Helga Davis: You wake up in the morning and then what happens?

Peter: [laughs]

Helga Davis: Oh, put your headphones on, Peter.

Female Speaker: Oh, yeah, come on put your arms around.

Peter: [laughs] I wanna hug you and hug you, and hug you some more right through all these microphone cables.

Helga Davis: Go ahead. I know I'm in the right time in the right space. Do you feel that?

[music]

Helga Davis: I'm Helga Davis.

[music]

Helga Davis: When I hear the word tradition I usually get a little bit tense. It worries me 'tradition'. It worries me that perhaps something that I think or feel, or am doesn't have space at that table. What's beautiful about the work that Alejandro is doing at the All Souls Unitarian Church, is that he's taking a tradition of music and he's just expanding the conversation. But with so much love, with such beautiful music, and with a group of people who really want to go along for that ride.

[music]

Helga Davis: The reason I was so excited to talk to you is that I feel like you're doing everything right. First of all, you've-- you're-you're kind of undertaking this mission to bring contemporary classical music into not just- not just to a new audience but also into-into a church. And the first thing that I-I think you did right was that you put the ensemble in the congregation.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: And so we were surrounded by the choir.

Alejandro: Yeah, you're part of the music. You're--

Helga Davis: We are part of the music.

Alejandro: Right, exactly.

Helga Davis: And we had all those voices move through us.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: Um, and so there-there really wasn't- there wasn't anywhere for anyone to go, we were in that together.

Alejandro: That's the way I like to do music.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: How do we make the audience be a part of a performance? Not from the perspective, okay, of, okay, you're the listeners and you're gonna, you know, you're gonna clap, you wanna be silent, you're gonna actually participate in the experience, you wanna be hearing each piece from a different perspective.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: You're going to react differently according to where you're sitting. You're going to be served this large meal that is well-paced and in which all the flavors have a connection. And your job is just to react to it and to enjoy it or not.

Helga Davis: Right.

Alejandro: So we wanna challenge you with something that is more than just a presentation and in which you have just the role of being a listener.

Helga Davis: Of being passive.

Alejandro: Yeah, being passive.

Helga Davis: And and that's why I think it was- it was so beautiful for me because I want to participate.

Alejandro: Right.

Helga Davis: Right?

Alejandro: Right.

Helga Davis: And I feel that your invitation was undeniable and it-it just- it wasn't possible to say no.

Alejandro: Right.

Helga Davis: Again, whether or not you like the music, seem for me to not be the point.

Alejandro: Yeah.

Helga Davis: There was an experience and an agreement made-

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: -by all of us to come together.

Alejandro: And that's what music is about, right?

Helga Davis: And that's what music is about.

Alejandro: Really is just bringing people together.

Helga Davis: So there was a one moment when the sound was coming from behind us and it was probably the most fascinating moment for me in the performance because you see how accustomed we are to looking at something and having our looking be the way that we participate.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: So if we look, then we can say I was there. And being there actually has very little to do with what you do with your eyes.

Alejandro: Right.

Helga Davis: It's really what you do with yourself, with your breath, with your heart in those moments.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: So the music is coming from behind us and suddenly no one has anything to look at. And they're the kind of audience who are-are too socialized to pull out phones or anything like that.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: So everyone knows that they're not- that's not allowed. Um, and then people can't- are not talking obviously.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: And they're not necessarily looking at each other and they don't know what to do.

Alejandro: [chuckles]

Helga Davis: But there came a moment when the room got so still-

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: -and it was as if people finally got it. There's nothing for you to do here except to be here. And the room got so still and so peaceful, and so quiet. Do you feel that too?

Alejandro: Of course. The energy when-when it's right, you feel the energy. It's all over. It's all around you. I mean, you can hear the silence that you get when you're having the right moment is different type of silence. Is-is as silence that is charged.

Helga Davis: It is, right?

Alejandro: It's not just empty, is charged.

Helga Davis: Yes.

Alejandro: And I absolutely felt that several times during that program. I was just mentioning before that in order for that to happen, you need these elements, right? You need a perceptive conductor, a conductor that is able to connect. You need a very responsive choir that is able to give more than they think they have-

Helga Davis: Yeah.

Alejandro: -in a very, very, not only attentive but hungry audience like yourself.

Helga Davis: Hungry. I'm definitely hungry.

Alejandro: Hungry. Just wanting to take everything in. Sometimes even when people don't like it, if they have the kind of attitude, they'll find something interesting in it. Nothing kills me more than the audience that is looking at program notes, reading through, uh, the program notes while the music is playing. Because it just completely destroys the purpose of being there, which is experiencing that moment, getting away from your daily life and taking a step back, and looking inwards. It's like meditating. You're all of a sudden meditating.

Helga Davis: But, you know, we're afraid, Alejandro, I mean, as-as a person who-who was in that audience, and I think sometimes we just- we're not- we're not wanting to be in that silence, which again, is why it's so important to have a program that invites people in, right?

Alejandro: Mm-hmm. Indeed, yeah.

Helga Davis: And this feels like the overarching message. Yes, you're trying to do this thing where you're introducing a new generation of composers and music to an audience that may be accustomed to more. I don't know what kind of music.

Alejandro: Traditional rep-- yeah.

Helga Davis: Traditional repertoire. But you're getting them and you're really inviting us into a different conversation which is about being together.

Alejandro: Right. I think one of the-the challenge is that audiences have experience with-with contemporary music in particular, is that we have labeled it as such. We've tried to make it a presentation about something very specific. So you have a lot of contemporary music ensembles, which is great, we need to have them. But sometimes when you take away those labels and just present music for the beauty of it, it really doesn't matter when the composer was born or when he died, or whether he is alive, or she is alive. It really doesn't matter.

Helga Davis: From your lips to God's ears, Alejandro.

Alejandro: Exactly.

Helga Davis: Really.

Alejandro: So it's just- it really, um, becomes the experience what matters not the repertoire. Um, and presented the way I think I, um, am attempting to present it makes the music be a spiritual sometimes as any Bach cantata. You know, Bach is one of the greatest composers, I think history and certainly one of my greatest inspirations. But when you present something by Taverner, in a way that is spiritual, not as contemporary music, but as spiritual music, it just completely changes everything. And people forget about all those labels and it becomes just the moment, right? The moment, the-the sound, is all about the sound at the end really.

Helga Davis: The other thing that I-I think is-is important to talk about here too, is your work is not just to teach music and to-to lead this choir. It's also to manage people.

Alejandro: Right.

Helga Davis: And we are very complicated.

Alejandro: Yes.

Helga Davis: The humans.

Alejandro: Sure.

[laughter]

Alejandro: Yes, absolutely. It's a, um, challenging job. Um, the psychology of leading a choir is- it's very important part of the position. I am demanding but at the same time, I think of the choir members as almost as family. Um, I think of a- of a choir, the relationship between a choir and a conductor as a long-term relationship, in a relationship that will continue to grow. Um, just like in any relationship, at the beginning it feels a little awkward and you have to, you know, try a little harder to be, uh, around each other and all that but soon enough, all those barriers go-go away and-and then you begin to enjoy each other. Not only for the- for the pleasant things, but also for the quirky things-

Helga Davis: The hard things, yeah.

Alejandro: - or the hard things. And it's all part of the experience. And-and just like in music, you know, there's moments of release and moments of tension. And I think, uh, welcoming both and--

Helga Davis: Okay. I have to- I have to stop you-

Alejandro: Yeah.

Helga Davis: - and we have to go back a little bit.

Alejandro: Yes.

Helga Davis: So I'm also very interested in psychology, so now I'm curious. Are you an only child? If you're not an only child, where are you in your family? And how-how is your role or your place in your family similar to the role you have as conductor and how you work with people?

Alejandro: That is very interesting, um, as a question. I am the last of eight, you know, from Mexico, so it's a large family. The last of eight, and, uh, kudos to my parents for that by the way. It's-it's-- I cannot-- I have one child and I-I don't- I don't see how-how it was done.

Helga Davis: [laughs].

Alejandro: But in any case, yep, to your question, observing the dynamics between my brothers and sisters and their children and the cousins and all that when you're the last child of such a large family, really you start analyzing everything. Everything becomes-becomes analysis. You learn from their experiences. You learn what to do and what not to do. And I am a true believer that you become somewhat older and wiser faster.

Helga Davis: So say more about what it is you think you learned.

Alejandro: Communication.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: How you communicate with people and how you respect other people's way of behaving, way of being. Um, I think those-those are the two most important things that I've learned. Um, and when you apply that to a choir, it becomes reciprocal, um, because once-once you give that other person the same respect that you're expecting, you'll get it. Also, you know, being from Mexico itself, a country with-with very different priorities.

Helga Davis: Where in Mexico are you from?

Alejandro: Guadalajara. I am from a family, uh, middle-class family, in Mexico. My-my dad was a musician. He was, uh, a bass player. And, you know, being a musician in Mexico is extremely challenging, again, a country with-with different priorities. Um, but coming from that back-background where, you know, I had to make money from the age of 10, and-and basically, I've been responsible for myself from the age of 15 when my dad died, um, you just become much more, I guess, appreciative of life, and the details of life and people and what people bring to your life. And really, it's changed everything, the way I perceive the world. Um--

Helga Davis: So you were performing at 15?

Alejandro: I've-I've been working-

Helga Davis: Or from 10?

Alejandro: -making music for a living since I was 14, 15 years old.

Helga Davis: And what were you doing?

Alejandro: I started working with choirs as an accompanist. Just accompanying choirs. And at the beginning it was just, you know, learning. I actually learned from some of the most legendary, uh, choral conductors in Mexico that way because they needed an accompanist and I could provide that for free. So I started doing that and then eventually started making money through it.

Um, so working with choirs has been an experience of, um, now several decades. Even though I'm not- I'm not too old, uh, but you know, it's something that I started doing in my teens. And not only learning the repertoire, learning how the conductors work was extremely valuable to me. But just again, the psychology of working with a lot of people at the same time because you have to understand when you put a lot of choristers together, you know, people change.

Helga Davis: People.

Alejandro: It's like children all of a sudden. [laughs]

Helga Davis: People.

Alejandro: And it's- and it's actually endearing. It's-it's actually a wonderful thing. It's-it's a really wonderful thing. And it's one of the great joys of working with a choral group.

Helga Davis: So you're-you're number eight of eight in your family?

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: You're talking about a kind of wisdom that you feel you had that maybe your other brothers and sisters didn't have.

Alejandro: Well, in my case, my father got sick when I was about 11 or 12. And, you know, with illness came also financial challenges, et cetera. So all that-- that experience for me as a child and then as a teenager- as a teenager finally losing my father, it really changes you completely. So those struggles, you know, at the end change your perception on-on life, on music. When I'm very moved by a piece of music, all those collective experiences come to mind and you find profundity in what you do.

Again, that is not something that-that I wish on anyone but if you think about it, everyone in life suffers one way or another, right? We go through trials and tribulations. And-and the way you've experienced those-those moments in your life really shaped up how you make music because music is all about feelings at the end, right? Feelings, emotions. Um, and I think it has had a really great impact in my- in my music-making.

Helga Davis: In what way?

Alejandro: Well, in so many ways. I-I- the way, first than anything, I experience music myself, how it moves me, uh, emotionally, deeply sometimes, and how I can connect my experiences, whether they be beautiful or tragic, and communicate them to another group or to my instrument when I'm playing the piano. It is, I think, very important. You know, when you think about all these composers, Bach, Schubert, Beethoven, you know, they suffered tremendously and it's unbelievable the things that they was- that they went through.

I mean, Beethoven, uh, from, um-- when was it? 1778 to about 1808 created the most incredible music that's ever been created. In-in just, even less than that, nine years, from 1900 to 1908, he composed six symphonies and opera, some of the greatest chamber music ever, the greatest string quartets ever written, some of the greatest sonatas ever written. I mean, I cannot think of any composer that in eight years was able to do all of these.

Helga Davis: What he did. Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: At the same time, he was losing his hearing. He was having abdominal pain on a daily basis. He was having, um, inflammation in his feet and his hands. And how a person that suffers so much can create something so beautiful? The only way to explain it is by taking the challenges of life and somewhat translating them into sounds, into music. And that's how I see myself. You know, whatever happens to me in life, again, whether it be joy or tragedy, I try to translate it into emotions that go into my music-making.

Helga Davis: But was your father your first teacher?

Alejandro: He taught me music theory and things like that, the choir.

Helga Davis: Okay, so he was your first teacher in a way. And then did you know that you wanted to play piano?

Alejandro: I did.

Helga Davis: What was his instrument?

Alejandro: Bass.

Helga Davis: Okay.

Alejandro: Um, well, first than anything, I was, um-- started very late. I was first in a choir. I-I started in a choir for about two years. Boys choir. Then when my voice changed, I moved on and I started playing the piano. So I was already- well, what, maybe 11 or 12 when that happened. That is very old for a pianist-

Helga Davis: Right. [laughs]

Alejandro: -as for a professional musician. But I, you know, I-I liked it and I practiced somewhat. Um, but then when I was about 14 or 15, um, music from- a musician, excuse me, from-from the States came to Mexico, a pianist, Richard Dudley, his name. And he took me in as a student. Uh, he thought I had talent and he encouraged me. So I started working harder, but then my dad got sick. And-and when he passed away, um, I had to be realistic and-and decide what to do with my life.

Helga Davis: It's such a horrible word, that word, 'realistic'.

Alejandro: And-and music, you know, music didn't-- Yeah, exactly. Music didn't seem like a--

Helga Davis: A realistic choice?

Alejandro: Yeah, exactly, like a good choice. So I applied to architecture school. I got in. I was ready to go. And then I gave a recital - it was in May, uh, of 1994, thinking that that was it, you know, just to wrap things up. So I gave the recital and in the audience, there was this couple, uh, a gentleman from the United States, a lady from-from Britain. And they came to, uh, to the greenroom afterwards, and they said they loved what I was doing and-and my interpretations and they wanted to have a tape from the performance. So we gave them my tape, we-we became friends throughout that, uh, summer. But without me knowing, they contacted a bunch of people in the United States.

Helga Davis: Wow.

Alejandro: And they said, "You know, this kid has talent, and I think he should be receiving some help so that he can continue his studies." Because I told them, you know, I want to be a musician, but I don't think I can. Um, so they eventually found this school that was interested in me, uh, Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia. And, um, after the whole application process, I was given a full scholarship. Four years, free ride, room, and about tuition, everything paid for. They even got a family to pay for my plane ticket.

Helga Davis: Wow.

Alejandro: It's-it's amazing. It's just been a long journey. I remember telling my mom when-when I was packing for-for the trip, uh, "It'll probably be just a year. And I'll try to just learn English and I'll come back and now, you know, study architecture or do something with-with my life," and you know, I'm still here, right?

Helga Davis: And you're still here.

Alejandro: I went on and I got married here. I now have a baby that was born in New York. And again, it's all- it's mind-boggling how life takes you on this different path, you know, that sometimes you don't- you don't anticipate.

Helga Davis: What about your little one?

Alejandro: Santiago. Santiago is wonderful.

Helga Davis: How is he?

Alejandro: He's now a year and a month and-- or 13 months. Uh, and he is so cute. I mean, he just, again, um, changes my life, you know, every day, it's always different. It's amazing how observant you become when you have a baby. I didn't- I didn't realize that.

Helga Davis: Say more about that.

Alejandro: Every day, you know, it's something, every day I see different movements, different facial expressions, uh, different ways of him trying to communicate with me about, you know, anything, uh, to give him something or to read him a book or to give him a ball, something, it's-it's amazing. And I think that since I had him, um, I see music differently and I open a score and I see things that I didn't see before. You become more observant. You really start to get more from what you are looking at.

It can be mundane or it can be something like a score, you know, a piece of music or listening to a piece of music, and you really become more aware. And, uh, I don't think it's unique to me. I think really when you have something so precious to take care of and, you know, you're on top of every detail, I think you become more open. I think you're-you're, it's like a- like a, um, filter that kind of goes away and you have all of a sudden more awareness of things. It's amazing.

Helga Davis: Is he in the church with you when you have rehearsals? Or does he- does he come? Is he trying to sing? Is he-- what's he doing?

Alejandro: Well, first than anything, he loves music. Um, because if we-we try not to do too much TV or anything like that, but if we show him something on-on-on the screen that doesn't have music he doesn't care.

Helga Davis: [laughts].

Alejandro: But if-if there is some music involved, he'll just all of a sudden pay attention. And it doesn't have to be [unintelligible 00:21:46] music. It can be, um, you know, I play him some-sometimes Berlin Philharmonic, uh, concerts and things like that. 'Cause I'm, you know, looking at things like that, and he likes it. Um, the funny thing with-with that, you know, that question that you just asked, um, when he was littler, he could sit down for a long time and just be quiet and just listen. But now he gets excited and he shouts. So he's not [chuckles], he's not as welcome in a- in a, you know, in a rehearsal environment as-as he used to be. But, uh, that's just normal of-of kids that age. And I just hope he loves to, or he learns to love music.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: You know, that's important to me. I don't care what he does with his life as far as his profession, but, uh, I want him to be happy. Of course, that's-that's all I want. But, uh, I hope music is a big part of his life.

Helga Davis: Yeah.

Alejandro: It is the most delicate and difficult experiment to have a child. And, you know, there's no manual for it. You know, you don't get a bunch of books, but, uh, your child-your child is unique. You know, it's-it's-it's a very unique being and-and, uh, the responsibility is so huge. Yeah.

Helga Davis: And with regard to your father and your music and all of the things that-that you have accomplished and achieved, what's the effect of-of not having him or I don't wanna presume anything, maybe you feel you have him.

Alejandro: Yeah, I do.

Helga Davis: And so I-I'm right. So I wanna take that back.

Alejandro: No, no, no. It's-it's a- it's a valid question. I-I was always inspired by my father. He was, um, you know, he was a principal bass player or the orchestra in the city. That was- that was a big deal. Now, Mexico has different priorities. People in Mexico love music like-like no one else, I mean, music is everywhere. You go to a party and there will be music, not in-- not from the speaker, but actually, somebody pulling out a guitar-

Helga Davis: Musicians. Yes.

Alejandro: -and making music. Um, so being a musician in Mexico is-is highly respected, but it's-it's-it's not always, uh, financially appreciated. You know, the government doesn't support as much, the private sector doesn't support it as much as in the- as in the United States, excuse me. So it's-it's a challenge, but I always admire him. Um, he had a lot of respect from a lot of colleagues. Um, and I realized that I wanted to be a musician pretty late. And, you know, the funny thing with-with my situation between my father and I, I think when he was around, I didn't have a clear sense that I wanted to be a musician. Um--

Helga Davis: Because?

Alejandro: Well, you know, he died when I was 15. At 15 is when I fi-- I finally got to study with somebody that really thought that I could do this for a living. Um, and then-then that's when things got difficult. Um, so I really-- I don't think he ever had the sense that, "Okay, he's going to do what I do and he might be good at it." Um, and I never got the chance to show him that I had potential to do that.

So it's-it's-- I go back to my childhood memories of music with him, you know, he would take me sometimes when I had a day off from school to a rehearsal. I remember very, um, vividly one-one moment, I was about 10, but I was in the theater. My dad was playing and, uh, big program. They had, um, Richard Strauss, uh, Don Quixote, and bunch of other Germanic, you know, big pieces. And then at the end, um, they closed with a Mexican piece called Huapango, which is kind of like the second national anthem for Mexicans. It's beautiful, it's gorgeous, it's simple, but it's so-- it just-- as a Mexican, it just really makes your chest, you know, come out and-and feel very proud.

So I was-- I remember I was sitting there with my mom in the concert and, you know, the concert went by, right? Almost, um, close to the end, I started hearing this music and it just sounded different. Um, so I look up and I remember started hearing the percussion and the bass and-and I started to pay more attention. And it was the Huapango that was being played, and I stood a little taller, and I was so moved by it. And I-I very clearly remember, I was 10, but I really felt, you know, this sensation in your skin that you get when you're very excited or very move about something. And I-I didn't know how to react to it. It was just the first time I felt something like that.

And I went backstage afterwards to say hi to my dad and all that stuff. And, um, Clarine is a friend of the family came out and said, so what do you think of Don Quixote? He thought, you know, that was the piece that-- [chuckles] And I was like, I-I don't- I don't remember much of that, but I really love Huapango, you know, that was just amazing. I just couldn't- I couldn't find words to express how I felt, but that's the first time that I felt a real connection with music in association with my dad, with what happens on stage, with how music makes you feel as a person. That was the first time I realized, wow, you know, this is really powerful stuff.

Helga Davis: And now you see it in your son.

Alejandro: Yeah, exactly. I mean, it's-it's-it's so visceral, it's so real. And as you said at the beginning, it's so hard to describe. It's just hard-hard to-- so abstract at the same time that there's always this big search for trying to make it even-even more powerful, um, if that's even possible.

Helga Davis: I want you to talk a little bit about the experience of music through the body.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: What happens to you physically-

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: -when you're conducting?

Alejandro: Hmm. That's a good question. Let's see. Well, I-- if you look at a conductor, just look at a conductor and you have, you don't include the sound in that experience. It's a dance. It's just a dance. Um, you look ridiculous probably if-if [laughs] you were just looking at that without any music. But-but it is a dance and it's a very, very physical activity. I always feel that the best conductors are the ones that are able to connect with that dance element in the music. Um, so I-I do think that-that music and the physical experience of making music, uh, it is very- it's very present, it's very important. That connection is very important.

I remember when I was, uh, uh, in-- at school, you know, playing the piano, and I-- the first time I played for my teacher in my master-- when I was doing my master's degree in-in UT Austin in Texas, um, I finished my piece of music that I- that I played for him, the first one that I played. And the first thing he said is that he thought I had a very strong physical connection with the instrument. You know, that I really enjoyed the tactile sensation of making music. And he had not seen that very often, that most people enjoy that oral sensation as pianists. But I had a real, real, um, sense of enjoyment from just feeling the instrument and how that translated into body movement. And I think that's helped me a lot as a conductor. I feel very comfortable for me conducting is kind of like speaking. I don't think about it. I just start feeling it and it just happens. It's important to make that connection, um, between the body movement, sensations, and music, they're not separate they're really connected.

Helga Davis: And then you have the choir who are sort of relegated to standing still- [chuckles]

Alejandro: Right. Yeah.

Helga Davis: -so that they-they catch.

Alejandro: Right. Well, but it's-it's, you know, it's something that I always try to, um, mention to my choir to relax.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: You know, to feel the music. You don't necessarily need to, you know, tap to the music to feel it. If you move a little bit, if you relax your knees a little bit, you start opening up to music a little bit more. You know, our program that we did last year, and we're going to repeat, not the same pieces, but the same concept, Voices in Motion has that in-in mind, experiencing music through movement, both from the perspective of a listener, the audience, and the performer.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: And I think when you connect to your-- to what's natural to human's movement, your heart, you know, it's a- it's a beat. Right? It just becomes-- it becomes more real.

Helga Davis: I'm curious too, how music touches all of the-the emotions. Right? So I have my clean-- my bathroom music. I have my, uh, if I'm having a particularly anxious moment--

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: -- there are a couple of songs that I love.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: Like I put my underwear on --

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: -- and my socks, and I dance around my living room and like clean the window sills and-- Yeah. Okay. Enough of that. Um, but music and grief as a way through grief.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: Talk a little bit about how you feel music not-not helps the grieving process, but just the relationship between music and grief.

Alejandro: Well, first than anything, you're right about that. There's music for every moment and-and, uh, it's not the same for every person. Right?

Helga Davis: Right.

Alejandro: Um, music is probably the closest bridge to the soul there is. I remember when my dad passed away, uh, there is, um, a song called, um, Amor Eterno, Eternal Love, um, by a Mexican singer-- pop singer called Juan Gabriel. And that song talks about-- it's-- he wrote it for his mother. Uh, it's about loss, right? He lost his mother and he wishes she was alive. Um, and we couldn't play that song around the house because my-my mom would just fall apart. Uh, very powerful. And I never understood why, 'cause he didn't do the same to me.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: Um, out here I was- I was, what's the big deal? Why is she crying now? Um, but, you know, now that I'm older, I understand, um, there is a certain series of tones or words that will strike a chord. And it's so powerful it'll-it'll bring you to tears without you expecting it. Um, sometimes it's a song in connection to a moment. Sometimes it's-it's a song in-in itself. Um, there are some Bach cantatas that just-- they're so powerful that every-every time I listen to them, I may not ball and start, you know, just-- I guess become hysterical. But I-I do feel very moved by-by this music.

Um, if I could think of one piece of music that does that to me, Mozart: Requiem, for example, if I listen to just the first moment, just how it begins, you know, with a single beat on the strings, very simple. And then there is this hanging Basset horn note that just lasts for a little longer than everything else, it's so moving, it's so powerful. And grief is the word-- the-the word that comes to mind when I hear that.

And I wonder what was going through his head, you know, through Mozart's head when he was writing this. As you know, he was about to die when he was writing this. He didn't complete the piece of-- this piece of music. He just couldn't finish it. Um, but that-that connection to something that-that is so, um, unavoidable, such as death, um, I mean from-from the composer of a perspective, that must be so incredibly powerful. I don't know other pieces of music that have that kind of connection, because again, he was very aware that that was his own Requiem.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: Even though, you know, it was a commission and all this, he knew he was writing that for himself. Um, it's-it's amazing to think about that because if-if music can have such a powerful connection to somebody just listening to a song, imagine to the composer. I mean, what it can do to-to his soul, and how deep you can go into your-into your soul and your mind when you're-when you're writing something like that.

Helga Davis: Here's-here's the thing I-I would like to come back to with you a little bit, and that is this-this thing of your place in your family and then your place in front of the choir.

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: So they were together before you came-

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: -and what was it like your first day with them?

Alejandro: Well, um, my first day with-with the Musica Viva Choir was, you know, my audition, uh, and I had just 15 minutes with them and--

Helga Davis: 15?

Alejandro: Yeah. Just a short time. And it all of a sudden felt like when you drive a car, that just feels great. Right?

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: Just, you know, where everything is. It's very intuitive and it just, yeah, it just felt like the right-the right group to work with. I could see it in their faces. When you're a conductor and you have all these set-- sets, excuse me, of eyes looking at you, and you can tell when they sparkle, you know, once you make a connection, uh, it's very obvious and it's also very obvious when it's not there. And with this group, it was just there right away. It was just, uh, part of that experience. Everybody was really connected to me, and it just felt great from the beginning. Um, then when I got the job, I made a commitment that I wanted to work with the same group of people.

Helga Davis: Mm-hmm.

Alejandro: Uh, you know, a lot of new music directors and new administration, and they have auditions and sometimes they dismiss people. And I made a commitment that I wanted to work with this group of people because they're like a family and they sound great together, um, because they lift each other up. Uh, the choir has been in existence for about--

Helga Davis: From 1977 or something like that.

Alejandro: Yes, exactly. For about 40 years and with the same music director. So really, it's become a very, very tight group of people. It's obviously not-not the same people that-that-that were there from the beginning-

Helga Davis: Right.

Alejandro: -but some of their, uh, original members are still there. And-and it's just great to see that kind of continuity.

Helga Davis: And it is like, it is a relationship and it's a committed relationship.

Alejandro: Yes, absolutely. And, you know, in this case, I mean, they have a dual role. They are the-- in concert, uh, form they're the Musica Viva Choir and in worship form, they're the All Souls choir. It's the same group of people-

Helga Davis: Right.

Alejandro: -that sing Sunday to Sunday. And then they get to do these wonderful concerts, uh, right now, four times a year.

Helga Davis: That's a curious thing though, that, you know, the church is in the business of-of, uh, soul-saving-

Alejandro: Mm-hmm.

Helga Davis: -and you are there with a bit of a different mission.

Alejandro: Well, um, I-I don't know if it's a different mission. I mean, my mission is--

Helga Davis: Well, your mission is beautiful music.

Alejandro: Right. And it's-- in a way, it's like soul-saving. I really see music almost as a- as a spiritual experience, for some people, a religious experience. Even if the music is completely secular, it is still a-a spiritual experience, at least to me. So I-I-- in a way, it's easy to-to reconcile those things, uh, particularly with a group, again, that-that does both. Right? It's always a spiritual experience. At least that's the-the way I'm trying to communicate it to-to, um, our audience and to our choir.

Helga Davis: I'm really looking forward to hearing what you do with the choir, with Musica Viva. I had such a beautiful experience being in that audience, and it's really great to just sit across from you and hear a little bit about your life and about your new love. [laughs]

Alejandro: Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Helga Davis: And-and about your family. I live in Harlem, I really hope to-to be able to walk out of my door and hear you.

Alejandro: Thank you.

Helga Davis: And share your desire to have more in all of our communities, uh, and to see all of us sitting together in the wonder of what it is that we do, which is to make music. Thank you so much for coming here.

Alejandro: Thank you, Helga. It's just an incredible opportunity to-to talk about music and about life, you know?

Helga Davis: Yeah.

Alejandro: They're so interconnected, right? That is really wonderful to be able to put --

Helga Davis: They-they are the same thing.

Alejandro: Exactly. Exactly. Thank you so much.

Helga Davis: Thank you so much.

[music]

Helga Davis: I wonder in what ways you experience that word tradition. Where are the places in your life that you come up against an edge of something that you really wanna change, that you really wanna be part of, that you really want to see expand so that there's room for you? I'm curious. I wanna know, you can email me at helga@wqxr.org or follow me on Facebook.

Female Speaker: This episode of Helga was produced by Julia Alsop and executive producer Alex Ambrose. It was mixed by Curtis Macdonald with help from Hannis Brown and original music by Alex Overington. Special thanks to Cindy Kim, Lorraine Maddox, Michael [unintelligible 00:40:46], Jacqueline Cincotta, and John Chow.

 

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