The audience swelled to rhythmic tribal tunes while the vibrations of the bass drum shook the air. The dynamic blend of melodies and beats created by a variety of exotic instruments filled the Hult Center.
Modern Latin music and a drum circle mix are the forces behind Revueltas’ piece “La Noche de los Mayas” or “Night of the Mayas,” performed by the Eugene Percussion Symphony during a Jan. 11 preview.
Eugene Symphony conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya, who has also conducted the Fort Worth Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, will conduct “Night of the Mayas” tonight at the Hult Center for Performing Arts at 8 p.m.
Another performance will be Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the Florence Convention and Performing Arts Center.
“Miguel is a very fine conductor with good rapport,” said Peter Burquoist, a retired music professor from the University and a music critic for The Register-Guard. “He is technically secure, and he engages the audience. I am expecting an enjoyable performance.”
Musicians used Latin instruments such as congas, marimba, tunkel, drums, rattles and a caracol (conch shell).
The caracol was used to “add color to all the groove that was going on,” said conch shell player and University student Julie Bounds.
“It’s a very unique mixture,” director Charles Dowd said.

The rapid rhythms swept the audience into dance mode. People from the audience rose from their seats to dance, while some tapped their feet. Many were smiling during the preview for the upcoming “Night of the Mayas.”
“It’s a festive piece that has no clichés,” Dowd said.
Schumann’s “Konzertsück for Four Horns, Opus 86” will also be included in the performance.
Harth-Bedoya has arranged four horn soloists, which is “very rare,” principle horn player Edward McManus said.
“It is a piece that is rarely played because it’s extremely rare and difficult to get four horn soloists together,” percussion player Tim Cogswell said. “It is a real treat.”
“Schumann creates images in his compositions; they’re very evocative,” said Maria Smith, a music professor at the University.
The array of instruments in this piece will include a piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons; two horns, two trumpets, three trombones; timpani; strings; and four solo horns. The weave of the four horn soloists and the other instruments creates a smashing finale.
“Konzertsück for Four Horns, Opus 86” is “acrobatic, fun, fast and ends with an extreme fanfare quality that’s fun to listen to,” said Robert Hurwitz, a Lane Community College professor of music. “It’s a 17-minute-long piece.”
Tickets range from $14 to $38 and $10 for students. For more information, visit www.eugenesymphony.org.