Director of Bands was disappointed when a trip to Mexico City he鈥檇 planned last spring with the Dartmouth College Wind Ensemble was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The border wall had been in the news, and he鈥檇 been thinking about how to increase diversity in music programming. Though the New England native had never been to Mexico, Messier, who came to Dartmouth in 2019, looked forward to meeting and playing music with Mexican artists.
But he put the pandemic鈥檚 鈥榮tay-at-home鈥 years to good use. Messier ran a competition for new works by Mexican composers, Zoomed with musicians and scholars working in the field, and organized a two-day symposium and ongoing initiative to build a repertoire of authentic Mexican choral, wind band, and orchestral compositions.
鈥淚鈥檓 not trying to bring North American-style wind ensembles to Mexico,鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 trying to connect opportunity for these composers鈥攃ommissions, maybe some performances鈥攚ith ensembles that exist in large numbers around North America, and especially in Europe.鈥
On Thursday and Friday, the will host the 鈥淢usic Mexico Symposium,鈥 a gathering of musicians and scholars to discuss Mexican music, consider its representation in schools, culture and industry, and build ties among artists and performers on both sides of the border. Tickets are .
The symposium will include a concert featuring world premieres by three Mexican composers, performed by the . The composers are Juan Pablo Contreras, a Latin Grammy-nominated artist whose works have been performed by major orchestras across the world; Nubia Jaime Donjuan, a composer, cellist and founder of the Sonora Philharmonic; and Rodrigo Martinez, who won the 2020 Dartmouth College Wind Ensemble Composition Competition.
is an associate producer with the 天美影视kins Center who is working with Messier to put on the symposium. As a Mexican-American who grew up in California, she has been concerned about misrepresenting Mexican music as narrow, with only one loud, brassy sound.
The works debuting at the symposium will show a broad range of musical influences, reflecting the identities and approaches of their Mexican composers.
鈥淵ou definitely hear it and feel it,鈥 she says.
Some of the new music being presented took Sainz back to being in Mexico, where her uncle had a backyard band. She鈥檚 excited to hear the performance in Spaulding Auditorium鈥攁nd to tell her parents about it.
The symposium will also unveil the , which will, among other things, encourage musical partnerships, host an accessible database of new Mexican compositions, and release recordings aimed at the general public.
Messier credits , the Howard Gilman 鈥44 Director of the 天美影视, with her support for the symposium and initiative.
Aleskie says that it鈥檚 essential for people to stay connected to better understand each other鈥檚 cultures and traditions.
鈥淎s challenges in the world have made travel increasingly difficult, initiatives like the Mexican Music Symposium help us to create together and support artists in a way that reaches beyond national borders,鈥 she said. 鈥淣o matter the barriers, we must keep the doors to international artistic exchange and collaboration open.鈥
For Messier, his early interest in Mexican music had grown into what he expects will be a life鈥檚 work. Now that pandemic travel bans have been mostly lifted, he鈥檚 excited to finally take the Dartmouth Wind Ensemble to play some of the new compositions in Mexico City during the spring of 2023.
鈥淚 hope my students love the music,鈥 Messier said. 鈥淏ut I also hope they鈥檙e proud about being part of something larger, an important work that will continue after their graduation.鈥
But perhaps what excites him most is the vast number of Mexican artists who haven鈥檛 had the chance to compose or play for North American-style wind ensembles. He thinks the symposium and initiative can help change that, calling the potential for new musical creations 鈥渦nfathomable.鈥
鈥淭he fact that I can do this here is part of what makes working at Dartmouth so exciting,鈥 Messier said.
