We are a Latin American duo that was founded in 2022, with a vision to celebrate and investigate complex Latin American identity through new and existing concert music repertoire. Our instrumentation is voice and percussion, frequently vibraphone, and expands through collaborations with other artists of varied genres.

WHY DO WE DO THIS WORK?

According to the US census (2023), there are over 63 million Latine in the U.S. As nearly 20% of the US population, we are the largest minority group. We’re entrepreneurial, start small businesses, and embody varied and complex cultural and ethnic identities that bring richness to our communities. Highlighting Latin composers in American concert repertoire is crucial because it celebrates the diversity and cultural contributions of Latine people within our communities and the country, enriching the musical landscape with unique perspectives and artistic expressions.

Highlighting Latin composers ensures that the full spectrum of American identity and creativity is showcased and appreciated.

We are a bi-costal duo located in Los Angeles, California and Springfield, Massachusetts. Our home cities host significant Latin populations. Springfield, MA, is the largest city in Western Mass. with a population demographic of 46% Latin, and Los Angeles, CA with a 49% demographic.

HISTORY & ACCOMPLISHMENTS

The pandemic has taught us all that artists can collaborate from anywhere within the US and internationally. This duo was founded as a collaborative experiment utilizing both live and virtual performances to generate a distinctive repertoire by composers of the Latin diaspora.

Our inaugural project, the Latinx Composer Miniature Challenge (LCMC), began in the 2021-22 season as our inaugural project. We experienced some setbacks but reignited the project in 2023 with funding from the Springfield Cultural Council.  The LCMC is an unusual and important virtual project and a sister project to the Black Composer Miniature Challenge by the ensemble Castle of Our Skins. We challenge composers to submit completed scores of works that are 30 seconds in duration. We record them with high-quality video and audio to premiere online. The most recent 2023 LCMC yielded 7 submissions from Latin composers internationally, the 2024 LCMC saw an increase to 13 submissions. Together, we virtually premiered 12 miniature works and published 10 scores in a voice and vibraphone-themed anthology.

Our live performances started in the 2022-2023 season in partnership with Mt. San Antonio College in CA. As live performances continued in the 2023-2024 season, we saw partnerships with the Haverhill Public Library (MA), the Community Music School of Springfield (MA), and the Philosophical Research Society (CA). As a result, our 2023-2024 season featured works by 18 Latin composers in addition to the formation of our Board of Advisors.

We’re thankful to all the foundations, sponsors and individuals whose funding and presence helped to propel our small project to big goals, and Guerilla Opera, our 501(c)3 non-profit fiscal sponsor.