For Solo Piano

Armero was a town located in Tolima, Colombia that was wiped away by a mudslide caused by a volcanic eruption on November 3, 1985. At the time, my uncle, his wife, and their five-year old son lived in Armero. Just before the disaster, Sergio’s parents left him at home with their nanny, but were unable to return because of the volcanic eruption. Their home was swept away in the mudslide from the eruption, and Sergio was nowhere to be found. For years Sergio was thought to have been lost to the disaster until reports came of children from Armero being found living in Europe. Instead of trying to reunite lost children with their parents, the Colombian government gave many of these children up for adoption under the assumption that their families had perished in the mudslide. Worse still was that geologists and other experts had warned authorities to evacuate the area after detecting volcanic activity two months earlier. It is estimated that 22,000 people were killed in this natural disaster. A banner at a mass funeral for the victims read, “The volcano didn't kill 22,000 people. The government killed them.” To this day my family does not know whether Sergio is alive or not. 

This piece depicts the tragedy of Armero and the loss of my cousin in the first half while the second expresses frustration and anger towards the Colombian government. The piece is very motivic with the opening line representing Sergio and his innocence appearing repeatedly throughout the work. The first half builds dramatically depicting the mudslide wiping away the town of Armero. The second half incorporates a quote from the Bunde Tolimense, Tolima’s state anthem composed by my great-granduncle, Alberto Castilla. The text to this anthem is about the happiness and pride people from Tolima feel about their state. In this piece, the anthem is slowly distorted and juxtaposes the meaning of these lyrics against the government’s negligence before and in the aftermath of this horrific tragedy. 

Below is a link to the non-profit organization that aims to rebuild and support the community and families affected by the natural disaster.

http://armandoarmero.org/en/