THE INFLUENCE OF PUERTO RICAN MUSIC IN THE UNITED STATES Guest Speaker: Dr. Raymond Torres-Santos

CLASSICAL MUSIC IN PUERTO RICO TAKES A NEW DIRECTION

Classical music in Puerto Rico took a new direction with the appearance of an unique family -- this family was called the Figueroas -- when these created a new tradition or a very true tradition of classical music on the island. Their talents and commitment to high aesthetic standards were recognized throughout the world. Their contribution to our cuture influenced musicians of later generations. In the forties, composer Hector Campos Parsi started a brilliant career. Close friend of Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein, he became the first Puerto Rican composer with an international reputation. His symphonic composition Divertimiento del Sure,for example, was performed by the American Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Leopold Stokowski. In the fifties, Campos Parsi was the musical adviser to Leonard Bernstein while Leonard Bernstein was writing West Side Story. So he was also involved in that process. By the fifties, the development of Puerto Rican classical music and the exchange with the North American music society gets definitely established. Enough evidence is the inclusion of Graciela Rivera in 1952 at the Metropolitan Opera House, the successful performance of pianist Elías Lopéz Sobá with the Boston Symphony and also the premiere of Giancarlo Menotti´s opera The Telephoneby soprano María Esther Robles.

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