DESCRIPTION:
00:05 - I. Birds from Patagonia (Argentina-Chile)
04:30 - II.Batucadas and Inca Aymara Heights (Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador)
09:49 - III. Magdalena and Orinoco Rivers (Colombia, Venezuela)
13:30 - IV. Children from Central America ( Guatemala) - Two wings from a bird (Pto Rico and Cuba)
ANDANZAS LATINOAMERICANAS
- Latin American Journey for Youth Orchestra by Harold Gutierrez
National Composition Award, Colombia 2013.

Andanzas Latinoamericanas evokes different musical airs of the Latin-American continent in a journey from southern Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego to the Caribbean.
In four movements, the work visits nine different regions of Latin America and displays not only the corresponding musical style of each region but sounds of the fauna as well. The first movement "Pájaros de la Patagonia y Tierra del Fuego" begins the journey with a contemplative sonority in which the woodwinds imitate the sound of birds of the region. Gradually, the bird calls lead to the first theme, which is designed with elements of zamba, chacarera, and cueca and displays the music from Chile and Argentina.
The second movement opens with the percussive calls of the Brazilian "batucada" in which the players of the orchestra enhance the carnival sound by stomping on the ground. The combination of the orchestral percussion and the players' feet create a massive sonority similar to the Brazilian "Baterias". The thematic content includes elements of forró, samba, and Bossanova. A transition evokes the Amazonian fauna with effects reappearing in the woodwinds and leading to the sound of the Andes. The melodic and harmonic content of this new section is based on pentatonicism of Inca and Aymara tradition that is still part of the current Andean culture mainly in Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador.
The third movement’s subtitle refers to the main rivers of Colombia and Venezuela: Magdalena and Orinoco closing the South American region with music from these two countries. It opens with a dance-like "bambuco” in ternary meter that gradually converges to evoke a “cumbia” in binary meter. The Venezuelan theme is based on the harmonic progression of “pajarillo” with melodic imitation in the style of canon.
The fourth movement’s title "... de un pájaro las dos alas" (…two wings of a bird) refers to the poem “A Cuba” by the Puerto Rican poetess Lola Rodríguez de Tió. The introduction, however, initiates the final movement with a children's melody from Guatemala that serves as a link to the airs of the Caribbean when the winds imitate the sound of the coquí, which is a small frog native from Puerto Rico. While the main themes are shaped with bomba from Puerto Rico and rumba from Cuba, the reiteration of some melodies from the first movement announce the end of the work with a coda.
As young students begin their journey in the orchestra, much of their education is spent familiarizing them with a repertoire based on mainly tonal and, in some cases, modal harmonies. The study of contemporary repertoire that involves techniques such as dodecaphonism, pointillism, minimalism, or other complex languages is primarily reserved for the years of college when the students have a solid theoretical and historical foundation. It is for these reasons that Andanzas Latinoamericanas is sophisticatedly tonal and why, as a modern piece, it presents effects easy to teach, learn and perhaps most importantly, fun to perform. Such an example exists in the second movement when the orchestra must stomp their feet for the Batucada and the violins play open strings with the indication of “quasi guitarra” in order to imitate the sound of the Andean charango, a small ten-string instrument from the family of the lute use in the Andean traditional music. These techniques not only challenge the students to coordinate their playing differently, but also engage the audience in a new, exciting way.
The combination of Latin American folklore, a sophisticated compositional structure that utilizes lyrical thematic and modern effects, and the attention to the youth orchestra rehearsal techniques make Andanzas Latinoamericanas a unique and valuable piece to the youth orchestra repertoire. Through this work young musicians, teachers, family, as well as the community, will have the opportunity to recognize and identify various musical styles in a broad international context. The audience will, no doubt, be transported all through Latin America as they enjoy the diversity of Andanzas Latinoamericanas.