La Fiesta Mexicana - WBBDM03027 | Music

La Fiesta Mexicana (Harry Owen Reed)

Subtitled A Mexican Folk Song Symphony for Concert Band, this work was written in 1949, based on experiences gained during a six-month sojourn in Mexico. The authentic folk tunes Reed used can be found in Chapala, Jalisco, and Guadalajara; other themes were borrowed from Gregorian motifs and Aztec dances. The score carries this detailed description of the work by the composer:

I. Prelude and Aztec Dance
The tumbling of the church bells at midnight officially announces the opening of the Fiesta, which has previously been unofficially announced by the setting off of fireworks, the drinking of tequila and pulque, and the migration of thousands of Mexicans and Indians to the center of activity -- the high court surrounding the cathedral. After a brave effort at gaiety, the celebrators settle down to a restless night, until the early quiet of the Mexican morning is once more shattered by the church bells and fireworks. At mid-morning a band is heard in the distance. However, attention is soon focused upon the Aztec dancers, brilliantly plumed and masked, who dance in ever-increasing frenzy to a dramatic climax.''

II. Mass
The tolling of the bells is now a reminder that the Fiesta is, after all, a religious celebration. The rich and poor slowly gather within the great stone walls of the old cathedral for contemplation and worship.

III. Carnival
Mexico is at its best on the days of the Fiesta -- days on which passion governs the love, hatred and joys of the Mestizo and the Indio. There [are] entertainment and excitement for both young and old - the itinerant circus, the market, the bullfight, the town band, and always the cantinas with the ever present band of mariachis - on the day of days: fiesta.

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