Luis
Mario
Ruelas
News
Selected for Mexico’s First-Ever Orchestra Readings done by the National Symphony Orchestra
Teatro Regina - INBA Mexico City, Mexico October 28th & 29th, 2024
On October 28th and 29th, 2024, the National Symphony Orchestra of Mexico made history by holding the first-ever orchestra reading session in the country. Out of 80 applicants, only eight composers were selected for this landmark event, and I am truly honored to have been among them.
Under the baton of Maestro Ludwig Carrasco, my work Fantasía-Tumbao was brilliantly brought to life. This piece weaves the vibrant rhythms of salsa and bolero with the expressive harmonic language of contemporary classical music. At moments, the orchestra was almost "dancing," while at others, it expressed intense drama and profound nostalgia, capturing the essence of my vision.
As a young emerging Mexican composer, I was greatly inspired by this experience. I am incredibly grateful, honored and proud that the top orchestra in the country is is taking such meaningful steps to support and nurture new talent in orchestral music.
Thank you Maestro Carrasco and everyone who made this historic event possible. This experience will always stand out as a key moment in my journey as a composer!
Sharing my Creative Process at FILMAQ 2024
Centro de las Artes de Querétaro Querétaro, Mexico June 21st, 2024
I was invited to participate at the 2024 edition of the FILMAQ (International Fair of Books and Audiovisual Media of Querétaro), where I shared insights into my creative process behind composing my cantata in Mayan "Ja' K'áax" back in 2016.
During an engaging conference at the Queretaro Center for the Arts, I discussed my collaboration with Maya poet Wildernain Villegas Carillo, whose poem I had the privilege of musicalizing. Likewise, I shared how I integrated Western instruments with Pre-columbian instruments to bring the cantata's unique soundscape to life.
This event was a deeply fulfilling experience: an opportunity not only to discuss my music and the motivations behind my compositions but also to give back to the vibrant community of Querétaro, a place I’ve proudly called home for the past two and a half years.
I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the Querétaro Secretariat of Culture and Arkansas State University Campus Querétaro for making this wonderful opportunity possible!
Partial-premier at the National Creators Forum 2022
Centro Cultural Los Pinos Mexico City, Mexico December 15th, 2022
I conducted the premier of the second movement from my suite "Cantos Latinoamericanos" at the National Creators Forum, carried out by the Mexican National Endowment for Arts and Culture (FONCA), at the Cultural Center of "Los Pinos" in Mexico City.
This suite was only partially premiered, and was the result of a yearlong commission as part of the 2021-2022 Young Creators Grant (Béca Jóvenes Creadores) which I won in September 2021 and which is also administered by the FONCA.
It was a joy to share my music with the public in the recently inaugurated Cultural Center of "Los Pinos", which used to be the residence of previous Mexican presidents.
Thank you to all my musician friends that helped me make my music come to life: Jorge Barradas, Helena Muntaner (violins), Mariel Espinoza (viola), Michelle Hernández (cello), Arturo Caput (double bass), Ana López (piano) and Maribel Pedraza (percussion)
Interview with Cerro Gordo Magazine for winning the 2021 Young Creators Grant
Periódico A.M. León, Mexico October 17th, 2021
Had an interview with Mayra González from the Cerro Gordo Magazine regarding my recent appointment as one of the composers who won the 2021 Young Creators Grant from the Mexican National Endowment for Culture and Arts.
It was a joy to share with Mayra about my project for the grant, my past musical experiences, my view of music and art during the pandemic, and much more.
Go check out the whole article! (Just click the image)
Won the 2021 Young Creators Grant from the Mexican National Endowment for Culture and Arts
Fondo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes (FONCA) September 10th, 2021
On Friday September 10th, the Mexican National Endowment for Culture and Arts (FONCA), which is part of the Mexican Secretariat of Culture, published the results of the 2021 Young Creators Grant. I was one of the lucky few composers to win the grant under the category for "Acoustic, Electroacoustic and Electronic Medium Composition".
With this grant, I will be devoting an entire year to work on my composition project titled "Cantos Latinoamericanos" (Latin American chants). During this year I will be writing a work for chamber ensemble inspired on 4 Latin American dances: son jarocho, zamba argentina, vals peruano, and salsa. My goal is to study these genres, and work with certain musical elements inspired on such dances. All through the lense of my own music, and without copying directly from the original sources in any form.
The objective will be to create a work for chamber ensemble that creates a bridge, a dialogue, between folk, popular and concert music, and makes us reflect on the various points in common among these traditions.
Stay tuned for more information regarding this amazing project!
My piece "Capri 204" showcased at the 2nd International Double Reed Society Virtual Symposium
International Double Reed Society July 27th, 2021
This past Tuesday July 27th, American oboist Sara Renner did a video release of her latest album Oboe Unfolded as part of the 2nd International Double Reed Society Virtual Symposium.
My work for solo oboe Capri 204, which is the first in the album, was showcased at this virtual event as well.
Sara did a beautiful rendition of this work and I am so grateful for her hard work. ¡Gracias, Sara!
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Interview with Cerro Gordo Magazine for virtual Fête de la Musique Festival
Periódico A.M. León, Mexico June 21st, 2020
Was interviewed by Mayra González from the Cerro Gordo Magazine regarding my performance at the first virtual Fête de la Musique Festival on June 21st.
This event was organized in this virtual format due to the current pandemic we are facing worldwide. The festival was created with the goal of bringing hope and a positive vibe during these difficult times.
It was a fun interview, so go check it out!
Simply click the image to the left.
Public release of CD
"Oboe: Unfolded" in which my piece "Capri 204" is featured
Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, Google Music, iHeartRadio & Pandora December 31, 2019.
I'm excited to announce that my piece Capri 204 is featured in oboist Sara Renner's latest CD Oboe: Unfolded which was released on December 31st. The album compiles works for solo oboe and English Horn written by myself and four other composers. These pieces were commissioned by Sara for this project. The goal was to bridge the gap between the elementary oboe pieces for beginner students and the most advanced, challenging works, for the experienced virtuosos.
This CD can be found in Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, Google Music, iHeartRadio and Pandora. So you can't miss it! Please go hear the wonderful works written by my fellow composer colleagues and myself.
Thank you Sara for this unique opportunity and for your beautifully warm and passionate rendition. ¡Gracias!
Capri 204: new work for solo oboe recorded for CD release
Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Cincinnati, OH. July 18, 2019.
With an ambitious project ("Oboe Unfolded") sponsored by the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, oboist Sara Renner commissioned me and other 4 composers to write a work for solo oboe. Sara's goal was to expand the repertoire by commissioning works that bridged the gap between the elementary pieces for beginner students and the most advanced, challenging works for the experienced virtuosos.
My contribution to the project was Capri 204, a work that explores the dichotomy of the lower and higher registers of the oboe in a narrative that also swerves between static sections and actively flowing, continuously changing ones. These dichotomies are resolved in an elusive ending.
Sara premiered my work, together with the other commissioned pieces and later professionally recorded them to be compiled in a CD for future release. Stay tuned!
Thank you Sara for this wonderful opportunity you gave me to contribute to the oboe repertoire; to explore more intricacies of this beautiful and soulful instrument; and most importantly thank you for bringing my music to life with your warm and passionate rendition.
My Mayan cantata Ja' K'áax gets its U.S. Premier!
Indiana University, Bloomington, IN. February 22nd, 2018.
Photo Credit: Joanna Ruszala Photography
On Thursday February 22nd my cantata in Mayan "Ja' K'áax" for soprano solo, SATB quartet and chamber ensemble had its U.S. debut at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music for the Salon Latino Concert Series. This event was sponsored by the OperaMaya International Music Festival and Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music through the Latin American Music Center.
Winner of the 2017 OperaMaya International Composition Competition, my cantata Ja' K'áax sets to music Prof. Wildernain Villegas Carrillo's homonym poem in Yucatec Mayan. His poem speaks out through evocative rainforest imagery of the injustices currently faced by the Maya people.
Working with the performers was an incredible experience, from reviewing the pronunciation of Yucatec Mayan with Prof. Villegas Carillo, himself coaching the singers, to working with the full ensemble balance the unusual instrumentation. The work uses traditional Pre-Columbian instruments such as the conch shell, tunkul (Maya log drum), ankle rattle, all intermixed with western instruments.
Thank you to Prof. Villegas Carillo for writing such powerful message in your poem; thank you Maestro Piotr Wisniewski for conducting all the performers; thank you Malina Rauschenfels for illustrating with your beautiful voice the soprano solo passages in my cantata; and finally thank you to all the performers for bringing this work to life in its U.S. debut!
Interview about upcoming concert at WFIU
My cantata Ja'K'áax gets its U.S. debut
Indiana University, Bloomington, IN. February 20th, 2018.
George Walker from WFIU interviewed me and Mary Grogan, the director of the OperaMaya Music Festival, for the upcoming concert in which my Mayan cantata Ja' K'áax will have its U.S. premier. The concert which is part of a series of events organized by OperaMaya to promote Maya Culture, and it is sponsored by Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music through the Latin American Music Center.
The concert will take place on 02/22 at 8pm in Auer Hall.
Winner of OperaMaya 2017 International Composition Competition!
My cantata Ja'K'áax gets premiered
Valladolid / Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Mexico. May 28th & June 1st, 2017.
As winner of the OperaMaya 2017 International Composition Competition, my cantata in Mayan Ja'K'áax was premiered in the 2017 OperaMaya International Music Festival. The work, which uses as text the poem of poet Wildernain Villegas Carrillo, was premiered in Valladolid, Mexico. Also, as part of this festival, Ja'K'áax was performed by the Quintana Roo State Orchestra in the historically first orchestral concert in the city of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Mexico. Conductor Piotr Wisniewski led the singers and orchestra in both performances with Malina Rauschenfels singing the soprano solo line. I am grateful to have worked with such talented musicians in the heart of the Maya culture performing in front of the living Maya people.
Photo Credit: Joanna Ruszala Photography
Bowing on stage after the premier of Resilience: Music for Thirteen Musicians
On stage at the end of the concert with conductor Lina González, violinist Saúl Bitrán, tenor David Rivera
World Premier Success!
Resilience: Music for Thirteen Musicians
Old South Church, Boston MA. February 20th, 2016.
The Boston-based Unitas Ensemble premiered my work for chamber orchestra Resilience: Music for Thirteen Musicians. Conductor Lina González masterfully led the musicians in my piece, as well as works by Ginastera, Golijov and Desenne. The concert was a great success and the whole process of working with such talented musicians a true honor.
Thank you Lina and the whole Unitas Ensemble for making this piece come to life in such wonderful concert!
Photo Credit: Anthony Rodriguez Photography
A Journey to the Tropics
Old South Church, Boston MA. February 20th, 2016.
The Boston-based Unitas Ensemble will be premiering my newest work Resilience: Music for Thirteen Musicians. This piece, which was commissioned by Unitas Ensemble, will be paired in the program with works by maestros Ginastera, Golijov and Desenne. The piece is for chamber orchestra, instrumentation ranging from single flute/piccolo, oboe/english horn, B-flat clarinet, bass clarinet, all the way to horn, tenor trombone, percussion, piano and strings.
Come join us in a wonderful afternoon of music by Latin American composers!
Honorary Mention
63rd BMI Student Composer Awards
J.W. Marriott Essex House Hotel, New York, NY. May 18th, 2015.
I am humbly grateful to have been awarded Honorary Mention at the 63rd BMI Student Composer Awards, on May 18th, for my suit for cello and guitar titled "Imágenes de Guanajuato". The BMI Foundation together with Broadcast Music Incorporated® host this composition competition for young composers.
The event was carried out at the J.W. Marriott Essex House Hotel in New York City. Renowned American composer and permanent Chair of the Student Composer Awards, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, BMI President and CEO and Honorary Chair of the BMI Foundation Mike O’Neill, and BMI Foundation President Deirdre Chadwick presented the awards.