Artsong

Mestizaje was composed in an effort to highlight the importance and relevance of race mixtures in the music and cultural identity of South American people. Each of the songs within this cycle contains elements from the Caucasian, African and Indigenous cultures respectively. These specific ethnic groups represent the three races that converged in the South American continent after colonization, and that have provided Latin-American culture with a plethora of elements that have enriched its background. The mixture of cultures and races has also contributed to the emergence of new customs, and ideas. The need for identity as a group that is made up of many different backgrounds has become a primordial discussion among Latinos. People of Latino descent, more specifically Colombians and Venezuelans, often refer to their genetic makeup as “mestizo”, which specifically denotes this mixture of races and it does not have to do with the conflicting and extensively discussed definition of the term. The disparities among authors regarding the definition of the term frequently has to do with the origins of the word itself. The word mestizo was used during the time of colonization in the South American countries by the Spaniards. During this time the habitants of colonized regions would often use the term mestizo in reference to their mixed heritage, more specifically white and indigenous mixture. The use of the term varied from person to person, in that one individual would use the term to denote their Caucasian heritage, thus, enjoying certain privileges and others would use the term to be accepted into a group or community of mixed individuals. Nowadays, the use of the term by most Latin Americans is often self-ascribed and it represents the mixture of different races disregarding which races in particular. This use of the word has to do with the etymological representation of the term mestizo, which derives from the Latin “mixtus” which means mixed. The title of this song cycle is Mestizaje, which derives from the same root, and refers specifically to the process of mixture of cultures and races.

Mestizaje was composed in an effort to highlight the importance and relevance of race mixtures in the music and cultural identity of South American people. Each of the songs within this cycle contains elements from the Caucasian, African and Indigenous cultures respectively. These specific ethnic groups represent the three races that converged in the South American continent after colonization, and that have provided Latin-American culture with a plethora of elements that have enriched its background. The mixture of cultures and races has also contributed to the emergence of new customs, and ideas. The need for identity as a group that is made up of many different backgrounds has become a primordial discussion among Latinos. People of Latino descent, more specifically Colombians and Venezuelans, often refer to their genetic makeup as “mestizo”, which specifically denotes this mixture of races and it does not have to do with the conflicting and extensively discussed definition of the term. The disparities among authors regarding the definition of the term frequently has to do with the origins of the word itself. The word mestizo was used during the time of colonization in the South American countries by the Spaniards. During this time the habitants of colonized regions would often use the term mestizo in reference to their mixed heritage, more specifically white and indigenous mixture. The use of the term varied from person to person, in that one individual would use the term to denote their Caucasian heritage, thus, enjoying certain privileges and others would use the term to be accepted into a group or community of mixed individuals. Nowadays, the use of the term by most Latin Americans is often self-ascribed and it represents the mixture of different races disregarding which races in particular. This use of the word has to do with the etymological representation of the term mestizo, which derives from the Latin “mixtus” which means mixed. The title of this song cycle is Mestizaje, which derives from the same root, and refers specifically to the process of mixture of cultures and races.