Last March, the Air Force Symphonic Band opened the fires of version 11 of Lollapalooza Chile, becoming the first uniformed orchestra to perform on that stage. For this reason, in this new visit to the city to commemorate the 135th anniversary of the birth of the founder of the Chilean Air Force (FACh), Commodore Arturo Merino Benítez, the cast wanted to share part of that presentation with boys and girls from educational establishments. from the city.
The meeting took place during the morning at the Municipal Theater, where the students were able to enjoy Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” among other songs through a cast of more than 50 musicians, who gave a detailed summary of the presentation of March in Santiago.
The artistic director of the band, Fabrizzio De-Negri, spoke with La Discusión in the framework of this activity, highlighting the new visit to the city, birthplace of the Commodore. “For us this activity is very important, because what we do is address the community. Our work is focused on connecting with the entire community, so this instance with the students is a tremendous opportunity that we are always grateful for,” he said.
For his part, the band’s public relations officer, Álex Henríquez, specified that “the purpose of the activity with the students was to present what was played at Lollapalooza last March, but not only that, because we were also able to present a masterclass to teach them what What does the band do? Air Force Symphony.
Álex also remembered part of what was the historic presentation at Lolapalooza. “We brought a slightly more rocker repertoire to the festival because it was a different audience and context, it is a massive event aimed at youth. It was a challenge for the band because it’s a symphonic cast, not a rocker. On that occasion, topics such as those from the movie ‘Top Gun’ were touched on, among several others, ”he explained.
Regarding this new visit to Chillán, Hernández specified that “dissemination is very important for the Air Force, because we are concerned about the connection with the citizenry, integration with children, education, and for the Symphonic Band it is always satisfying to be able to here”.
Yesterday morning, the Air Force also presented its academic offer through a stand that was located in the Hall of the Municipal Theater of Chillán and to which young people from the commune interested in a possible future in the institution had access.
gala concert
The work of the Symphonic Band does not endIt ended there, since in the afternoon the 47 musicians performed the traditional gala concert in honor of this new anniversary of the Commodore’s birth.
The concert was led by the Commander in Chief of the FACh, Air Force General Hugo Rodríguez González, and the Undersecretary of Defense, Víctor Barrueto. The director Fabrizzio De-Negri said in the framework of this gala that “for me two things come together, on the one hand this is a land of artists and it has a very powerful connection with music. In addition, something is added that puts a lot of energy and it is the fact that the Commodore was born here. Somehow, as Air Force musicians, that energy unites us, along with the possibility of connecting with our founding father.”
“We present different languages, a journey through the history of music and some of what we did in the Musical Weeks of Frutillar last summer. It was very varied, with military marches, symphonic music, pieces of all time, movie music, everything,” De-Negri said.
