B y B e n j a m i n L e r n e r of intergenerational collaboration in Latin American music, including a pedagogical lineage that she has direct ties to. In line with that, Ortiz has included works by her teacher Mario Lavista, Lavista’ s mentor Carlos Chávez, and Ortiz’ s own student Diana Syrse.“ At Tanglewood, you’ ll hear four generations of Mexican composers,” she explains.“ Chávez wrote Tambuco in the 1960s. Lavista studied with him. I studied with Lavista. And now Diana studies with me. That continuum is part of our cultural DNA— and this festival is an ideal place to showcase it.”
The Mexcian contemporary classical percussion ensemble Tambuco will serve as FCM’ s ensemble-in-residence. They will perform selections that include Chávez’ s Tambuco( a piece which, coincidentally, served as the inspiration name of their group), as well as Lavista’ s Músicas de Cristal, and Ortiz’ s own Pico-Bite-Beat. The ensemble also will work with TMC Fellows, giving students a rare chance to perform these works under the guidance of musicians directly connected to their cultural origin.“ It’ s going to be very interesting for the students and the audience to hear this authentic performance with the real instruments, using all the notations Chávez wrote in the score,” says Ortiz.
Ortiz also has doubled down on her commitment to use her music and platform to address societal issues in Mexico on the global stage. Her ascent to the top tier of contemporary classical music reached a thrilling new height with the release of Revolución diamantina, her first orchestral portrait album. The project, recorded by the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel and featuring the Los Angeles Master Chorale, won three Grammy ® Awards, including Best Contemporary Classical Composition.
But the subject matter of Revolución diamantina is no celebration of glittering acclaim or star-studded red carpets; it is an artistic reckoning with the 2019 feminist protests in Mexico City, which were sparked by state inaction on gender violence.“ The best way I can talk about it is through my music,” says Ortiz. The piece incorporates Mexican urban rhythms, samba motifs, and choral chants, echoing the revolutionary and resilient spirit of the protests.“ My aim was to bring the protest into the concert hall,” she says.“ I wanted the audience to feel the anger of the women, and I wanted them to feel like they were in the streets themselves.”
While the album’ s success introduced her work to a much wider audience, it also sparked some cultural criticism from her Mexican contemporaries.“ People said that I was commercial or that I wasn’ t protesting in the streets,” says Ortiz.“ But no one tells me what to write. I do it because I need to. The piece came from my deepest convictions, not because I thought it would win any awards.”
Building upon those convictions, FCM will also explore the theme of fluid physical and psychological borders through music. Pieces like Liquid Borders and Exilios address the tensions and tragedies that accompany displacement.“ Nature itself is about migration,” notes Ortiz.“ Birds migrate. The world’ s greatest music is born from migration.” In Liquid Borders, a multi-movement work for percussion ensemble, Ortiz uses different musical textures to evoke various types of human experiences at international and regional borders: the tension between cities and rural life, the tragic violence of the U. S.-Mexico border, and the harrowing journeys of Central American migrants crossing through Mexico.
“ For the urban parts,” says Ortiz,“ I used cans and metallic instruments to create that industrial sound. For the desert border, I turned to rattles and ethnic instruments to invoke the natural environment. For the jungle, I used keyboards to capture that thick, humid atmosphere. It’ s all metaphoric— but also very real.”
Ortiz views her role not just as a composer, but as a cultural communicator— one with a duty to live passionately and reflect on life deeply.“ The fuel of my creativity is life itself. My dreams are shaped by what is happening in the world— and that’ s what’ s feeding my music.”
Her recent composer-in-residence roles at Carnegie Hall, Curtis Institute, and now as the leader of FCM, have allowed her to further that mission.“ These opportunities are huge for promoting my
This year ' s Festival of Contemporary Music includes, from top, Ellen Reid( Erin Baiano); Tambuco( Jesús Cornejo); Diana Syrse( Astrid Ackermann); and Thomas Wilkins( BSO).
Holiday August July 2025 2023 BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE // 81