"Trazos" for Bassoon and String Quarter by Manena Contreras (Venezuela) *English Version.

abril 29, 2021

"Trazos" for Bassoon and String Quarter by Manena Contreras (Venezuela) *English Version.

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Hi everyone! Today our destination is so beautiful, with the legacy of great musicians and beautiful natural landscapes, let's discover a beautiful country through the music of "Trazos" for Bassoon and String Quartet by the composer Manena Contreras - Venezuela.

The First Brushstroke of Strokes "Trazos" begins with a slow and wonderful two-minute bassoon introduction just an expressive melody that appears as a great surprise to the audience, the music begins with an exposition of the principal theme that connects you to the piece from the first second.

Slowly the music transports us to another stage with a small rhythmic variation, a contrast with the introduction that gradually brings us to calm, the bassoon makes a sudden silence, and out of nowhere, we hear the beautiful introductory theme again.

At this moment and like a mirage the strings appear with a subtle piano; the voices of the strings sing a small theme that is very recurrent in the work, meanwhile, the bassoon continues to develop the theme with a long and expressive melody, the strings advance in a game of crescendos and decrescendos, suddenly the bassoon is alone in a beautiful melody concluding the theme.

The strings make a surprising appearance with a contrasting development, the bassoon also joins this game that naturally connects one theme of the other and that quickly marks the final brushstroke more and more intensely, in turn, and Progressively, the strings and the bassoon shake and without further, the piece begins to conclude, achieving a great tension in the environment, suddenly and without warning, an unexpected end arrives.

In conclusion, "Trazos" is an impressive work that despite being written in chamber music format, it is a totally solo piece with the bassoon being the principal protagonist of the piece, with long and expressive phrases, bringing small moments of contrast, all this in two movements that connect to each other as a surprise factor.

"Trazos" was written in 2010, and it was dedicated to the Argentinian bassoonist Fabián Contreras, on this occasion we heard the premiere of the piece in Venezuela, by the director Pablo Castellanos, on the bassoon Leonardo Dean together with the Latin American Music Ensemble Simón Bolívar Contemporary, this recording was made in the XIX Latin American Music Festival.

Manena Contreras

Composer

The composer Manera Contreras was born in 1966 in Caracas, Venezuela. She studied a Doctoral Degree in Musical Arts and a Master's Degree in Composition as well as a Master's Degree in Choral Conducting from the Esther Boyer School of Music at Temple University. Mrs. Contreras also is graduated in Law from the Santa María de Caracas University, Mrs. Contreras throughout her career has received many distinctions and awards obtained such as The Dr. John Henry Heller Jr. award for excellence in composition, among others.

Her music has been recorded and performed in South America, the United States, and Europe, Maestra Contreras has also worked in Music Production, she has written music for documentaries, videos, records, and Jingles. Her first album "Instantes" was released by Centaur Records. She currently works as a freelance composer.

Leonardo Dean

Bassoonist

The bassoonist Leonardo Dean was born in Venezuela. His bassoon study was in the National System of Youth and Children's Orchestra of Venezuela, he was Principal Bassoon of the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra and professor at the University of the Arts (UNEARTE), the same institution where he obtained a Bachelor of Music degree. He is an active musician working as a soloist and in Chamber music, in his experience, he has attended various festivals and orchestras such as Youth Symphony Fiesta of America, The Festival of Champions Orchestra of Indianapolis (USA), International Double Reed Society Congress, Meq Quiqley Vivaldi Competition, among others.

He is currently director of the Florida Nucleus from Uruguay Youth Orchestras and Choirs System, in his academic studies, he attended master classes with leading bassoonists worldwide such as Henning Trog and Klauss Thunemann, also studied a Master degree at Simón Bolívar University with teacher George Sakakeeny. Maestro Dean is undoubtedly one of the most important bassoonists in Latin America, not only because of his contribution to the dissemination of Latin American music but also as a professor of new generations of musicians.

Thank you very much for joining me on this musical journey through beautiful Venezuela!

See you next week in Cuba!