CAMINOS DEL INKA A SPECTACULAR MULTIMEDIA EXPERIENCE TAKES AUDIENCES ACROSS THE INCA TRAIL WITH THE FORT WORTH SYMPHONY

FORT WORTH – Miguel Harth-Bedoya's journey across the Inca Trail began 15 years ago in Peru with a forgotten box filled with musical scores. Recognizing the discovery as a priceless cultural jewel, Harth-Bedoya began collecting every scrap of South American music he could find. Determined to preserve the musical heritage of his homeland, Harth-Bedoya – who is the music director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra – is having select works published and is commissioning arrangements of others for the modern-day orchestra.
He will launch the Caminos del Inka project in Fort Worth Nov. 16-18 at Bass Performance Hall. This spectacular multimedia experience combines Peruvian music performed live by the FWSO with breathtaking images of the people, places and landscapes surrounding the historic Inca Trail, projected on the big screen. The concert opens with El Cóndor Pasa, a traditional song whose melody was made famous by Simon and Garfunkel, and the beautiful Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout by composer-in-residence Gabriela Frank. Roberto Plano, finalist and audience favorite in the 12th annual Cliburn International Piano Competition, will close the concert with Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 15.
"The presentation is global," Harth-Bedoya says of Caminos del Inka. "These concerts can present a whole new world to people who have never been to South America. The visual element enhances the whole experience."
A second installment of Caminos del Inka takes place Feb. 22-24 at Bass Performance Hall, featuring the traditional Peruvian Triptych and Frank's Illapa: Tone Poem for Flute and Orchestra with soloist Jessica Warren. Similar versions that include music and pictures from the South American countries of Bolivia, Ecuador, Columbia, Brazil, Argentina and Chile will be performed in other U.S. cities, starting with a weekend of concerts in Baltimore in 2008.
Harth-Bedoya says he is thrilled to have the opportunity to share this amazing music. He is constantly on the lookout for more, which can be difficult to find –most people don't realize what they have and much of it wasn't written down to begin with.
"I find music in boxes, in drawers, on shelves in peopl'’s homes, in museums and in libraries," he says. "Sometimes when something is right in front of us, we don't think it's anything special. But this music is a treasure. What has frustrated me for years, is that very little of the instrumental music in South America has been published. It's not that this music didn't exist, but like stories, most of it just wasn't written down for years."
While conducting in Madrid this spring, he visited the royal palace library to view the drawings of a Catholic bishop who recorded the languages, music and day-to-day life of the people in South America. It's a treasure trove of information and some of the images will be used in the upcoming concerts. Fort Worth photographer Fabiana van Lente has also loaned her extraordinary catalog of photographs to Caminos del Inka, and other images are on loan from various governments and tourism bureaus in South America.
The Inca Trail is famous around the world, although the trail that many tourists know is just a small sector of the thread of Inca paths that held the great empire together. This extensive system stretched more than 23,000 kilometers and integrated the Tahuantinsuyo Empire (which means four regions) that covered Colombia, the west of Brazil, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, to the center of Chile and the north of Argentina. The trails were used to relay messages and transport goods throughout the empire.
The Caminos del Inka concerts on Nov. 16-18 start at 7:30 p.m. Friday, 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Learn more about the music by attending Symphonic Insights with composer-in-residence Gabriela Frank one hour before each concert in the audience chamber. On Casual, Chic Friday, enjoy Lobby Lites starting at 6:45 p.m. featuring pre-concert entertainment in the Bass Performance Hall lobby.
Tickets range from $15 - $76. Order online at www.fwsymphony.org, by telephone at 817-665-6000, or by visiting the FWSO Ticket Office at 330 E. Fourth Street, Suite 200, in downtown Fort Worth. The ticket office is open from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Saturday. Discounted rates are available for groups of 10 or more. Call 817-665-6500, ext. 150 for details.
These concerts are made possible, in part, by the generous support of American Airlines. Promotional support is provided by the Star-Telegram and WRR Classical 101.1 FM. These performances are presented in honor of the Symphony League of Fort Worth.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Recognized as one of the most exciting conductors on the international scene, Miguel Harth-Bedoya has served as music director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra since 2000. Under his leadership, both the quality of the FWSO and its role in the community have grown significantly. Winner of the 2002 Seaver/NEA Conductors Award, his active guest-conducting schedule includes appearances with all the major orchestras around the world as well as numerous festival appearances such as the Hollywood Bowl (for which he received an Emmy). He has also conducted the Minnesota Opera and Santa Fe Opera. A former associate conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, where he conducts a subscription week annually, he has also served as music director of the Auckland Philharmonia, Eugene Symphony Orchestra and Philharmonic Orchestra of Lima. The FWSO, led by Harth-Bedoya, will perform two concerts in Carnegie Hall in January.
A finalist in the Twelfth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Roberto Plano has embarked on a three-year tour of concert engagements throughout the U.S. Past accomplishments include winning the first prize at the 2001 Cleveland International Piano Competition and third prize at the 2003 Honens International Piano Competition. Having already earned an international reputation for his fine collaborative playing, he most recently toured with the Fine Arts and Jupiter String quartets in Texas and Canada. Highlights of the 2006-07 season included a recital debut at London's famed Wigmore Hall and an invitation to perform with and conduct members of the Berlin Philharmonic on tour in Italy. Mr. Plano has appeared at Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center and Severance Hall in Cleveland as well as in performances with the Akron, Calgary, and Spokane symphony orchestras. Also a top prizewinner of several major international competitions, he has performed regularly throughout Europe and in festivals around the world.
FWSO composer-in-residence Gabriela Frank has been hailed as representing the next generation of American composers. She regularly draws on and incorporates Latino/Latin American mythology, archeology, art, poetry, and folk music into western classical forms, reflecting her Peruvian-Jewish-Chinese heritage. Forthcoming commissions include new works for Chanticleer, the Brentano String Quartet, guitarist Sharon Isbin, The Silk Road Project, Orchestra of St. Luke's, the ProMusica Orchestra, and the Modesto Symphony. She is also developing opera libretti on Latin American folkloric and/or contemporary topics, including La Historia Oficial (The Official Story) regarding the disappearance of thousands of civilians during Argentina's "dirty war" of the 1980s and the ongoing protests by the famed Mothers of Plaza de Mayo (Madres de Plaza de Mayo).
Born in Lima, Peru, Fabiana van Lente moved to the United States in 1989 to study at Texas Christian University. Her homeland is one of her favorite places in the world to photograph because of its rich culture and tradition. Van Lente's extensive portfolio includes portraits, places, products and more. Along with establishing her own photography business, she has worked for Bob Lukeman Photography and Pier 1 imports as an advertising photographer.