Welcome!

A Symposium on Puerto Rican Musical Creativity | Encuentro Puertorriqueño de Creación Musical

Thursday, March 30th – Sunday, April 2nd, 2023

School of Music University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Organizing Committee

Carlos Carrillo, director

Noel Torres, co-director

Angela M. Santiago

Mike Silvers

Carta de Bienvenida del Comité Organizador

Les damos la más cordial bienvenida al “Encuentro Puertorriqueño de Creación Musical”. Durante estos días abriremos espacios para el intercambio de ideas y generación de saberes en torno a la creatividad musical puertorriqueña, enfocándonos en la música de concierto de la isla a través de paneles, talleres y conciertos. Estamos entusiasmados con todas las conversaciones que tendremos y la música que escucharemos, y felices de compartir con todos ustedes la culminación de un largo proceso de planificación de un proyecto de alto valor.

Welcome Letter from the Organizing Committee

We welcome you to the “Encuentro Puertorriqueño de Creación Musical.” During these days, we will open spaces for exchanging ideas and generating knowledge on Puerto Rican musical creativity, addressing its art music tradition through panels, workshops, and concerts. We are excited for all the conversations we will have and the music we will hear, and glad to share with all of you the culmination of a long planning process of a worthwhile project.

¡Un fuerte abrazo!

Carlos, Angela, Noel y Mike

Welcome Letter from the School of Music Director

Dear Friends,

On behalf of the entire School of Music and the College of Fine and Applied Arts, it is my great pleasure and honor to welcome you to Encuentro Puertorriqueño de Creación Musical!

This has been an event at least five years in the making. I remember speaking with Professor Carlos Carrillo shortly after my arrival at Illinois in the fall of 2019 about his work on a Puerto Rican music festival. He and our students planned to make a spring break visit to the Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico; in turn, we would welcome composers and artists from Puerto Rico to campus. The pandemic delayed those plans, but perhaps that wait has allowed for the creation of this week’s exceptional multifaceted event, one that is bringing together composers, performers, and scholars from around the world.

At the School of Music, we’ve made exploring music in all its geographic and cultural diversity a core value, and our faculty, students, and staff are deeply committed to this work. I am extremely grateful to have so many of our faculty and students involved in this week’s symposium, and to have such a talented array of visitors join us in celebrating the history, breadth, and beauty of Puerto Rican music. I am confident that the work that is done here this week at UIUC will reverberate beyond central Illinois, and that our university will play a significant role in giving this music the attention it so richly deserves.

I would like to thank not only all of the faculty, students, and guests who helped make this event possible, but also the many programs and centers around campus who contributed financial and in-kind support, especially the Center for Advanced Studies for its award of a MillerComm grant. I would also like to thank donors to the School of Music’s Opportunity and Innovation fund, especially Paul Herman.

Thank you all for joining us!

Jeffrey Sposato

Professor and Director

UIUC School of Music

FUNDING PROVIDED BY

Center for Advanced Study

School of Music, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico

Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts (MIFA)

James Avery Fund/College of Fine and Applied Arts

Lorado Taft Art Fund/College of Fine and Applied Arts

Sensing Waters Initiative

Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies

The Spurlock Museum

The Spurlock Museum acknowledges support from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.

Additional Support from

Don Sanders, Executive Artistic Director Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts (MIFA) Victory Theatre

Jason Finkelman, Director, Global Arts Performance Initiatives
Improvisers Exchange

Julio Velasco, Assistant Director, La Casa Cultural Latina