Debussyan chacarera

Debussyan chacarera (2010) joins the delicateness of Debussy’s harmonies and the strength of Argentine dances in a manic and subtle work for the concert pianist. In 2009, I was contacted by Natalia González Figueroa, a pianist from Buenos Aires who wanted to commission me a work related to Argentine classical music. She was broadening the repertoire linked to the musical nationalism of her country, which followed the European one thanks to Argentine composers such as Alberto Williams and Alberto Ginastera. In my case, as a European composer who spent some time in Buenos Aires, I decided to combine the musical traditions of both continents in this new piece.

In Debussyan chacarera, I associated the realm of duration with the New World. I was born and raised in Europe to a European family and, since my childhood, many world musical traditions have been known to me. As European expatriates, some members of my family moved around the world and spent some years in countries like the United States and cities like Buenos Aires before returning to Europe. Thus, my classical music education was enriched with the teachings of my mother, a sociologist and classical pianist. Among other world dances, the Argentine chacarera has always fascinated me by its lively character and the use of syncopation and vertical hemiola. Similarly, I was captivated by the Argentine baguala, a slow chant based on the pitches of a major triad chord.

When composing at my piano Debussyan chacarera, the music of Debussy and my relationship with France came to my mind. Paris was the first city I moved to after leaving Stockholm, my native place. And then I spent years of my childhood traveling between Switzerland and France, where part of my family comes from. My father, a diplomat and journalist, worked at the Palace of Nations, the home of the United Nations Office at Geneva. When my mother and I visited him, the three of us used to walk through the Ariana Park and admire the Celestial Sphere, created by American sculptor Paul Manship. By contemplating this work of art, among Indian peacocks and close to Peace Avenue, I understood that I was, first of all, an earthling and a citizen of the world. That is why it was natural for me to fill the rhythm of a chacarera with the harmony of Debussy, whose works I listened to during my childhood and performed during my studies (hence this piece’s title).

Commissioned by and dedicated to Natalia González Figueroa, my work Debussyan chacarera was premiered by her in Buenos Aires (Argentina), on 16 May 2011, at the Arévalo Auditorium of the CPCECABA. Since its premiere, this piece has also been programmed at festivals like Piano City Milano (Italy) and performed in European cities such as London (United Kingdom), Marseille (France), Rome, Milan and Florence (Italy), Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia (Spain), etc. Debussyan chacarera was included on the CD Homeland (2018), performed and released by Natalia González Figueroa (Argentina).

Dr. Jan Emanuel Abras, Ph.D. (born 1 February 1975 in Stockholm, Sweden)

www.janemanuelabras.com