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Alvaro Rojas: Music for 22

By Mark Corroto
February 14, 2023
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Whether it was an unintentional or deliberate act,

Alvaro Rojas

guitar
b.1982

" data-original-title="" title="">Alvaro Rojas' Music for 22 creates a perfect movie soundtrack. It is just that the film has yet to be made. His approach is to blend a string quartet both with his electric and resonator guitars, varying the scenarios and emotions as if he were scoring a film.

Rojas is a Canadian guitarist based in Vancouver B.C. with a diverse resume from pop, rock, and jazz, writing music for small and big bands, orchestras, and chamber ensembles. Here his core ensemble is a string quartet with Lucy Strauss on viola, Peggy Lee on cello, and violinists Josh Zubot and Meredith Bates. To this line-up he adds diverse flavors including synthesizers and various percussion instruments to create not just melodies, but cinematic cues.

The spare opening guitar of "Meditation Park" is accented with the slightest ambient wash. As the disc progresses, Rojas adds elements and emotions. The string quartet and

Chris Gestrin

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Chris Gestrin's synths create a haunting tension with "Down Under," and a dreamlike quality "Wish" which opens to blue sky with the duets of Rojas and Neelamjit Dhillon's tabla. There is a trace of the exotic in this music. On "Tiger Dreams" and the title track, with its otherworldly sounds, Rojas conjures a wistful and sophisticated chamber sound. He can also get down, as he does with his resonator guitar on "Smothered in Tragedy" and the one vocal track, "Past Lives," which was co-written with vocalist

Georgia Anne Muldrow

vocals
b.1983

" data-original-title="" title="">Georgia Anne Muldrow. There is much more to the movie in your head that Rojas has created, but let's avoid any spoilers.

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Track Listing

Meditation Park; Down Under; Wish; Double Dragon; Past Lives (feat. Georgia Anne Muldrow); Tiger Dreams; Music For 22; Smothered in Tragedy; BB Tango; Caiman; Estrella Magica.

Personnel

Alvaro Rojas

guitar

Additional Instrumentation

Meredith Bates: violin; Josh Zubot: violin; Lucy Strauss: viola; Peggy Lee: cello; Neelamjit Dhillon: tabla; Chris Gestrin: prophet 5, chroma polaris; Joel Fountain: drums; Kai Basanta: drums; Liam MacDonald: percussion; Ben Brown: percussion; JeanSe DeLouget: bass; Georgia Anne Muldrow: vocals.

Album information

Title: Music for 22 | Year Released: 2023 | Record Label: Self Produced

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