Hilda Paredes facts for kids

Hilda Paredes in 2024.

Hilda Paredes (born in Tehuacan, Puebla, Mexico, in 1957) is a very important composer from Mexico. She creates modern music and has won many special awards for her work. Today, she lives in London, England. She is married to a famous English violinist named Irvine Arditti.

About Hilda Paredes

Hilda Paredes was born in Tehuacan, Puebla, Mexico. When she was young, she learned to play the piano and the flute. At 21, she moved to London for college. There, she kept studying music and playing the flute. She often performed and arranged music for different groups. During this time, she also started writing her own music.

As a student, she took special classes at Dartington Summer School. She learned from famous composers like Peter Maxwell Davies and Richard Rodney Bennett. After finishing at the Guildhall School of Music, she earned a Master of Arts degree. Later, she completed her PhD at Manchester University.

In 1988, she won an award for her music for dance. This was from the Arts Council of Great Britain. She worked with people who create dances.

Hilda Paredes wrote her first opera called "The Seventh Seed." An opera is a play where most of the words are sung. This opera was later released by Mode Records.

She still stays connected to music in Mexico. She has taught at the National University in Mexico City. She also produced radio shows about new music. She even helped arrange traditional Mexican and Spanish songs for an orchestra.

Hilda Paredes has received many important awards. These include a fellowship from the Arts Council of Great Britain. She also got awards from the Rockefeller Foundation and the J.S. Guggenheim Fellowship in the USA. These fellowships are like special grants for artists.

She continues to live in London and works as a composer. She has taught music and given talks at many universities. These include Manchester University, the University of San Diego California, and others in Mexico, Spain, and France. In 2007, she was a special visiting professor at Mills College in the US.

Her second opera, "El Palacio Imaginado," was a big success. It was performed in Europe and the USA. Many people praised it.

Many solo artists, groups, and orchestras around the world have asked Hilda Paredes to write music for them. Her music has been played by famous groups. These include Lontano, London Sinfonietta, Ensemble Modern, and the Arditti Quartet. Her music has also been performed at major festivals. These festivals are held in places like the UK, Germany, France, Japan, and the USA.

In 2018, a music theatre show called "Harriet" premiered. It was based on the life of Harriet Tubman. Harriet Tubman was an amazing Afro-American freedom fighter. The show was first performed in Amsterdam and at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.

In 2024, Hilda Paredes was nominated for an Ivor Novello Award. This is a very important award for composers. Her piece "The Hearing Trumpet" was nominated for Best Chamber Ensemble Composition.

Music Recordings

Hilda Paredes has released many recordings of her music. Here are some of them:

• Mode Records New York (60): "The Seventh Seed" (an opera) and "Permutaciones" (for solo violin).
• Quindicim (QP 1067): "Metmorfósis" (for guitar).
• Euram Record (Euro092-3): "Nana de la Luna" (for mezzo-soprano and piano).
• Luna Negra (CDLN22): "Tres Piezas In Memoriam L.J." (for an ensemble).
• Ediciones Pentagrama (PCD300): "Globo, Luciérnagas" (for mezzo-soprano and piano).
• Somm Recordings.UK (Salsa Nueva): "Recordando a Celia" (for piano).
• Mode Records New York (149): "Uy U T’an" (for string quartet), played by the Arditti Quartet.
• "Can Silim Tun" (for 4 voices and string quartet).
• "Ah Paaxo’ob" (for a large group of musicians).
• "Cotidales" (for piano and string quartet).
• Mode Records, New York (165): "Uy U T’an" (again, by the Arditti Quartet) on an album called "Music from Mexico."

Published Music

Many of Hilda Paredes's musical works have been published. This means they are printed as sheet music for others to play.

• "Sonetos Eróticos" (1989), for soprano and ensemble.
• "Chacdzidzib" (1992), for piccolo.
• "Las Estrellas" (2003), for piano.
• "Recordando a Celia" (2003), for piano.
• "Demente Cuerda" (2004), for a group of wind instruments, percussion, strings, and harp.

University of York Music Press is now publishing more of her works:

• "Permutaciones" (1985), for solo violin.
• "Homenaje a Remedios Varo" (1995).
• "Zuhuy Kak" (1997), for solo cello.
• "Tres Piezas In Memoriam L.J." (for an ensemble).
• "Ah Paaxo’ob" (2001), for a large ensemble.
• "Cotidales" (2001), for piano and string quartet.
• "Corazón de Onix" (2005), for flute, clarinet, piano, violin, viola, and cello.
• "Recuerdos del Porvenir" (2005), for flute, oboe, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin, viola, and cello.
• "Páramo de voces" (2006), for piano and electronics.
• "Sobre un páramo sin voces" (2006), for piano.
• "Recordare" (2006), for symphony orchestra.
• "In Memoriam Thomas Kakuska" (2006), for solo violin.

Other Activities

Hilda Paredes has also been involved in other music-related activities:

• From 1991 to 1996, she produced a weekly radio show. It was called "Apariciones Sonoras del Siglo XX" on Radio UNAM in Mexico. The show featured new music.
• In 1992-1993, she worked with the Orchestra of Baja California. She helped arrange traditional Mexican and Spanish songs. Some of these arrangements were released on CDs.

Awards and Honors

Hilda Paredes has received many awards for her amazing work:

• 1988: Music for Dance Award from the Arts Council of Great Britain for her work El Prestidigitador.
• 1989: The Holst Foundation sponsored her work Sonetos Eróticos.
• 1990: Fellowship for Composers for her opera The Seventh Seed.
• 1993: Grant from the National Fund for Culture and Arts (FONCA), Mexico, for En el Nombre del Padre.
• 1993-1996: Fellowship for Creative Artists, Mexico.
• 1996: Fund for Culture Mexico/USA sponsored the recording of The Seventh Seed.
• 1997-2000: Fellowship for Creative Artists, Mexico.
• 2000: Became an honorary member of the Sistema Nacional de Creadores, Mexico.
• 2001: Received the J.S. Guggenheim Fellowship in New York City.
• 2002: Won the Premio de la Unión de Cronistas de Teatro y Musica, México.
• 2003: FONCA helped fund a project to record four of her pieces on the Mode label.
• 2006: Received another honor from the Sistema Nacional de Creadores, Mexico.

See also

In Spanish: Hilda Paredes para niños