30' Los Caprichos Suite, performed by Lowell Chamber Orchestra, Orlando Cela, conductor.

Francisco de Goya published his collection of 80 etchings titled, Los Caprichos (“Caprices”) in 1799 after a long and difficult illness. During his convalescence, Goya read voraciously from philosophy and social criticism. He emerged not only nearly completely deaf but a changed man, spiritually. 

On the surface, Los Caprichos is a work about witches, goblins, demons, priests, the rich, the poor, hypocrites and the honest people they exploit. It is a glaring critique of Spanish mores at the end of the 18th century. Goya would have been hanged by the Inquisition for his work had he not been pardoned by the king, who bought the entire print run of Los Caprichos to save Goya from financial ruin as well. 

My take on Los Caprichos began around 2010 when Ned McGowan asked me to compose a work for his ensemble, Hexnut. This version, consisting only of what are now no.’s 1, 3, 4, 34, 43, 49, 71 and 80, was scored for an amplified ensemble of flutes, recorders, flugelhorn and piano. Three years later I created a version for my own ensemble, Great Noise Ensemble, that gave the work its final instrumentation. It was during this process that I mentioned to Katie Ravenwood, then managing director of Great Noise, the idea to set all 80 Caprichos as a sort of modular suite. She thought it was a good idea. As her job was to keep this idealistic dreamer in line, I took this as a sign to go ahead with the project. Los Caprichos is dedicated to her, my “sister from another mother,” for this reason. 

One of the things that attracted me to Goya’s Los Caprichos (besides their amazing weirdness) is his clever use of symbolism and intertextuality to drive home his point. My own Los Caprichos engages Goya’s originals (and, as often as possible should be accompanied by Goya’s etchings in projection) as themselves, and I have tried to use similar symbolic and mimetic techniques in the music as much as possible. I leave it to the audience, however, to determine the field of musical references and draw meaning from them as they come. There are many. And they come from many, many sources. 

Los Caprichos was written over a long period; one that brought with it a lot of personal and professional upheaval. A strangely appropriate coincidence given that Goya’s book comes from a similar time in his life. I am extremely grateful to the staff and trustees of the MacDowell Colony for the opportunity to take a lengthy period of time to devote solely to completing this work in the fall of 2018.