El Deber del Poeta. This phrase of Pablo Neruda’s carries a profound meaning for me. “Deber” can be translated as role, and this is not incorrect, but to my mind Neruda’s primary meaning was duty. As a socially committed poet he felt that an artist was ethically obligated to witness his society and contribute to it.

As a musical creator who also has had a parallel career in medicine, I have been less conscious over the years of my duty as a musician in the way that Neruda refers to. In retrospect I see that it is central to my musical life.

In April we will premier in Morelia, Mexico a new work entitled, “Alturas de Macchu Picchu”. This is a work which has long been in progress but will come to fruition this spring. This long poem of Neruda’s encapsulates the Latin American experience over the centuries in a quite astonishing way. I have worked for over a decade to write music that can approach the theme adequately.

There are both personal and political aspects to my fascination with this work, although in a sense this hardly needs explaining given the importance of this poem. But for me as a musician grappling with this great text has given me the opportunity to integrate the political and artistic aspects of my personality, enriched by the Latin American side of my personal heritage.