Under the baton of Maestro Carlos Miguel Prieto, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) won its first Grammy Award in the category of Best Regional Roots Music Recording for its album “Live: Orpheum Theater Nola,” recorded on January 15 of last year in collaboration with the Cajun band The Lost Bayou Ramblers.
“Receiving this Grammy has been very pleasant, because it is recognition of an institution that has a lot of merit. I am no longer with her, but I was for 17 years. The beautiful thing about all this is that we believed and were committed to making musical projects, together with other groups, that represent sound aspects of the area that perhaps are not known worldwide and it has turned out very well,” declares Carlos Miguel Prieto, in an interview with The Sun of Mexico.
The also artistic director of the Minería Symphony Orchestra, explains that the Cajun music that makes up this album is of French origin, but with diverse influences: Celtic, Hispanic and African, as a product of the migration of French people to Lousiana, who came from Quebec. , in search of better conditions and a more pleasant climate.
“These languages are ultimately part of our history and our culture. We are always very proud of our musicians, but sometimes we let styles that give us a lot die a little. Listening to them is like having a living museum, they are musicians who have learned to play from their grandparents. I am very interested and excited about everything that has to do with different traditions,” he noted.
“Music is the record of a moment, but it is a living record. If we think about the migratory drama in the north and south of Mexico, the reality is that migrants take a culture with them, they travel with their music and their customs which impact the places where they arrive. That is why music and its movements are important, because it follows the human being and allows him to establish cultural roots,” explains the director.
DOUBLE RECOGNITION
Carlos Miguel Prieto was also recognized with a Latin Grammy, conducting the Minería Symphony Orchestra, for the album “Estirpe”, together with trumpeter Pacho Flores, with songs of Latin American rhythms by contemporary authors.
“I am proud of my work as a Mexican, but I also know that music is universal, so I am not always a musical ambassador for Mexico. But it is a source of enormous pride to be able to win awards like this, because I carry the name of my country in me. So being able to look good is an obligation for me, but above all things it is a pleasure.
“The orchestras are heroic and we must support them, because the moment an organization like this disappears, it is very difficult for it to return. This type of award is a boost that I hope will help the LPO to have many more years of life. When you reward an orchestra like this, you validate a group that also plays concerts for children, that has musicians who are local teachers. It’s not that I believe that music solves everything, but it does give the opportunity, especially to young people, to develop themselves,” the teacher adds.
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Both awards come to him “at a time of transition,” since he ended his participation with the LPO and also with the National Symphony Orchestra, and now focuses on his work with the North Carolina Symphony Orchestra and the Mining Symphony Orchestra.
“The joke is to present things so that people enjoy the beauty that is symphonic music. I am not so concerned about whether something has a massive response or not, but rather that the quality itself is always excellent, with that the response is assured. Whether it is massive or not is a question of reach and marketing,” he concludes.