Music of the Americas: Songwriters and a Premiere

Monday, March 6, 10 am

Argentine singer and composer Dafne Usorach studied guitar at the Facultad de Humanidades y Artes de Rosario. Her music reflects a variety of influences and is an instrument for the transmission of ideas and stories that cannot be forgotten. She has been on stage throughout Argentina and Latin America and has released six albums. 

From her home in Guatimozín in central Argentina, she sent us two original songs. Today we share "Latinoamérica."

Tuesday, March 7, 10 am

Uruguayan singer/songwriter Melaní Luraschi was born in Maldonado. Her songs explore her Latin American and Rioplatense roots as well as jazz and pop. She sings and writes (in Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Italian) about bodies' potential, about the paradox of borders, inspired by the thousandfold variety of human relationships and the immensity of nature. Curretntly, she studies and lives in France. She has released two albums with her own compositions, an EP with Eduardo Larbanois, and three singles shared with Julieta Rada and Lisandro Aristimuño. She has been on stage throughout Latin America and Europe. In 2021 she received a scholarship to study music production in Bologna and, in 2022, her song "Profundo" was included in the soundtrack of the Amazon Prime Video series "El fin del amor." In 2012, Luraschi founded Camino de las Aguas in Maldonado, a space that offers arts instruction for children. 

From her home in Paris, she sent us "Al son del agua," a song included in her 2015 CD Canto Ancestral'. The composer writes: 

"This song is dedicated to my grandmother, Paloma, with whom I shared a lot of time during her last years, as I commuted from Maldonado to Montevideo to study. We had a very deep connection that resulted in philosophical conversations about life, happiness, sadness, youth, death. The song is a way to celebrate and remember her."

Wednesday, March 8, 10 am

O-Bri is an Argentine songwriter, teacher, and multimedia artist from Córdoba. He has been teaching guitar and improvisation at Fundación La Colmena since 1990. Creador de Videofest (Festival Internacional de Video Arte). He has released 20 albums, 10 singles, and 14 audiovisual works, as well as several books and sountracks. 

From his home in Córdoba, he sent us this version of "sos tan vos," a song from the multimedia production Ausencias, premiered in 2015. In 2022, he recorded the song with string quartet for the album MA.

Thursday, March 9, 10 am

Artemis Guitar Duo combines Latin American rhythmic vibe with Italian lyricism performing a varied repertoire from the past to the present era, with particular attention on new music written by female composers. Formed by classical guitarists Katty Mayorga and Isabella Abbonizio, the ensemble was founded in 2019 and has performed in various venues in New York City.

They sent us this version of Rey Guerra's "Compay," which is part of his suite Los caminos. 

Friday, March 10, 10 am

In December 2022, we premiered an Americas Society commission by Puerto Rican composer Gabriel Bouche Caro.  

Que tus ojos no se cansen de brillar for soprano, clarinet, sax, electric guitar, violin, viola, and cello features texts by Texts by Giannina Braschi, Angelamaria Dávila, Julia de Burgos, and Pedro Pietri. It was performed by Aliana de la Guardia, Gleb Kanasevich, Thomas Giles, Jay Sorce, Marina Kifferstein, Carrie Frey, Karlos Rodríguez, and Jessica Tsang.

Watch here

The MetLife Foundation Music of the Americas concert series is made possible by the generous support of Presenting Sponsor MetLife Foundation.

The Spring 2023 Music program is also supported, in part, by the Howard Gilman Foundation and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

Additional support comes from the Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, The Amphion Foundation, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, New Music USA’s Organizational Development Fund, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Association of Performing Arts Professionals’ ArtsForward program, made possible through support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and The Augustine Foundation. 

The commission of Que tus ojos no se cansen de brillar is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.