Arturo Rodas facts for kids

Arturo Rodas (born on March 3, 1954, in Quito, Ecuador) is a famous composer who has citizenship in both Ecuador and France. He is known for creating many different types of music.

Who is Arturo Rodas?

Arturo Rodas started his music journey at the National Conservatory in Quito. He also took private lessons in music composition. Besides music, he even studied Law at the Universidad Central del Ecuador!

From 1978 to 1980, he worked as an assistant to a French composer named José Berghmans in Quito and Paris. He then went to the École Normale de Musique de Paris from 1979 to 1984. There, he learned about counterpoint (a way of combining melodies) and composition. He also took special courses with famous composers like Luciano Berio and learned about electroacoustic music, which uses electronic sounds.

His Music and Career

When Arturo Rodas returned to Ecuador in 1984, some of his orchestral pieces were performed by the National Symphony Orchestra. He became known as one of the important composers of his time in Ecuador. In 1988, the Banco Central del Ecuador (Ecuador's Central Bank) released two albums of his music. These albums included works like Fibris, Arcaica, and Clímax.

Arturo Rodas helped bring a modern, worldwide musical style to Ecuador. Many of his works from this time, like his orchestral piece Fibris (1986), were published in Opus, a music magazine he helped edit.

Since moving to England in 1990, he has continued to compose. One interesting piece is The Book of the Orchestra (2002-2003). This work is meant to be played in a house with many rooms. The audience can walk from room to room to hear different groups of instruments playing!

He still travels back to Ecuador for concerts and to teach music. He has also worked as a music critic, an editor, and someone who organizes concerts. His music is published by companies like Periferia Music and Virtualscore.

Arturo Rodas explores different ways of making music. He uses personal ideas from his background in pieces like Andino I-Andino IV. He also creates music with many layers of sound, like in Entropía. Sometimes, he uses chance or randomness in his music, as heard in Fibris. He also likes to experiment with the structure of his pieces. His opera, "El Árbol de los Pájaros" (The Tree of Birds), combines music and architecture in its story.

You can listen to some of his music online, like Piece of Cake, a suite for piano and CD: Audio: Piece of Cake

Main Works

Here is a list of some of the musical pieces Arturo Rodas has created:

Books and Articles He Wrote

Arturo Rodas has also written articles and edited magazines about music:

• Rodas, Arturo. Análisis de la forma musical de Güilli Gu. This article was about the musical structure of his piece Güilli Gu.
• Rodas, Arturo. La hora de Mesías Maiguashca, an article about another composer.
• Rodas, Arturo. Gerardo Guevara en la encrucijada musical, an article about composer Gerardo Guevara.
• He also edited a special issue of Opus Magazine about Luis H. Salgado.

Awards and Recognition

Arturo Rodas has received several scholarships and awards for his talent:

• 1980-84: He received a scholarship from the French Government to study.
• 1983: He won an award in the International contest for orchestral composition Max Deutsch in Paris.
• 1983: He got a scholarship from Centre Acanthes to study with Luciano Berio.
• 1983-84: He received a scholarship from the École Normale de Musique.
• 1989-90: He received a grant from UNESCO to create new music.

Where to Hear His Music

Here are some of the recordings where you can listen to Arturo Rodas's music:

See also

In Spanish: Arturo Rodas para niños