Manny
Cepeda composed and performed original Afro-Caribbean music for the
play Yerma.
Adaptation and direction by Prof. Evelyn Diaz Cruz.
On
February 2004 Prof.
Evelyn Díaz-Cruz, Asistant Professor, Theatre Arts Program,
University of San Diego and I got together for what has been an extremely
rewarding and memorable experience. For the first time in my life
I was given the challenge to arrange and compose the music for a play.
The play was Federico Garcia Lorca's Yerma, based on themes
of social injustice and repression against a shepherd's wife in the
1930's rural Spain.
The
challenge of Evelyn's vision was to turn this rural Spaniard play
into an Afro-Caribbean theme with all the fire and mystery of Latin
"Santeria". Having had plenty of experience as a child attending
Zion of Santeria with my mother and being a musician/composer for
all my life, I decided to take the challenge and arrange/compose the
music with the Afro-Caribbean theme using the styles of Bomba, Plena,
Afro, Mozambique and Ñañigo 6/8 rhythms. The result
was an amazing blend of culture, fire and emotions that turned the
play into an unforgettable performance. With the aide of the accomplished
Puerto Rican percussionist, Gene Perry, we created a Caribbean
version of this play.
To
follow are embossed pictures of the performers involved in this great
project and check out samples of the music that was created for the
play. Original pictures were derived from Prof.
Díaz-Cruz' s website.



Get
ready to hear the powerful beat of the drums and the lyrics created
by Manny Cepeda for this amazing emotion filled play.
-
Listen
to Yerma's opening song "Mataron a Juan (El Cabezón)
Click Here
-
Listen
to the Theme of Yerma "Nunca Más" Click
Here
-
Listen
to the closing theme of Yerma "Alguien" Click
Here
For
more information or to contact Manny Cepeda for theatrical music compositions
email to: riveracepeda@msn.com.