Yage (2010)
Victoriano Valencia (b. 1970)
Victoriano Valencia is a prolific Colombian composer for symphonic bands and traditional folk ensembles. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of band music in Colombia. His compositions and arrangements for symphonic band have received awards at national competitions and are performed throughout Europe and North America.
Valencia was born in 1970 in Monteria, Colombia. He has a bachelor's in Music Education from the National Pedagogical University of Colombia and a Master’s in Composition from EAFIT University in Colombia. His compositions and arrangements for wind ensembles are based on Colombian and Latin American folk rhythms. He is also known for recording production and the development of music teaching materials.
Valencia has worked as a cultural advisor for Colombia’s Ministry of Culture and several universities in Colombia, including the Universidad de Córdoba, Universidad del Norte, Universidad de Caldas, the University of Antioquia, the University of Caldas, and District University of Bogotá. He regularly serves as a judge for national band competitions, as well as other music competitions throughout Colombia. Valencia is an advocate for maintaining the traditions of prior generations. Part of this advocacy is achieved through his directorship of Bands Magazine, a quarterly publication specializing in the Colombian wind band movement.
In 2014, he was appointed artistic director of Medellin’s International Chamber Music Festival, an event organized and sponsored by the local government which is recognized internationally for its educative and artistic nature.
He is also an active member of the World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) and represents Colombia on the artistic committee of the Ibero-American Congress for Bands and Ensembles. Valencia is also the founder of the Colombian National Association of Composers and Arrangers for Bands and Ensembles (ACCOMPAS).
Victoriano Valencia wrote Yagé in 2010 as a commission by the Red de Escuelas de Música de Medellín, Medellin’s Schools of Music Network, an initiative that has transformed the city and increased exponentially the local culture, especially the performing arts. Valencia wrote this piece in his more academic period, as he was finishing his Master’s in composition at EAFIT University under the Italian composer Marco Alunno.
http://www.victorianovalencia.com
Description
Yagé is a one-movement rhythmic exploration, a programmatic work based on the indigenous practice of drinking hallucinogenic potions made out of leaves and other roots. It is minimalist in its style and has a binary form. Valencia scored the work for sixteen wind players and three percussionists, which is the largest instrumentation among the three works being explored. This represents the composer’s intent to create a heterogeneous sonority, sometimes chamber-like but capable of multiple symphonic layers and/or thicker orchestration (a common characteristic of larger ensembles).
*for more extensive program notes and analysis follow the link below.
Form
I. Punto
II. Toma
III. Trance
IV. Limpia
Audio Visual Sample
Score
The score for this piece isn’t available for purchase or rent but you can request a copy below.
