Orfeón Lamas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A fundamental institution, when the modern musical movement began to be developed in Venezuela, was the Orfeón Lamas. With this, the venezuelan choral movement begins. Before any stable choral grouping in Venezuela did not exist.
Contents |
[edit] The beginning
It surprises that this grouping, had its origin in the carnival of January, 1928, when a group of musicians, all disguised of Ukrainians, left by the Caracas streets, going from a residence to another, singing with a stamped and excellent voice, surprising by they wonderful melodys. That group of young people and glad musicians was formed by Vicente Emilio Sojo, the brothers Emilio and Jose Antonio Calcaño, Juan Bautista Plaza, Miguel Angel Calcaño and William Werner. The idea to sing in a choir happened to them after making contact with a vocal grouping of Ukraine that had appeared in the Caracas Municipal Theater, at the end of 1927. That glad union of musicians was the germ of which it would be the Orfeón Lamas: in March, 1929, a group of musicians began to meet in the residence of Jose Antonio Calcaño (some fans), to try to sing pieces of Venezuelan composers, after months, another one of feminine voices were added to this group, completing therefore the choral. After a year of test and arduous work, the Orfeón Lamas offered its first presentation in the Caracas National Theater, on July 15, 1930.
[edit] The Orfeón Lamas
The repertoire of the Orfeón Lamas was constituted by works of venezuelan composers of the School of Santa Capilla, disciples of Vicente Emilio Sojo, and by sacred works of Venezuelan composers of the Colony (XVIII and XIX century). Many of colonial works only existed in old manuscripts, in badly conservation and had to be reconstructed partially. The sacred concerts of the Orfeón Lamas caused an incomparable diffusion and rescue of that repertoire. The Venezuela Symphony orchestra always accompanied the Orfeón Lamas in the famous Sacred Concerts initiated by Sojo in 1933, and, since then, they were carried out with regularity during several years, under the direction of Vicente Emilio Sojo (all Fridays of Holy Week), in the Caracas Municipal Theater. It is memorable, for example, the sacred concert made on March 31, 1933 in the Caracas Municipal Theater, where the choir participated with approximately one hundred singers and the Venezuela Symphony orchestra, this concert was transmitted live through the “Broadcasting Caracas” to all the country. In 1938, the Orfeón Lamas was invited to the celebrations of IV the Centenary of the foundation of Bogotá. It offered in that occasion three successful concerts in the Theater Columbus of the Colombian Capital.
[edit] Legacy
Vicente Emilio Sojo, compile and harmonize, old venezuelan aguinaldos, taking them to be presented, for more than 20 years by the Orfeón Lamas, occurring therefore the rescue of the Venezuelan musical culture, The Orfeón Lamas was a pioneering chorale in the Venezuelan musical movement, leaving a great contribution and legacy.
