adventures in the sea

Happy Holidays! I’ve been working on a few new projects recently and I’m very happy to announce my latest release “Alejandro” which contains 8 new pieces from and inspired by the theater piece of the same name. The CD is a limited handmade edition in collaboration with the theater company Y No Había Luz (original artwork by Julio Morales) and features original compositions for electronics, shruti box, accordion, music box, voices, toys and found sounds.  At the moment the album is only being sold at live shows but if you’re interested in a copy please feel free to e-mail me for more information. Lots of exciting things coming up in the year 2009 so stay tuned!!

Los Americanos Llegaron en Mayo…

SEVA VIVE is the first Puerto Rican documentary made for the movie theaters.  It will be released on December 11, 2008 in Fine Arts Theater, Hato Rey, Puerto Rico. I wrote the music for the film and 17 of my friends and colleagues from the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico performed it. The movie will be in theaters from December 11th – December 18th but if a lot of people come for the first three days then it will be extended one more week so please come early!!

Also, I will be performing accordion with Minusbaby in one of his songs at the Blip Festival tomorrow night here in NYC. It’s going to be a lot of fun and the line up this year is amazing!

arturo en el barco

Come see me play with Arturo en el Barco next Tuesday November 25 @ Monkeytown in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I’ll be playing new songs and we’re going to have lots of instruments so it’s going to be a fun night. Also playing at the show are my friends Shortwave Sunshine. Hope to see you there!

i’m a ghost at itp

I acted as a 12 year old girl for José and Eduardo’s Character Portrait for their Interactive Screens and Cinematic Objects class at ITP.  The project turned out really nice and you can watch a video here.

Also, i’m in love with George Crumb.

columpio

Finally, the UnCaged Toy Piano Concert is here!! This next Thursday October 23rd, Phyllis Chen will be premiering my new piece for toy piano and electronics “Columpio” in the UnCaged Toy Piano Concert.  The piece will also feature visuals by José A. Olivares.  Come see the winning works from the 1st UnCaged Toy Piano Competition, 4 world premieres, including a new multimedia work by Phyllis Chen, “Chroma,” for toy piano and projections.

The concert will be at the Christopher Henry Gallery (127 Elizabeth Street). Check the events section for more info. Hope to see you there!

small people, small dreams

Lots of upcoming performances in the next few weeks..Fun Fun Fun on the Autobahn!!

I’m leaving tomorrow for Seattle to play in the Decibel Festival with Balún. We are going to be playing in the Deconstructing Pop Showcase at Neumos with Tujiko Noriko, Barbara Morgenstern, Jahcoozi, and Careen Ajar.  After a rock overdose at the ATP Festival, I’m more than ready to hear some quiet elecronica.

When I come back I’ll be playing a show with Arturo en el Barco at The Tank @ Chashama 217.

Also, I’m very excited that the wonderful Astoria Symphony Orchestra will be premiering my piece for orchestra “Small Dream in Red” this upcoming October in a great program that includes Berg’s Violin Concerto (one of my favorite pieces!!), Revueltas’s “La Noche de los Mayas” and a world premiere by Steve Horowitz.

Please visit the events section to find complete details about all the performances.

Hope to see you there!

Y No Había Luz

My friends from Y No Había Luz are celebrating their 5th year anniversary with REPERTORIO. A great show that consists of five short pieces, two of them which have my music.  Besides from being good friends with me, they are an excellent theater company that create incredibly magic works.  The show will be presented in Julia de Burgos Theater at the University of Puerto Rico (Río Piedras) from August 27 till August 30th. Please visit their website for more information.

Also, before going back to NYC I’ll be playing a show with Arturo en el Barco in the 4to Giratorio this next Saturday August 30th. Expect an unexpected cover.

there are other places like home

I haven’t been able to write something here for a long time ’cause I’ve been busy with school in the Ecole Normale de Musique in Paris participating in the EAMA Summer Music Program. The program finished a few days ago and I’m really glad I was a part of it. I met a lot of nice people and heard lots of good music. Sofia Gubaidulina was one of the most inspiring persons I’ve ever met and Paris is sooo gorgeous. I studied private composition with Robert Beaser (Chairman of the Composition Department at the Juilliard School) and counterpoint and analysis with Phillip Lasser (also from the Juilliard School). The classes were amazing and I wish I could attend this incredible program every year!

I played a show with Arturo en el Barco in Paris which was a lot of fun. Right now I’m in Madrid staying for a couple of days before returning back to NYC to play a show with Balún and then after that I’ll be in Puerto Rico for a couple of weeks. I’m having a hard time dealing with the heat here in Madrid and I don’t know how I’m going to deal with it in Puerto Rico. Anyways, besides the heat and the lazy island fever, Puerto Rico is going to be lots of fun too. We’re playing a show with Balún, another one with Arturo en el Barco, and we’re also seeing our friends and family which is always nice. There is also a special event in the island which I’m very excited about!
The rest of this year promises to be very interesting. I’m going to be a Teaching Artist (a new program of The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall) and I’ll be curating a concert for MATA’s Interval Series. I’m excited to work on these projects and to see how is life without being in a classroom for a while.

countdown to paris

In one week I’ll be leaving for Paris to the EAMA Summer Music Program and I can’t wait!! So many great things happening there and Sofia Gubaidulina, one of my favorite composers, will be there as well.

Also, I’m very happy to announce that my piece for toy piano and electronics “Columpio” won second prize on the UnCaged Toy Piano Competition. You can see a list of the winners here.

I’ve been working on new songs for Arturo en el Barco and I’ll be playing some shows in the next few weeks so check out the Events section for the dates and more details

i love my venus

I’ve been reading Venus Zine for a few years now so when I got an e-mail saying that I had been selected as their Reader of the Week I was very very excited. It’s a great magazine that focuses on women in music, art, film, fashion and d.i.y. culture. Check out the interview here.

Also, here you can see a video of my master’s composition recital at NYU.