More than half a century ago, one of the Mexican musical groups emerged that with the most zeal and perseverance has dedicated its efforts to disseminating and exploring chamber orchestral music, both Mexican and international. This is a group that was originally called Yolopatli – a Nahuatl word that means “cure for the heart” – and that was formed with outstanding disciples of the classes taught, at that time, by the teachers Imre Hartmann (cellist) and Joseph Smilovitz (violinist) at the Conservatorio Nacional de Música.
On October 18 1956, this ensemble offered a concert with the Don Quixote Suite by Georg Philipp Telemann, and began a long journey, marked by an unstoppable spirit of exploration and evolution. The first of the significant changes experienced by this community of musicians was the adoption, already in the 1960's and at the request of Luis Sandi, of the name of the Orquesta de Cámara de Bellas Artes (= OCBA), by which it is known to this day and which , without a doubt, has established itself as synonymous with passion and musical quality.
Since the integration of its first cast - made up of José Luis Sosa, Ildefonso Cedillo, Armando Soberanes, Carlos Esteva, Apolo Martínez, Luis Núñez, Emigdio Espinosa, Rigoberto Sosa, Andrés Vargas, José Guadalupe López and Luisa Durón - until today, they have A plethora of talented musicians passed through their ranks. Likewise, soloists of the importance of: Ramón Vargas, Gil Shaham, Bella Davidovich, Gil Shaham, Jorge Federico Osorio, Pascal Rogé, Manuel Barrueco, Alexander Markov and Leslie Howard, among others, have performed, adding to the impetus that they have given its artistic directors -Hermilo Novelo, José Guadalupe Flores, Manuel de Elías, Ildefonso Cedillo, Francisco Savín, Luis Samuel Saloma, Enrique Barrios, Juan Trigos, Jesús Medina, José Luis Castillo, Ludwig Carrasco and currently Luis Manuel Sánchez Rivas -, they have placed them in a privileged place in the panorama of Mexican culture and arts.
The International presence of the OCBA, as witnessed by its presentations in Germany, Brazil, the USA, Portugal and Costa Rica, as well as its countless tours throughout the interior of the Mexican Republic, in addition to its didactic and social commitment, allow the OCBA to be considered a musical reference in the artistic field of Mexico.
The current Artistic Director of the OCBA is Luis Manuel Sánchez. |