Response

I would like to thank Ana María Romano for correcting the details mentioned in my article on Colombian electroacoustic music. This is an important topic that deserves continued discussion.

I would like to point out that the subtitle of my article is "An Introduction" and therefore its investigative process was of a general sort. The article includes important information about the development of electroacoustic music in Colombia, as indicated by the referenced books, articles and discography. The article was written in English and was reviewed on several occasions by experts in the grammar and mechanics of the English language.

Romano implies in her letter that I did not listen to the music that I analyzed in the article. I can understand that she does not like the way in which I analyzed the musical works, since this is a question of personal taste; however, she should not imply something of which she has no palpable proof. The article was reviewed by experts in electroacoustic music, one of whom knew in detail the works that I analyzed and at no time objected to my analytical commentary. The article focuses on the development of electroacoustic music in Colombia and not on the complete works of Jacqueline Nova, Blas Emilio Atehortúa or Fabio González Zuleta. It is for this reason that I limited myself to the electroacoustic musical production of Jacqueline Nova, although I mention that one of her works for chamber groups was given an award at the Third Festival of Music in Venezuela as an indication that Nova is a multifaceted composer.

The information on Atehortúa's date of birth I found on the Internet, in the virtual library Biblioteca Luis Ángel Arango (BLAA), which seems to me to be one of the best libraries in Colombia as far as culture and national art are concerned. At any rate, finding Atehortúa's exact birthdate was a puzzle since documents exist that indicate at least three different dates. I am in agreement with Romano that my reference to Atehortúa as the father of academic music in Colombia was perhaps made too lightly, but my comment was based on his work in the field of experimental art music in Colombia during the past 25 years. I also agree that González Zuleta should be considered one of the patriarchs of art music in Colombia, but Atehortúa was perhaps the first Colombian composer to incorporate 20th-century techniques and aesthetics as part of his personal style, whereas González Zuleta was a composer who at the height of the 20th century used romantic and classical models as his compositional language. It may be true that David Feferbaum is not currently active as a composer, but in the 1970s he was one of the few composers specializing in electroacoustic music in Colombia, and became a professor on this subject at the department of music of the faculty of arts of the National University of Colombia in Bogotá, where he mounted a private study for the production of electroacoustic music. Therefore, historically, Feferbaum is fundamental to the development of electroacoustic music in Colombia. His work as an educator was of tremendous importance since a great majority of Colombian composers, musical institutions and governmental organizations of that era did not have interest in nor did they support this area.

Romano mentions that the date of birth of Jacqueline Nova that I gave in my article is erroneous, as demonstrated by Nova's certificate of Colombian citizenship. Due to the facility with which changes to such documents can be made, perhaps the only document that would prove the exact birth date of Nova would be her hospital birth certificate. While the article that I wrote was published 2 years ago, Romano refers to a document that was published recently, and its investigations were made the year previous to its publication. The reason I include Feliza Bursztyn in my article was merely to indicate that Las histéricas is the first sonic sculpture conceived in Colombia.

Finally, I want to stress again that my article is of general interest and simply aims to be an...