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El Puerto Rico

El Puerto Rico

El Puerto Rico features new music inspired by Puerto Rico and performed by the Victory Players.

El Puerto Rico, which debuted in 2018, is a project of the Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts (MIFA), Don Sanders, executive director. The project has commissioned new works inspired by Puerto Rico for the Victory Players, a MIFA-sponsored ensemble of young musicians from around the U.S. under the direction of Tianhui Ng.

Brenda Cepeda of Bomba de Aqui with The Victory Players at WGBH's Fraser Performance Studio on June 9, 2021.
Meredith Nierman
/
GBH
Brenda Cepeda of Bomba de Aqui with The Victory Players at WGBH's Fraser Performance Studio on June 9, 2021.

El Puerto Rico III featured compositions by Gabriel Bouche Caro, Carlos Carrillo, Johanny Navarro, Christian Quiñoes, Iván Rodriguez, and Omar Surillo.

Because of the pandemic, many of the pieces were composed as duets, and recorded and presented virtually by New England Public Media in January of 2021.

In June of 2021, NEPM, MIFA and WGBH Music collaborated to bring the Victory Players to WGBH’s Fraser Performance Studio in Boston to record the ensemble performing 10 new works inspired by Puerto Rico.

For El Puerto Rico IV, the Victory Players performed works by J.J. Peña Aguayo, Gabriel Bouche Caro, Armando Bayolo, Johanny Navarro, Christian Quinoñes, Iván Rodriguez, Tony Solitro, Omar Surillo and Liliya Ugay.

The Victory Players with composer J.J. Peñya Aguayo and members of Bomba de Aqui: dancer Brenda Cepeda and drummers Saul Penaloza and Julian Gerstin.
The Victory Players with composer J.J. Peñya Aguayo and members of Bomba de Aqui: dancer Brenda Cepeda and drummers Saul Penaloza and Julian Gerstin.

The Victory Players
Tianhui Ng, Music Director
Nathan Ben-Yehuda, piano
Clare Monfredo, cello
Giovanni A. Perez, flute
Robert Rocheteau, percussion
Eric Schultz, clarinet
Elly Toyoda, violin

In addition to the videos of the June performances, we invite you to explore videos of interviews with the composers, a video of the January 2021 virtual presentation, and two radio programs of the performances. There's also a nine episode podcast series
featuring performances of all of the works from El Puerto Rico III and IV, along with interviews with all the composers. The series features sixteen new works by ten composers including: José Javier Peña Aguayo, Armando Bayolo, Carlos Carrillo, Gabriel Bouche Caro, Johanny Navarro, Christian Quiñones, Iván Enrique Rodriguez, Tony Solitro, Omar Surillo, and Liliya Ugay.

El Puerto Rico III: Identity Duets

A virtual chamber concert event took place in January 2021 called El Puerto Rico III: Identity Duets. The concert included duets by Puerto Rican composers Gabriel Bouche Caro, Carlos Carrillo, Johanny Navarro, Christian A. Quiñones, Iván Enrique Rodríguez and Omar Surillo.

Identity Duets
The Victory Players perform at WGBH for El Puerto Rico on June 9, 2021.

El Puerto Rico IV: The Rich Port

A chamber concert event called El Puerto Rico IV: The Rich Port was recorded in June 2021 and released in the fall.

Several videos were produced for the performances by The Victory Players as well as interviews with the composers.

The Rich Port
The Victory Players perform at WGBH for El Puerto Rico on June 9, 2021.