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Preludios Colombianos is an audio recording album dedicated to the piano works of Colombian composers Adolfo Mejía Navarro and Guillermo Uribe Holguín, performed by pianist Natalia Vanegas Escobar. The album features Uribe Holguín’s Preludes op. 48 and op. 56 and Mejía’s Four Preludes, offering listeners a focused look at two important yet underrepresented voices in classical music. Despite the significance of these composers in the Colombian national repertoire, many of their pieces have never been professionally recorded, and some have no audio record whatsoever. This project responds to that need, providing accessible, high quality, and more performance interpretations of these works, which remain largely unknown outside academic circles.
The initiative was supported by the Patronato Colombiano de Artes y Ciencias, the institution charged with preserving and promoting the legacy of both Uribe Holguín and Mejía Navarro. The recording took place in March 2025 at Plough Hall, located in the Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center in Memphis, Tennessee, using a Steinway D concert grand piano. Recording engineer Walker Higgins led the technical production of the album.
This dissertation documents the creative and technical aspects of the project, including the challenges of accessing materials, the interpretive decisions involved, and the logistics of recording under professional conditions. It also offers short analytical insights into each work, drawing attention to stylistic features and the notable influence of French music education on both composers, particularly in harmonic language and formal design. Exploring these works and their composers raised broader questions about musical identity and heritage. Though the selected pieces are shaped by European traditions rather than Colombian folk rhythms, they reveal the diversity of Colombia’s piano repertoire and challenge common stereotypes about Latin American music.
By distributing the album on digital streaming platforms, Preludios Colombianos serves not only as a reference for performers and scholars but also as a tool for cultural preservation and international outreach. It contributes to ongoing efforts to raise awareness of Latin American piano music and invites its further exploration. A listening link is included to encourage accessibility and engagement with the works beyond the scope of this written document.