World Premiere Recording
of the chamber opera
Constellations
Music by Efraín Amaya
Libretto by Susana Amundaraín
"Constellations"
A chamber opera inspired by the life and work of Spanish artist Joan Miró.
Music by Efraín Amaya
Libretto by Susana Amundarain
iTunes:
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Albany Records:
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Recording done during the live performances of the world premiere on December 4th and 5th of 2015 at the Neighborhood House Theater in Philadelphia, PA.

Characters:
Pi: Raquel Winnica Young (Mezzo)
Jo: Dan Kempson (Baritone)
Tessa: Sarah Shafer (soprano)
Dee: Julianna Scherzer (non singing role)

Arts Crossing Chamber Orchestra
Efraín Amaya, Music Director/Conductor

Flute: Susanna Loewy
Oboe: Evan Ocheret
Clarinet: Nicolás Carrasco
Trumpet: Rodney Marsalis
French Horn: Eric Huckins
Percussion: Edward Babcock
Piano: Yoni Levyatov
Violins: Sein An, Belmary Lorcas
Viola: Sam Quintal
Violoncellos: Rachel Freivogel, Franklin Niño
Double Bass: Michael Chaffin

Recording by Joe Hannigan/Weston Sound & Video
Editing & Mastering: Marv Nonn
Additional Editing: Efraín Amaya

"My work should be like a poem set to music by a painter." Joan Miró
A man and his family find themselves self-exiled. By luck or intuition.

Characters:
Jo: a man in his mid 40s, a painter and poet. He's by nature quiet, sensitive, intuitive, pessimistic, and overwhelmed with anxiety and uncertainty. His deepest fears are taking hold of him and he can't seem to find a place of peace and freedom.
Pi: Jo's wife, good natured, strong and resilient. She is the rock of the family, mother of their only child, sensible and pragmatic.
The Bird: this is the painter's muse at night (his wife in disguise).
Tessa (the guide): an old benevolent spirit, present in the house. Pi is the only one who can see her, and talk to her.
Dee: the daughter. She may be an occasional silent presence.

Story line
The story takes place at the onset of a great war, during the first half of the 20th century, by the shore, on the northern coasts of France. A small family of three, where the man is a prominent artist, find themselves self-exiled in a little village. Their intention is to become invisible for a while, and observe the direction and magnitude of this coming conflict. The war seems to have its eyes everywhere on the European continent. So does God's Eye. It is a matter of timing and movement, of composition, when one must always be alert not to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Jo and his wife are living some of the tensest moments of their lives. They can't return to their homeland since it is under the control of a vicious dictator, whom they oppose. They realize a bigger monster is upon them, unpredicted, as they are themselves in foreign territory. The artist closes up into himself, into his space, into his work, in solitude. He is exiled from his family as well. During sleepless nights, plagued by night terrors, he ponders about the future and feels he's falling into a downward spiral. His wife doesn't sleep either. She starts hearing voices in the house, like a radio catching an unexpected wave. Could the house be haunted? Or is the haunting omnipresent in everyone's mind? A presence, an old spirit perhaps, starts talking to her and guides her to help her distraught husband come out of that dark space through his work. She's advised to disguise herself as a fantastic bird at night, and to visit him with messages from this newfound guide. He's been hallucinating, so he won't notice the difference, the voice says. Pi succeeds in creating a new different bond with him and he starts painting consistently, inspired by this 'bird-muse' and the skies. The inner darkness is being lifted, but the surrounding threats get closer. Pushed by an imminent world disaster, they embark again on a new journey to a place closer to their hearts. The end of the world may be near. It would be sensible to be surrounded by your own kin, by familiar sounds that could soothe the horrors of the war.

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