Roque Cordero (1917-2008) was a composer, conductor, writer and educator born in Panama City into a working class, non-musical family of African origin. While studying plumbing, he played violin in the school orchestra and clarinet in the school band. He also played in the firemen's band, learned about instrumentation while copying for the band. He wrote popular music for them such as pasillos, tamboritos and tangos, and started conducting. Meanwhile he had learned solfège and harmony on his own. (1)
In 1939 he wrote Capricho interiorano based on a popular Panamanian mejorana folk dance. He then stopped writing music for the next four years, feeling he needed more formal training which was not available in Panama. During this time he taught music at his secondary school and played viola in Panama's Symphony Orchestra.
While attending a course in music appreciation at the University of Panama, his professor Myron Schaeffer (1908-1965) noticed Cordero's talent and arranged a scholarship at the University of Minnesota in 1943. Cordero brought with him the 1939 Capriccio and a work for band Reina de amor which he conducted at a university concert. The music critic John K. Sherman (1898-1969) liked it and introduced Cordero to Dimitri Mitropoulos (1896-1960), conductor of the Minneapolis Symphony. Mitropoulos liked the orchestration of the piece, but recommended studies in counterpoint with Ernst Krenek (1900-1991) at Hamline University. During the next three and a half years Cordero studied with Krenek mastering twelve-tone technique while preserving his unique Panamanian character.
In 1947 he obtained a bachelor’s degree from Hamline University and moved to New York where he studied conducting with Léon Barzin (1900-1999) and met a.o. Henry Cowell (1897-1965), Aaron Copland (1900-1990), and Edgard Varèse (1883-1965). From 1949 to 1950 he spent a year in Marine-on-St.-Croix, MN composing, on a Guggenheim fellowship.
From 1950 to 1966 he returned to Panama City where he taught at the national conservatory and later became its Director, and also wrote articles and concert reviews. He felt some reluctance from other Panamanian musicians, earning more respect in 1957 when he won a prize at the Second Festival of Latin American Music in Caracas for his Symphony No. 2 (1956). Still facing local politics, he began to attend international festivals and conferences. In 1964 he became conductor of the country's national orchestra, but a lack of governmental support led him to, once again, leave Panama.
From 1966 to 1969 he was Assistant Director of the Latin American Music Center under Juan Orrego-Salas and taught composition in Bloomington, IN. From 1969 to 1972 he was Music Editor at Peer Southern music publishing company in New York were he did research, edited scores, and moved South American composers to publish with the company. From 1972 to 2000 he taught privately and at Illinois State in Normal, IL, actively participating in musical events on campus and internationally. He retired from teaching in 2000 and moved to Dayton, OH near his eldest son.
Following are some of Cordero's works for solo instruments, o.a. a series of interesting Soliloquies for various instruments composed from 1975 through 1992. I will explore his chamber, orchestral and choral works in the next two posts.
- Sonatina Rítmica (1943) is an early piano piece, composed before Cordero adopted twelve-tone technique.
- Each of Cordero's Soliloquies was written for a different occasion: (3)
- Soliloquios No. 1 para flauta sola (Soliloquy No. 1 for solo flute) (1975) written upon request of Cordero's friend Max Schoenfeld.
- Soliloquios No. 2 para saxofón solo (Soliloquy No. 2 for solo saxophone) (1976) was requested by Jim Boitos for alto sax.
- Soliloquios No. 3 para clarinete solo (Soliloquy No. 3 for solo clarinet) (late 1970s) was requested by Aris Chávez.
- Soliloquios N° 4 para percusión (Soliloquy No. 4 for percussion) (1981) was written for David Shrader. Here are the 1st and 3rd movement. Listen to the 2nd movement here.
- Soliloquios N° 5 para contrabajo (Soliloquy No. 5 for double bass) (1981) was written for Cordero's friend Arthur Corra.
- Soliloquios N° 6 para violonchelo solo (Soliloquy No. 6 for cello) (1992) was dedicated to his friend Ko Iwasaki who always collaborated with Cordero's Latin American concerts.
- Rapsodia Panameña for solo violin (1988) was later transcribed by Cordero himself for marimba. We hear both versions.
- From Tres Preludios (Three Preludes) (1988) for solo guitar here are Nos 1 and 3, both beautiful pieces.
- Tres Meditaciones Poéticas (Three Poetic Meditations) (1995) for piano. Despite the noisy recording, we can appreciate the lyrical quality of this work, written when Cordero was still teaching part-time in Illinois.
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(1) All biographical information obtained from Marie Labonville, "Roque Cordero (1917–2008) in the United States." Paper presented at the Latin American Music Center’s Fiftieth Anniversary Conference “Cultural Counterpoints: Examining the Musical Interactions between the U.S. and Latin America,” Indiana University, Bloomington, 2011. Available from IUScholarWorks (https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/handle/2022/15513 (12/08/2017))
(2) Labonville, Ib., p. 6.
(3) Isaac Miguel Casal Rodriguez, "Roque Cordero Soliloquio No. 6 and Sonata for Cello and Piano: Structure and Analysis." Doctoral dissertation, Louisiana State University, 2014, p. 14. (https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=3701&context=gradschool_dissertations (12/08/2017))
In 1939 he wrote Capricho interiorano based on a popular Panamanian mejorana folk dance. He then stopped writing music for the next four years, feeling he needed more formal training which was not available in Panama. During this time he taught music at his secondary school and played viola in Panama's Symphony Orchestra.
While attending a course in music appreciation at the University of Panama, his professor Myron Schaeffer (1908-1965) noticed Cordero's talent and arranged a scholarship at the University of Minnesota in 1943. Cordero brought with him the 1939 Capriccio and a work for band Reina de amor which he conducted at a university concert. The music critic John K. Sherman (1898-1969) liked it and introduced Cordero to Dimitri Mitropoulos (1896-1960), conductor of the Minneapolis Symphony. Mitropoulos liked the orchestration of the piece, but recommended studies in counterpoint with Ernst Krenek (1900-1991) at Hamline University. During the next three and a half years Cordero studied with Krenek mastering twelve-tone technique while preserving his unique Panamanian character.
...he crafted his rows in such a way that they would create melodies or harmonies that had tonal characteristics without being explicitly tonal. Sometimes he even altered the order of a row or repeated certain pitches. He gave Panamanian flavor to his rhythmic materials by incorporating rhythms of folk dances such as the mejorana, the punto, the cumbia, the pasillo, and the tamborito. His rhythmic language was further characterized by ostinato, changing meters, and great vitality.(2)In 1946 in Tanglewood he met other Latin American composers, a.o. Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) and Juan Orrego-Salas (b. 1919).
In 1947 he obtained a bachelor’s degree from Hamline University and moved to New York where he studied conducting with Léon Barzin (1900-1999) and met a.o. Henry Cowell (1897-1965), Aaron Copland (1900-1990), and Edgard Varèse (1883-1965). From 1949 to 1950 he spent a year in Marine-on-St.-Croix, MN composing, on a Guggenheim fellowship.
From 1950 to 1966 he returned to Panama City where he taught at the national conservatory and later became its Director, and also wrote articles and concert reviews. He felt some reluctance from other Panamanian musicians, earning more respect in 1957 when he won a prize at the Second Festival of Latin American Music in Caracas for his Symphony No. 2 (1956). Still facing local politics, he began to attend international festivals and conferences. In 1964 he became conductor of the country's national orchestra, but a lack of governmental support led him to, once again, leave Panama.
From 1966 to 1969 he was Assistant Director of the Latin American Music Center under Juan Orrego-Salas and taught composition in Bloomington, IN. From 1969 to 1972 he was Music Editor at Peer Southern music publishing company in New York were he did research, edited scores, and moved South American composers to publish with the company. From 1972 to 2000 he taught privately and at Illinois State in Normal, IL, actively participating in musical events on campus and internationally. He retired from teaching in 2000 and moved to Dayton, OH near his eldest son.
Following are some of Cordero's works for solo instruments, o.a. a series of interesting Soliloquies for various instruments composed from 1975 through 1992. I will explore his chamber, orchestral and choral works in the next two posts.
- Sonatina Rítmica (1943) is an early piano piece, composed before Cordero adopted twelve-tone technique.
- Each of Cordero's Soliloquies was written for a different occasion: (3)
- Soliloquios No. 1 para flauta sola (Soliloquy No. 1 for solo flute) (1975) written upon request of Cordero's friend Max Schoenfeld.
- Soliloquios No. 2 para saxofón solo (Soliloquy No. 2 for solo saxophone) (1976) was requested by Jim Boitos for alto sax.
- Soliloquios No. 3 para clarinete solo (Soliloquy No. 3 for solo clarinet) (late 1970s) was requested by Aris Chávez.
- Soliloquios N° 4 para percusión (Soliloquy No. 4 for percussion) (1981) was written for David Shrader. Here are the 1st and 3rd movement. Listen to the 2nd movement here.
- Soliloquios N° 5 para contrabajo (Soliloquy No. 5 for double bass) (1981) was written for Cordero's friend Arthur Corra.
- Soliloquios N° 6 para violonchelo solo (Soliloquy No. 6 for cello) (1992) was dedicated to his friend Ko Iwasaki who always collaborated with Cordero's Latin American concerts.
- Rapsodia Panameña for solo violin (1988) was later transcribed by Cordero himself for marimba. We hear both versions.
- From Tres Preludios (Three Preludes) (1988) for solo guitar here are Nos 1 and 3, both beautiful pieces.
- Tres Meditaciones Poéticas (Three Poetic Meditations) (1995) for piano. Despite the noisy recording, we can appreciate the lyrical quality of this work, written when Cordero was still teaching part-time in Illinois.
________________________________________________
(1) All biographical information obtained from Marie Labonville, "Roque Cordero (1917–2008) in the United States." Paper presented at the Latin American Music Center’s Fiftieth Anniversary Conference “Cultural Counterpoints: Examining the Musical Interactions between the U.S. and Latin America,” Indiana University, Bloomington, 2011. Available from IUScholarWorks (https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/handle/2022/15513 (12/08/2017))
(2) Labonville, Ib., p. 6.
(3) Isaac Miguel Casal Rodriguez, "Roque Cordero Soliloquio No. 6 and Sonata for Cello and Piano: Structure and Analysis." Doctoral dissertation, Louisiana State University, 2014, p. 14. (https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=3701&context=gradschool_dissertations (12/08/2017))