Mi Sueno: Afro-Flamenco
Item
-
Score title
-
Mi Sueno: Afro-Flamenco
-
Composer
-
Shawn F. Okpebholo
-
Program note
-
mi sueño: afro-flamenco, a work for solo piano commissioned by pianist Clare Longendyke, is a part of a series of commissions inspired by Maurice Ravel's five-movement piano suite, Miroirs. My work is a musical response to Alborada del gracioso, the dynamic, virtuosic, Spanish-inspired fourth movement of Miroirs—qualities I reimagined in mi sueño: afro-flamenco. I composed this work during the 2020/2021 global pandemic, a challenging time for our world. The title means "my dream: afro-flamenco" which references my pre-pandemic nostalgia and post-pandemic dreams. It represents my longing to revisit Africa and relive my Nigerian musical heritage, to travel to Spain and once again savor the boundless artistry of flamenco performers, and to experience new places, cultures, and music. This piece is a musical dreamscape that infuses my musical language with African and African-American-inspired rhythms and sonorities, and flamenco musical styles. If you are familiar with Alborada del gracios, you will recognize my nod to the quick castanet-like repeated notes and the dyadic glissandi.
Shawn E. Okpebholo