"It must have been around 1988 the first time Enrique Diaz visited me in the Cologne flat where I was living. Having frequently heard me play the trumpet he wanted to find a way for us to make music together. Through my previous tours with Rainer Brueninghaus I had got to know his native Chile quite well and developed aliking for the South American people. Enrique and I soon became friends, performing together in various occasions. Increasingly I begun to comprehend his musical vision and I respect him as the creator of a highly personal form of music, a synthesis of South American folk, jazz and European musical cultures. In December 1991 we toured Argentina and Chile together: out of this unforgettable experience came the first CD, TOCANDO LA TIERRA, which appeared in Germany at Jazzhaus Musik Records.
The music on the present album is derived from a composition Enrique prepared for the `South Americas 500´ anniversary. Initially SOL MESTIZO was a multimedia performance consisting of a slide show of South American art and nature photography, plus room installations by friendly Chilean artists, with the music central to the presentation and reflecting the historical development of South America: this from the very beginning of time through the hardships of the Spanish conquest to the present day. This all reflected Enrique´s imagination, his knowledge of the various native cultures, his big heartness and his passion for ethnological excpression.
I´m delighted that SOL MESTIZO has been released by ACT, albeit in a slightly altered form, and would like to thank Siegfried Loch for his commitment to the project. May this music support the meeting of cultures, mutual understanding and above all the brotherhood of mankind." Markus Stockhausen - September 1995 |