Having overcome the unimaginable with dedication and tenacity, Fabian Carrera will be performing at a long and eagerly awaited recital to complete his Doctor of Music Arts.
Fabian Carrera is a polio survivor and a man who loves music. He has performed at prestigious venues including the Embassy of Ecuador, The Corcoran Gallery of Art’s Frances and Armand Hammer Auditorium in Washington D.C. and The New York Consulate.
On Saturday, March 30 at 5 p.m., Carrera will be presenting his Doctoral Classical Guitar Recital. It will take place in Weeks Center/Clarke. The performance will be based on the music of Antonio Vivaldi and rearranged for guitar and choir by Carols Bonilla-Chavez.
Carlos Bonilla-Chavez adapted Vivaldi’s music for soprano, tenor and bass voices to replicate the original string sections, and the guitar substitutes the role of the lute.
The adaptation by Bonilla-Chavez has a choir, however, Carrera will only have four vocalists: Hannah Pezner, Lauren Richars, Max Trombley and Sam Scheibe.
“I got myself mic stands. I will have them each have their own input so that when I go back to my mixer they can take it and layer it and make it into a full-blown choir,” said Carrera
The idea is that this can be used for future recording; however, during the performance, it will sound like a quartet.
During the performance, the four opera singers from the University of Miami will replicate the sounds of string instruments. These singers will have to sing on pulse and coloratura, a style of singing characterized by vocal runs, trills and wide leaps, typically found in opera performances.
“I would say the first part is going to be Baroque. The second part is going to be more indigenous. And with that the theme is traditional music of different parts of the world”, Carrera said.
With his music, Carrera aims to deliver the message of resilience, urging listeners not to let others’ opinions define them, which will be demonstrated once again at the doctoral recital.
“I am an example of having all the odds. The odds were against me. I decided to say, I am going to make these things work and prove that disabled individuals can do these things,” Carrera said.
Previously, Carrera worked for the Ress Family Hospital Performance Project as a music companion. He described a story of a man in a comatose, non-verbal and non-responsive state.
After listening to Carerra’s music, the man began tapping his finger to the beat, and eventually, the man progressed to humming and verbalizing about his childhood in Cuba. This led him to transition from palliative to hospice care.
Upon finishing his doctoral degree, Carrera hopes to teach classical guitar and jazz at a university level. As for now, his music is available on all platforms for listeners to enjoy.