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How Classical, Jazz, and Mexican Musical Traditions Come Together in an Innovative New Opera
Primero Sueno courtesy of Paola Prestini and Magos Herrera
For Hispanic Heritage Month, I had the pleasure of sitting down with two dear friends - artists whose work I know and admire firsthand: composer Paola Prestini and vocalist and composer Magos Herrera. I’ve been fortunate to collaborate with both Magos and Paola in the past and it was especially meaningful to talk with them about Primero Sueño, their innovative new opera inspired by the brilliant 17th-century Mexican poet and thinker Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. Our conversation explores how they bring Sor Juana’s voice into the present, weaving together opera, jazz, Mexican musical traditions, and contemporary classical music to create something immersive, boundary-crossing, and entirely their own.
Lara Downes, Paola Prestini, Magos Herrera
You can listen to my musical collaborations with Magos and Paola below:
https://open.spotify.com/track/4JbshiQxg477OIaIRXIKLQ and 1n6B4AKj6Zd0wHnhoHIXhH
