Miranda for flute and orchestra

"Miranda" is a work dedicated to the hero of Latin American independence, the Venezuelan Francisco de Miranda, who, in addition to being an educated military man, was a great humanist and amateur flutist.

I. In the Service of the King of Spain
This movement evokes the early years of Miranda's life, first in Venezuela and then in Spain and Cuba as a soldier in the royal army. It also describes the episode of a bloody battle in Morocco, where Miranda participated successfully and which he recounted in his diary.

II. Glimpses of Freedom
This movement is based on the impressions Miranda gained from his journey through the United States of America, which had just achieved independence from the British Empire.

III. Europe, Splendor of the Past
Miranda travels through the Old Continent and soaks in its cultural legacy. In Russia, he works for Tsarina Catherine, with whom he is said to have had a romance; this is reflected in the duet between the flute and the English horn.

IV. Struggle for Freedom
Simón Bolívar convinces Miranda to join the fight for independence, and thus our hero returns to his homeland to contribute his knowledge to the independence cause.

The work is purely descriptive and full of symbolism: the notes of the Cuatro's strings represent the Venezuelan people, a couple of measures from the Royal March represent Spain, as do certain rhythms and cadences of flamenco music. Notes from the anthems of England, the United States, and France are subtly hidden in the passages that occurred in those lands. The five-eighth rhythm represents Caracas, and the polyrhythm of Afro-Venezuelan music alludes to the mixed-race people (mestizos, zambos, and mulattoes).

Making a historical connection between works, Oscher cites here extracts from "Boves y Bolívar" for bass (voice), double bass and piano: the "Sueños de Libertad" motif appears repeatedly throughout "Miranda," and the melody of "La República," which uses the text of the Declaration of Independence that Miranda helped draft, appears here with a different rhythm. It also uses elements from "El Ejército Temible," which embodies the forces of Boves and Monteverde.