Role

:

Composer

Birth

:

1979 in São Paulo, Brazil

Period

:

Contemporary

 

Felipe Lara is a Brazilian composer of contemporary classical music. He was born in 1979 in São Paulo, Brazil, and grew up in a family of musicians. His father was a pianist and his mother was a singer, and they both encouraged him to pursue music from a young age. Lara began his musical education at the age of six, studying piano and music theory. He later studied composition at the University of São Paulo, where he earned his bachelor's and master's degrees. He also studied at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hamburg, Germany, and at Columbia University in New York City, where he earned his doctorate in music composition. Lara's music is characterized by its complex rhythms, intricate textures, and use of extended techniques. He often draws inspiration from Brazilian folk music and other traditional music from around the world, as well as from contemporary art and literature. One of Lara's most notable works is his chamber opera "The Ballad of the Object," which premiered in 2011 at the MATA Festival in New York City. The opera tells the story of a group of objects in a museum that come to life and begin to interact with each other. The music is highly rhythmic and features a variety of extended techniques, including vocalizations and percussive sounds made by the performers. Another notable work by Lara is his "Parábolas na Caverna," a piece for orchestra that was commissioned by the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra and premiered in 2014. The piece is based on Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" and features a variety of textures and timbres, including a section in which the orchestra imitates the sound of a cave. Lara has also written a number of works for solo instruments, including "Meditação sobre um ponto," a piece for solo cello that was commissioned by the cellist Anssi Karttunen and premiered in 2013. The piece features a variety of extended techniques, including harmonics and glissandi, and is characterized by its meditative quality. In addition to his work as a composer, Lara is also a professor of music composition at Columbia University. He has received numerous awards and honors for his work, including the Guggenheim Fellowship and the Rome Prize. Overall, Felipe Lara is a highly regarded composer of contemporary classical music whose work is characterized by its complex rhythms, intricate textures, and use of extended techniques. His music draws inspiration from a variety of sources, including Brazilian folk music, contemporary art and literature, and traditional music from around the world.

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