International music at Battell Chapel

NORFOLK —  On Saturday, Sept 10 at the Battell Chapel, a program of international music was presented featuring the Alturas Duo.

The group features Scott Hill on guitar, Carlos Boltes on viola and charango and Jordan Rose Lee on guest vocals. The performance included songs from Italy, Spain and the Americas.

“The two of us in Alturas Duo have been playing together for almost 17 years,” violist Boltes said of his partner Hill. The two met in 2000 while studying music at the University of Hartford. “Our musical backgrounds are different,” Boltes said. “Scott played rock guitar before classical and I played folk music before the viola. I played the charango, the guitar, etc. That is why we mix everything. We found out that the audience  really likes this mixture of styles and times.” The two play a smorgasbord of Latin-American music, including some which was composed especially for them. 

The Sept. 10 performance included pieces by Barbara Strozzi, Heitor Villa-Lobos, and even The Beatles.

“We have performed at places like the Smithsonian,” Boltes said. “We also do a lot of shows at churches, libraries and weddings. We travel all over the United States, South America, Central America and Europe. Two months ago we were in five European countries.” 

Boltes said one of his favorite places they have played was Bolivia. “When you are playing 14,000 feet up in the air, your feelings are so different,” he said. 

The Sept. 10 concert  was the first live performance with soprano Jordan Rose Lee.

Lee’s vocals could be heard from the parking lot as she switched with ease between Baroque and South American Folk styles of music, including use of four different languages. Boltes said they discovered Lee because they do “a lot of networking. We accompany choirs and get to know a lot of people.”

Lee said she has been singing seriously for over 15 years, beginning with lessons when she was 16 years old. “I majored in classical music in college,” Lee said. “I think tonight went really well, and I think tonight was our best out of all of our rehearsals. For me, being in front of the audience is a whole different animal. At that point, I give up all of the things I’m worried about. During a rehearsal, I’m critical of myself, and full of anxiety and all that. But for a performance, it becomes art when you give it away. Its like you communicate with an audience, you give them something and they experience it.”