Christopher Garcia's
QUARTETO NUEVO
1998 - 2015
In 1998 I created the concept of QUARTETO NUEVO,
inviting musicians to play my original compositions and
the music I loved to play and hear on
acoustic guitar,
bass or cello,
woodwinds
with EL MONSTRO as the primary percussive driving force
e.g.,
North Indian tabla, South Indian kanjira, ghatam
PAISTE cymbals and gongs, with
instruments of indigenous Mexico and Meso America
which I hear as one instrument
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/el-monstro-faqs-and-facts.html
with special guests either on percussion or on violin
This caused everyone in turn to play their instruments differently
as the music of rhythm was not being played traditionally,
or on traditional sounds
or within traditional forms,
therefore people had to learn to make music in this environment
in the moment
at that moment
which means that they cannot play "what works"
and they have to come up with something new
a new skill,
another skill
to MAKE MUSIC in this
new sonic environment
if you were invited to
MAKE MUSIC in QUARTETO NUEVO
you had to work
and get beyond the notes
get beyond the page
get beyond yourself
you had to WORK
i.e.,
the more often you do anything the better it gets
ORGANICALLY
just like everything else in LIFE....
i.e.,
but you don't rehearse to replicate a performance
you rehearse so that ANYTHING can and will happen at ANYTIME
and the MUSIC goes where it takes you
and you don't worry about the page or the notes on the page
this only happens by playing music
and MAKING MUSIC
in real time
as often as possible
living it,
breathing it
most ensembles only rehearse when they have a JOB
and not for the love and joy of MUSIC MAKING
which is why most musicians income does not come from
performance but usually from teaching..............
Between 1998 and 2015 I was the creator/composer/arranger
and musical director for QUARTETO NUEVO
and there were 6 very different incarnations of QUARTETO NUEVO
with the only constant member being myself in that 17 year period
VISIT LINK BELOW FOR TIME FRAMES AND PERSONNEL
http://quartetonuevomusic.weebly.com/personnel.html
but the music started to change as rehearsals which used to be once a week
went to only rehearsing when we had a performance
people's priorities changed
it was no longer how can we make the best music possible
as often as possible
but
how little can we rehearse and get paid to do a performance
which is not who I am or why I do what I do the way I do it
I have ALWAYS made music every day of my LIFE
with musicians from
different countries,
different cultures,
different vernaculars,
different instruments etc.,
my musical income only comes from performing/improvising/composing
with the people I wish to and nothing else
it has never been easy but it has always done with INTENTION , INTEGRITY and INTENSITY
these values cannot be faked or bought and paid for
anything less IS LESS
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/making-music---links-and-more.html
I live and breathe music every moment of my LIFE
with over 1200 performances in 28 countries on 5 continents
performing my music or with a myriad of very different musical artists
who invite me to either compose, improvise or MAKE MUSIC with them
QUARTETO NUEVO turned into a shadow of what it once was and
I had no interest in participating in it
my only caveat that the band choose a different name
as the name they were using no longer represented its 17 year
INTENTION which I created
which I perpetuated
which I propagated
which is why I abandoned what QN4V6 has become
they continue to perform about 6 times per year
and I continue to perform my music with 60 concerts per year
in 28 countries on 5 continents
as I am only interested in living breathing music
and that only happens every day of my LIFE
not only when I have a performance.............
I continue to be invited to
compose/perform/improvise with the following
MUSICOS y MUSICAS
and am blessed to be able to do so..........
CLICK ON LINK BELOW
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/making-music---links-and-more.html
and in a variety of settings
CLICK ON LINK BELOW
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/indigena-projects.html
MUSIC, MUSIC MAKING and MUSIC LEARNING
is a way of BEING
not a way to (only)make a buck
THANKS to those who came out to EXPERIENCE
the various incarnations and the ciritcal reviews we received
over the years
GRACIAS A TODOS
Christopher Garcia
QUARTETO NUEVO
from the CD liner notes
(1999)
Quarteto Nuevo has been a dream of mine for years
Compositions which have been with me as I have grown
through good and bad, sadness and joy
Music which I wanted to hear with this particular instrumentation
Guitar/Bajo/Breath Instruments and hand percussion
Played by musicos adept at execution, and improvisation
willing to forego their ego/musicianship
in order to let the music happen
(Not an easy task)
But, I was quite unwilling to write it all down
and bring musicos into this space
(This space between my ears)
But, in order for it to be realized it had to be........
Like any good story committed to the page, though
it still seems like it's missing something when
not experienced in the presence of others
For music exists only in the moment it is played
Filling up the space it occupies
Living, breathing
It is three dimensional
Once the music stops
it ceases to exist....
It remains alive
only in our being-ness
our consciousness
our memories .............
Christopher Garcia
QUARTETO NUEVO
1998 - 2015
In 1998 I created the concept of QUARTETO NUEVO,
inviting musicians to play my original compositions and
the music I loved to play and hear on
acoustic guitar,
bass or cello,
woodwinds
with EL MONSTRO as the primary percussive driving force
e.g.,
North Indian tabla, South Indian kanjira, ghatam
PAISTE cymbals and gongs, with
instruments of indigenous Mexico and Meso America
which I hear as one instrument
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/el-monstro-faqs-and-facts.html
with special guests either on percussion or on violin
This caused everyone in turn to play their instruments differently
as the music of rhythm was not being played traditionally,
or on traditional sounds
or within traditional forms,
therefore people had to learn to make music in this environment
in the moment
at that moment
which means that they cannot play "what works"
and they have to come up with something new
a new skill,
another skill
to MAKE MUSIC in this
new sonic environment
if you were invited to
MAKE MUSIC in QUARTETO NUEVO
you had to work
and get beyond the notes
get beyond the page
get beyond yourself
you had to WORK
i.e.,
the more often you do anything the better it gets
ORGANICALLY
just like everything else in LIFE....
i.e.,
but you don't rehearse to replicate a performance
you rehearse so that ANYTHING can and will happen at ANYTIME
and the MUSIC goes where it takes you
and you don't worry about the page or the notes on the page
this only happens by playing music
and MAKING MUSIC
in real time
as often as possible
living it,
breathing it
most ensembles only rehearse when they have a JOB
and not for the love and joy of MUSIC MAKING
which is why most musicians income does not come from
performance but usually from teaching..............
Between 1998 and 2015 I was the creator/composer/arranger
and musical director for QUARTETO NUEVO
and there were 6 very different incarnations of QUARTETO NUEVO
with the only constant member being myself in that 17 year period
VISIT LINK BELOW FOR TIME FRAMES AND PERSONNEL
http://quartetonuevomusic.weebly.com/personnel.html
but the music started to change as rehearsals which used to be once a week
went to only rehearsing when we had a performance
people's priorities changed
it was no longer how can we make the best music possible
as often as possible
but
how little can we rehearse and get paid to do a performance
which is not who I am or why I do what I do the way I do it
I have ALWAYS made music every day of my LIFE
with musicians from
different countries,
different cultures,
different vernaculars,
different instruments etc.,
my musical income only comes from performing/improvising/composing
with the people I wish to and nothing else
it has never been easy but it has always done with INTENTION , INTEGRITY and INTENSITY
these values cannot be faked or bought and paid for
anything less IS LESS
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/making-music---links-and-more.html
I live and breathe music every moment of my LIFE
with over 1200 performances in 28 countries on 5 continents
performing my music or with a myriad of very different musical artists
who invite me to either compose, improvise or MAKE MUSIC with them
QUARTETO NUEVO turned into a shadow of what it once was and
I had no interest in participating in it
my only caveat that the band choose a different name
as the name they were using no longer represented its 17 year
INTENTION which I created
which I perpetuated
which I propagated
which is why I abandoned what QN4V6 has become
they continue to perform about 6 times per year
and I continue to perform my music with 60 concerts per year
in 28 countries on 5 continents
as I am only interested in living breathing music
and that only happens every day of my LIFE
not only when I have a performance.............
I continue to be invited to
compose/perform/improvise with the following
MUSICOS y MUSICAS
and am blessed to be able to do so..........
CLICK ON LINK BELOW
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/making-music---links-and-more.html
and in a variety of settings
CLICK ON LINK BELOW
http://christophergarciamusic.weebly.com/indigena-projects.html
MUSIC, MUSIC MAKING and MUSIC LEARNING
is a way of BEING
not a way to (only)make a buck
THANKS to those who came out to EXPERIENCE
the various incarnations and the ciritcal reviews we received
over the years
GRACIAS A TODOS
Christopher Garcia
QUARTETO NUEVO
from the CD liner notes
(1999)
Quarteto Nuevo has been a dream of mine for years
Compositions which have been with me as I have grown
through good and bad, sadness and joy
Music which I wanted to hear with this particular instrumentation
Guitar/Bajo/Breath Instruments and hand percussion
Played by musicos adept at execution, and improvisation
willing to forego their ego/musicianship
in order to let the music happen
(Not an easy task)
But, I was quite unwilling to write it all down
and bring musicos into this space
(This space between my ears)
But, in order for it to be realized it had to be........
Like any good story committed to the page, though
it still seems like it's missing something when
not experienced in the presence of others
For music exists only in the moment it is played
Filling up the space it occupies
Living, breathing
It is three dimensional
Once the music stops
it ceases to exist....
It remains alive
only in our being-ness
our consciousness
our memories .............
Christopher Garcia
