UTSA Orchestra will celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with Sept. 27 concert, ‘Rapsodia Mexicana,’ a celebration of Mexican music and the confluence of south Texan culture

Organist Colin Campbell's "Rapsodia del Rio Grande" will be the featured major work at the UTSA Orchestra's upcoming concert on September 27.

SEPTEMBER 25, 2023 — The UTSA Orchestra will carry audiences on a new musical journey with Rapsodia Mexicana at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 27, at the UTSA Recital Hall in the Arts Building on the Main Campus. A tribute to south Texan and Mexican culture, the concert will feature organist Colin Campbell and Mariachi Los Paisanos.

Rapsodia Mexicana kicks off the UTSA School of Music’s celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, recognized nationally from September 15 to October 15. Performances during this month will pay tribute to the Hispanic, Latino and Chicano peoples’ proud traditions and history in the U.S. The events are also reflective of UTSA’s focus on inclusivity as a core aspect of its mission.

UTSA Orchestra Conductor Troy Peters has developed an entire program around the repertoire of Mexican and South Texas composers. José Pablo Moncayo’s orchestral fantasy and best-known work, Huapango, will be the first piece the musicians perform. The ensemble will also play an Intermezzo from Ricardo Castro's late-Romantic era opera, Atzimba, and José Elizondo's mariachi tradition-inspired Estampas Mexicanas, a favorite of Peters, who is also the music director of the Youth Orchestra of San Antonio.

Following these orchestral works, Campbell will showcase the beauty and versatility of the Hieronymus organ with a solo performance of Toccatina by Ramón Noble. Audiences will also hear traditional folk selections by Mariachi Los Paisanos. Peters is creating new orchestrations for the group.

“The experience of seeing this familiar, beloved music onstage with an orchestra transforms it into a monumental experience.”

The UTSA Orchestra will carry audiences on a new musical journey with 'Rapsodia Mexicana' at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 27, at the UTSA Recital Hall in the Arts Building on the Main Campus.

“For many people who live in south Texas, mariachi is a cultural touchstone that’s always been there at celebrations and public events,” Peters said. “The experience of seeing this familiar, beloved music onstage with an orchestra transforms it into a monumental experience. There’s a great energy in it all that audiences will find infectious and enjoyable.”

Campbell’s Rapsodia del Rio Grande will be the concert’s featured major work. It is inspired by the Rio Grande River that serves as a border between the United States and Mexico near his home in Laredo. He shaped the composition's flow to that of the river and used it as a motif to capture the confluence of south Texan and Mexican cultures on each side.

“I draw a lot of my creativity from nature and being in constant awe of what is happening around me...it dawned on me, ‘Why not use the river as a metaphor for the whole work?’” Campbell said. “The river divides cultures but also brings them together because the river is not always necessarily a dividing element. It is also a common ground.”

Campbell, who originally hails from Port Elizabeth, South Africa, is an associate professor of Music at Texas A&M International University and a resident composer for the Laredo Philharmonic Orchestra. His work inspired a documentary titled “Rhapsody on the Rio Grande” that was produced in 2017 by KLRN-TV and received a regional Emmy award.

Mariachi Los Paisanos will be featured in "Rapsodia Mexicana," a concert paying tribute to south Texan and Mexican culture.

Rapsodia Mexicana will offer audiences a new perspective on Hispanic music with the juxtaposition of mariachi, organ and orchestra in a traditional concert setting.

“One thing we excel at as a School of Music is mixing genres and performance traditions,” said Tracy Cowden, director of the UTSA School of Music and special assistant to the dean for community engagement and the arts.

“We aspire to be innovative in programming and presentation while honoring the music that is important to the San Antonio community,” Cowden added.

Housed within the UTSA College of Liberal and Fine Arts, the School of Music was established in 2022 with a drive to become one of the top music schools in the nation. The school offers academic programs at the bachelor’s and master’s levels, as well as master’s certificates in instrumental performance and music pedagogy. Graduates of the school are teaching in public schools and universities, attending prestigious graduate schools, conducting professional ensembles, performing in major orchestras, producing television programs and winning prestigious performance competitions.

— Rolando Ramon