.About

orlando jacinto garcía (b. 1954)

Through more than 200 works composed for a wide range of performance genres including interdisciplinary (video, film, dance), site specific, and works with and without electronics for orchestra, choir, soloists, and a variety of chamber ensembles, Orlando Jacinto Garcia has established himself as an important figure in the new music world. The distinctive character of his music has often been described as “time suspended-sonic explorations” qualities he developed from his studies with Morton Feldman among others.

Born in Havana, Cuba in 1954, Garcia migrated to the United States in 1961. In demand as a guest composer, he is the recipient of numerous honors and awards from a variety of organizations and institutions including the American Academy of Arts and Letters, Rockefeller, Fulbright, Knight, Civitella, Bogliasco, and Cintas Foundations, State of Florida, MacDowell and Millay Colony, and the Ariel, Noise International, Matiz Rangel, Nuevas Resonancias, Salvatore Martirano, and Bloch International Competitions. Most recently he has been the recipient of 5 Latin Grammy nominations in the Best Contemporary Classical Composition Category (2009-11, 2015, 2021). With performances around the world at important venues by distinguished performers, his works are recorded on New Albion, O.O. Discs, CRI /New World, Albany, North/South, CRS, Rugginenti, VDM, Capstone, Innova, CNMAS, Opus One, Telos, Toccata Classics, and Metier/Divine Art.

Garcia is the founder and director of the NODUS Ensemble, the Miami Chapter of the International Society for Contemporary Music, the New Music Miami ISCM Festival, and is a resident composer for the Miami Symphony. A dedicated educator, he is Distinguished University Professor and Composer in Residence for the School of Music at Florida International University.

 

 

 

recent news

Gingold Chamber Music Festival Composition Institute

Looking forward to my work as faculty and director of the inaugural Gingold Chamber Music Festival Composition Institute. The Festival runs from July 10 - 30 at Barry University in Miami. Joining me are Chen Yi and Chinary Ung and a group of very talented composers....

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articles

Listed below are a selection of articles written by Orlando Jacinto García. Reuse or reprinting of any of these articles or content therein must be done with the written consent of the author. You may contact orlando via the “contact” page or by e-mailing him at garciao@fiu.edu Please reference which article you would like to use.

Why References?

When I was in graduate school in the early and mid 1980s, I had the good fortune to work with an Asian American composer and teacher at the University of Miami named Dennis Kam. At that time he was very much involved with the idea of musical stasis or a music that by...

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What is Art Music?

As we enter the next century the music world can seem a bit confusing. Twenty five years ago what was considered the Western Art music canon consisted of music from either Antiquity or the Renaissance through the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and into the 20th...

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Teaching Composition: Some General Thoughts

Teaching someone to compose is impossible! We all know that Bartok said it and refused to teach composition. My mentor Feldman taught composition but always claimed you couldn’t do it, for which he was often criticized by students. His now somewhat famous response to...

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Boola Boola Revisited

Slightly more than 15 years ago, soon after finishing my doctoral studies, I had the great fortune of studying with Morton Feldman for 3 intensive weeks. These sessions proved to have a great impact on my career as a composer and pedagogue and I was fortunate to be...

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Another Approach to Electroacoustic Music

At times I find myself feeling somewhat out of place at some of the electroacoustic music events where my work is presented. This is not because I do not find this genre of interest or because I am not pleased with my work or that of my colleagues, but because my...

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