog about new music, travel and food

Sound Travels with Jeff von der Schmidt

Category Archives: Gabriela Ortiz

The Story of Gaspar Yanga: Gabriela Ortiz, Tambuco, & Gustavo Dudamel at Disney Hall on Sunday October 27

17 Thursday Oct 2019

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Coyoacan, Gabriela Ortiz, Gustavo Dudamel, Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Mexico, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Uncategorized, William Kraft

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

007 Spectre, Alejandro Escuer, Ayana Haviv, Conquest by Hugh Thomas, Coyoacan, Eclipse Quartet, Gabriela Ortiz, Gaspar Yanga, Gustavo Dudamel, Hanoi New Music Ensemble, Jonathan Gold, Jordi Savall, Leopoldo Novoa, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Ludwig van Beethoven, Mexico City, Sergio Vela, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Verzcruz, Yanga City

82E81AE4-2B5A-47B2-A54B-9401362B7263

Jan Karlin & Gabriela Ortiz discussing Gaspar Yanga in Coyoacán April 2015.

There is only one good way to respond to a great idea coming your way.

Just say “Yes.” And this next step is essential, say that “yes” with immediate enthusiasm. The devilish details will come, one way or the other, as the project develops, but avoid resolving all those difficulties. Focus on saying “yes.”

The challenge? You need to have the experience to be able to distinguish between just a good idea and a truly great idea. Or in the more colorful words of Frank Zappa, “Most people wouldn’t know a great idea if it walked up and bit ‘em on the ass.”

Continue reading →

In the Land of the Jaguar: My Mayan Diary of the Yucatán

22 Wednesday Feb 2017

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Chichen Itza, Contemporary Music, Gabriela Ortiz, LA International New Music Festival, Mexico, Music, Sian Ka'an, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Tulum, Uncategorized, Uxmal, Yucatan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Cancun, Chichen Itza, Cobá, Ek Balam, Gabriela Ortiz, Javier Alvarez, LA International New Music Festival, Mayan Pyramids, Merida, Mexico, Playa del Carmen, Ricardo Gallardo, Sian Ka'an, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Tulum, Uxmal, Valladolid, Yucatan

img_6532

The Pyramid of Kulkulkan at Chichén Itzá.

“Trust me, you will find your life divided,” predicted my best friend Ricardo Gallardo, director of the Tambuco Percussion Ensemble in México City. “There will be your life before the Yucatán, and then your life after the Yucatán.”

And Ricardo was right. After experiencing the vanished myths blending with the contemporary reality of the Maya Empire for the first time, a world that still spreads itself from Chiapas and the Yucatán Peninsula in México south to Guatemala, Belize, Honduras and El Salvador in Central America, I am forever changed.

A visit to the birthplace of the sky? You can find it in the Yucatán.

Continue reading →

Los Angeles International New Music Festival Plans: Bogotá Meetings

23 Wednesday Mar 2016

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Bogota, Cartagena, Colombia, Composers, Contemporary Music, Food, Gabriela Ortiz, LA International New Music Festival, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Travel, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Battle of Boyaca, Bogota, Cartagena, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Gabriela Ortiz, Gaston Alzate, La Canedlaria, LA International New Music Festival, La Puerta Falsa, Leopoldo Novoa, Paola Marin, Plaza Simon Bolivar, Ricardo Gallardo, Ricardo Rozental, Rodolfo Acosta, Simon Bolivar, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, XV Iberoamerican Festival

Morning light on Santa Fe de Bogota's cathedral.

Morning light on Bogotá’s cathedral in Plaza Bolívar.

I’ve just returned from my first trip to Colombia, where Jan and I visited the cities of Cartagena and Bogotá for a series of meetings for the next Los Angeles International New Music Festival. We decided on going to our American neighbor for two reasons. One was the encouragement of Tambuco’s director, Ricardo Gallardo, who has been helping us get a handle on the new music and cultural scene of Latin America and urged us to begin with Colombia.

The other reason was our hunch that the achievement of Gabriel García Márquez was not a fluke. Behind such impressively great literature had to be a deep well of culture.

Continue reading →

The Blue & Red Houses of Frida Kahlo & Leon Trotsky

17 Thursday Sep 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Carlos Chavez, Carlos Fuentes, Contemporary Music, Coyoacan, Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Gabriela Ortiz, Hanoi, Leon Trotsky, Vu Nhat Tan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Carlos Chavez, Carlos Fuentes, Coyoacan, Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Gabriela Ortiz, Hanoi, LA International New Music Festival, Leon Trotsky, Mexico, Southwest Chamber Music, Vietnam

La Casa Azul in Coyoacan of Kahlo and Rivera.

La Casa Azul in Coyoacan of Kahlo and Rivera.

I’m very much in two worlds simultaneously right now. I’ve recently returned from an amazing week in Coyoacan with Gabriela Ortiz, following up with her and other friends in Mexico City on the success of our Los Angeles International New Music Festival this past July and planning next steps for the future. At the same time I’m also wrapping my head around my new post as artistic advisor to the Hanoi Philharmonic Orchestra and planning the first concerts of the Hanoi New Music Ensemble (probably its working title for now).

Glad to be based in Los Angeles, where the question for dinner can easily boil down to pho noodle soup? Or tacos?

Continue reading →

A 2015 LA International New Music Festival Photo Album

31 Friday Jul 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Contemporary Music, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Japan, LA International New Music Festival, Laura Mercado-Wright, Los Angeles, Mexico, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Toshio Hosokawa, Vietnam, Walt Disney Concert Hall

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Abdiel Gonzalez, Ayana Haviv, Eclipse Quartet, Elissa Johnston, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Javier Alvarez, Jon Lee Keenan, Jordi Savall, LA International New Music Festival, Laura Mercado-Wright, Leopoldo Novoa, Los Angeles, Mexico, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Tembembe Ensemble, Toshio Hosokawa, Vu Nhat Tan

A good reason for smiles with Tambuco at REDCAT.

A good reason for smiles from Jan Karlin and Tambuco at REDCAT.

My friend Ricardo Gallardo, director of the magnificent Tambuco Percussion Ensemble of Mexico City, said it best at the conclusion of our third Los Angeles International New Music Festival. “We are just getting started!” 17 composers from Mexico, Japan, Vietnam, Cuba, Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay, Costa Rica, Brazil and the United States in 23 works in 5 concerts performed by 45 musicians at REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall played to over 1,000 appreciative audience members. Let’s not leave out 10 U.S. premieres and 5 here on the West Coast, as well as hosting composers Gabriela Ortiz from Mexico and Leopoldo Novoa of Colombia.

We have some exciting photos so let’s take a look at the concerts and the people who made this a not to be forgotten festival.

Continue reading →

The Tambuco Studio in Xalapa: “Are Those Marimbas I Hear, Mr. Bond?”

05 Sunday Jul 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Contemporary Music, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Hollywood, LA International New Music Festival, Los Angeles, Mexico, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Travel

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Day of the Dead, James Bond SPECTRE, LA International New Music Festival, Los Angeles, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble

A Day of the Dead Parade opens SPECTRE, the next James Bond film.

A Day of the Dead Parade opens SPECTRE, the next James Bond film.

Here’s a Fun LA International New Music Festival Fact: Tambuco is part of the soundtrack of SPECTRE and the largest opening sequence in the history of the James Bond films set for release this November. To Tambuco’s surprise, director Sam Mendes is a huge fan of their work (via YouTube clips) and sent composer Thomas Newman to Mexico City to work on the score with them prior to shooting. Prepare for a percussive opening, that’s for sure!

This gargantuan opening sequence shut down the main square of Mexico City for about a week with thousands of extras, elaborately face painted and costumed for a Day of the Dead chase scene. Newman’s music is performed by Tambuco, who are also on camera during the sequence. We couldn’t be more proud of Tambuco!

“Are those marimbas I hear in Xalapa, Mr. Bond?”

Continue reading →

2015 Los Angeles International New Music Festival Starts July 7 at REDCAT!

01 Wednesday Jul 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Contemporary Music, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Hong Kong, LA International New Music Festival, Latin Grammy Awards, Laura Mercado-Wright, Los Angeles, Mexico, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Toshio Hosokawa, Travel, Vietnam, Walt Disney Concert Hall

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Asia, California, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, LA International New Music Festival, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Vietnam, Vu Nhat Tan

REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the LA International New Music Festival.

REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the LA International New Music Festival.

I love studying scores early in the morning. Maybe it’s because I was born around 8:20 A.M. – some say that’s a good indication of a morning person. Those early hours are undistracted and quiet for learning chords, orchestration, voicings, tempi, interpretation, making all the new details familiar like old friends.

My rule of thumb is to go to sleep each night truly putting the day’s work away. If I can remember everything clearly when I wake up the next morning, I’ve learned just a bit more for the coming performances and then know what to repeat and when to move forward. That makes the next early morning so important for my work habit. And I knew today I’m ready for our LA International New Music Festival starting at REDCAT next week on Tuesday July 7 at 8:30 P.M., with a pre-concert talk at 8 P.M.

Because this morning I got a visitor telling me that just the right energy is coming out of my study!

Continue reading →

Complete Programs for the July 2015 LA International New Music Festival at REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall

21 Thursday May 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Contemporary Music, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Japan, LA International New Music Festival, Los Angeles, Mexico, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Travel, Vietnam, Walt Disney Concert Hall

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Alejandro Cardona, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Gerardo Gandini, Hebert Vazquez, Javier Alvarez, Jorge Camiruaga, Leopoldo Novoa, Masamichi Kinoshita, Mesias Maiahuasca, Takumi Ikeda, Tomoko Momiyama, Toshio Hosokawa, Toshiya Watanabe, Vu Nhat Tan

REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the LA International New Music Festival.

REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the LA International New Music Festival.

Time to order your tickets for the 2015 LA International New Music Festival at REDCAT Theater in Walt Disney Concert Hall!

I am happy to announce the complete programs for all five concerts between July 7 and July 15. All concerts begin at 8:30 PM with a pre-concert talk at 8 PM.  My ensemble, Southwest Chamber Music, will be joined by our old friends from Mexico, the Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, new friends here in Los Angeles, the Eclipse String Quartet, and vocal soloists Ayana Haviv, Laura Mercado-Wright, Elissa Johnston, Jon Lee Keenan and Abdiel Gonzalez. Have a good look at the concerts, and you’ll find the ticket information easily!

Continue reading →

Sound Ideas and Food Dreams from Mexico City

06 Wednesday May 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Food, Gabriela Ortiz, LA International New Music Festival, Mexico, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Alex Ross, Barack Obama, Carlos Chavez, Condesa, Coyoacan, El Parnita, Los Angeles International New Music Festival, Mercado Medellin, Mercado Roma, Mexico City, Panaderia by Rosetta, REDCAT at Walt Disney Concert Hall, Rick Bayless, Roma, Tacos Hola!, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, UNAM

Chicharron in the Mercado Medillin in Mexico City.

Chicharron in the Mercado Medellin in Mexico City.

If you are what you eat then Mexico is probably already in your system. At least UNESCO agrees, inscribing Mexican cuisine in 2010 as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It’s a long overdue recognition, but at least from here on there is no argument about the prestige of one of the great cuisines on Planet Earth.

A little comparison is in order. Were Mexico superimposed against the map of Europe, it would span from Greece to the United Kingdom, absorbing the Balkans, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France, a good part of Northern Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, eventually reaching a good bottle of Scotch in the UK.

Continue reading →

2015 Los Angeles International New Music Festival at REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall, July 7-15

02 Thursday Apr 2015

Posted by Jeff von der Schmidt in Composers, Contemporary Music, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Japan, LA International New Music Festival, Latin Grammy Awards, Los Angeles, Mexico, Music, REDCAT, Southwest Chamber Music, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Travel, Vietnam, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Woman in Gold

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Abdiel Gonzalez, Ayana Haviv, Chichen Itza, Day of the Dead, Elissa Johnston, Elliott Carter, Gabriela Ortiz, Japan Prize, Jon Lee Keenan, LA International New Music Festival, REDCAT Theater, Southwest Chamber Music, Strand Bookstore, Tambuco Percussion Ensemble, Walt Disney Concert Hall

REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the LA International New Music Festival.

REDCAT in Walt Disney Concert Hall is the new home of the Los Angeles International New Music Festival.

I am happy to announce the 2015 Los Angeles International New Music Festival will take place at the REDCAT Theater in Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles. Make your plans now to attend!

Between July 7th and 15th we’re offering five programs contributing to the hard to deny fact that Los Angeles is a leading force moving the classical music world forward in the 21st century, and doing it at top speed. And here’s hoping that many of the 8,000 devoted readers of my blog in over 115 countries might use our festival as a catalyst to visit southern California!

Read on for my July 2015 LA International New Music overview!

Continue reading →

Categories

  • Alexander Goehr (1)
  • Alexandra du Bois (1)
  • Ancient Ensemble of Tonkin (23)
  • Anderson Valley (1)
  • Antoine’s (1)
  • Arditti Quartet (1)
  • Arnold Schoenberg (5)
  • Asam Laksa (3)
  • Austria (3)
  • Bangkok (1)
  • Barcelona (3)
  • Batu Caves (1)
  • Bela Bartók (1)
  • Benet Casablancas (1)
  • Betty Freeman (3)
  • Big Sur (2)
  • Bogota (2)
  • Brennan’s (1)
  • Buddhism (10)
  • Café Giang (1)
  • California wine (6)
  • Cambodia (2)
  • Carlos Chavez (5)
  • Carlos Fuentes (1)
  • Cartagena (2)
  • Cat Ba Island (2)
  • Catalonia (3)
  • Central Coast of California (1)
  • Chasen's (3)
  • Chichen Itza (3)
  • Christopher Isherwood (2)
  • Cobá (2)
  • Colombia (4)
  • Composers (77)
  • Cong Ca Phe (1)
  • Cong CaPhe (4)
  • Contemporary Music (95)
  • Coyoacan (3)
  • Dalton Trumbo (1)
  • Diego Rivera (1)
  • Diplomacy (11)
  • Eastern and Oriental Hotel (2)
  • Education (8)
  • Elbphilharmonie (3)
  • Elliott Carter (13)
  • Ensemble Modern (1)
  • Evan Hughes (4)
  • Famous Father Girl (1)
  • Farmers Markets (1)
  • Food (70)
  • Frida Kahlo (1)
  • Gabriel Garcia Marquez (1)
  • Gabriela Ortiz (10)
  • Georgetown (5)
  • Gurrelieder (1)
  • Gustavo Dudamel (1)
  • Halong Bay (4)
  • Hamburg (5)
  • Hanoi (37)
  • Hanoi New Music Ensemble (54)
  • Hanoi Social Club (1)
  • Hanzhou (1)
  • Healdsburg (1)
  • Hermann Hesse (2)
  • Hoi An (1)
  • Hollywood (6)
  • Hong Kong (7)
  • Hong Kong New Music Ensemble (9)
  • Humphrey Bogart (1)
  • Igor Stravinsky (2)
  • Jacob Zeitlin (2)
  • Jamie Bernstein (1)
  • Japan (10)
  • John Cage (8)
  • Jonas Baes (1)
  • Jorg Widmann (1)
  • Jose Maceda (1)
  • Ken Burns (1)
  • Kent Nagano (6)
  • Kim Ngoc Tran (10)
  • Kuala Lumpur (2)
  • Kurt Rohde (1)
  • Kyoto (8)
  • LA International New Music Festival (95)
  • Laos (5)
  • Latin Grammy Awards (15)
  • Laura Mercado-Wright (3)
  • Lauren Bacall (1)
  • Leon Trotsky (1)
  • Leonard Bernstein (1)
  • Loading T Coffee (1)
  • Los Angeles (28)
  • Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra (1)
  • Luang Prabang (6)
  • Lucas Fels (1)
  • Malaysia (7)
  • Manila Composers Lab (1)
  • Manzi Art Space (4)
  • Merida (2)
  • Mexico (24)
  • Minh Dam Quang (11)
  • Music (80)
  • New Jogjakarta Contemporary Ensemble (1)
  • New Orleans (1)
  • New York City (2)
  • Nguyen Minh Nhat (9)
  • Nguyen Thien Dao (9)
  • Nina Janssen-Deinzer (1)
  • Nom Calligraphy (2)
  • Oliver Knussen (1)
  • Pang Vongtaradon (1)
  • Paris (9)
  • Paseo de Montejo (2)
  • Penang Island (5)
  • Perigueux (1)
  • Phillipines (1)
  • Ramon Santas (1)
  • REDCAT (12)
  • Ripieno Ensemble, Manila (2)
  • Russian River (1)
  • San Francisco (3)
  • Secret War in Laos (1)
  • Sian Ka'an (1)
  • Silverlake (2)
  • Singapore (3)
  • Song Hong Ensemble (4)
  • Southwest Chamber Music (71)
  • Spartacus (1)
  • Stanley Kubrick (1)
  • Taipei (4)
  • Tambuco Percussion Ensemble (19)
  • Tanglewood (1)
  • Tea (2)
  • Tet Lunar New Year (1)
  • Tetsuji Honna (1)
  • Thailand (1)
  • Ton That Tiet (3)
  • Toru Takemitsu (3)
  • Toshio Hosokawa (3)
  • Travel (97)
  • Tulum (2)
  • Uncategorized (129)
  • Uxmal (3)
  • UXO Removal (1)
  • Valladolid (2)
  • Vienna (5)
  • Vienna Philharmonic (2)
  • Vietnam (78)
  • Vietnamese Cuisine (3)
  • Vietnamese Egg Coffee (1)
  • Vu Nhat Tan (34)
  • W. Somerset Maugham (1)
  • Walt Disney Concert Hall (12)
  • Wat Xieng Thong (1)
  • West’s Hollywood (1)
  • William Kraft (4)
  • Woman in Gold (1)
  • Women's March (1)
  • Yogyakarta, Indonesia (1)
  • Yucatan (3)
Follow Sound Travels with Jeff von der Schmidt on WordPress.com

Like us on Facebook

Like us on Facebook

Archives

Translate

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • Sound Travels with Jeff von der Schmidt
    • Join 73 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Sound Travels with Jeff von der Schmidt
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...