Long admired as a pioneer of the blending of ethnic music with avant-garde techniques, Leonardo Balada first encountered experimental electronic music in New York in the early 1960s. It was to have a significant bearing on his compositional development.

In Cumbres (Heights), a ‘Short Symphony for Band’, he employs an ‘electronic’ effect with dramatic results. He pursues the idea of cluster-like textures in the Concerto for Piano, Winds and Percussion while also paying homage to Chopin, Poulenc and Stravinsky. Conflict and lyricism mark out the Viola Concerto, while the Sonata for Ten Winds was described by The New York Times as ‘an exciting instrumental showcase with motoric passages that are quite stunning’.