Odaline de la Martínez Celebrates 20 Years of the London Festival of American Music

Cuban-American composer and conductor Odaline de la Martínez celebrates the tenth edition of the London Festival of American Music (LFAM), running November 9 to 13, 2026, at The Warehouse in Waterloo, London. Founded by Martínez in 2006, the biennial festival introduces British audiences to American composers whose music is often less familiar in Europe. This year’s five concerts feature works by more than 30 composers, including three world premieres and 22 UK premieres. The festival also marks the 50th anniversary of Lontano, the contemporary music ensemble Martínez co-founded with flautist Ingrid Culliford in 1976.

Odaline de la Martínez © Malcolm Crowther

The idea for the festival grew out of Martínez’s observation that European audiences tended to know only a handful of American composers. “There were a lot of really good American composers that were completely unknown,” she recalled. “I decided, well, it’s time to tell the world that there are other people.”

For Martínez, reaching the tenth edition is an achievement in itself. Over the past twenty years, the festival has continued despite the challenges of finding sponsors and sustaining support for contemporary music. She takes particular satisfaction in its survival and the continued interest of audiences and musicians. The festival has become a lasting platform for introducing music that might otherwise receive little attention in Europe.

The 2026 edition overlaps with the 250th anniversary of American independence and celebrates the diversity of American composition across generations, ethnicities, and musical traditions. More than half of the featured composers are women, including Florence Price, Caroline Shaw, Ursula Mamlok, and many living composers whose music is rarely heard in the UK.

The festival opens on November 9 with Latinos in America, conducted by Tianhui Ng, featuring six UK premieres by Puerto Rican composers Johanny Navarro, Ivan Enrique Rodriguez, Luis Quintana, and Sonia Morales, alongside Mexican-American composer Jorge Andres Ballesteros and Martínez herself. “Puerto Ricans are Americans,” Martínez emphasised, explaining why she included four Puerto Rican composers. Her own work, Memorias, draws on memories of Cuba, evoking Afro-Cuban drumming, beaches, and carnival scenes.

Memorias

On November 10, Martínez conducts Percussion!!!, featuring two rarely performed works by Ursula Mamlok, Variations and Interludes for 4 Percussionists and 2000 Notes, alongside three newly commissioned works by Neva Derewetzky, Daniel Thomas Davis, and Charles Shadle, all receiving their world premieres.

Ursula Mamlok’s Variations & Interludes: Var. 2, Quarter Note = 80

Martínez was particularly eager to discuss Mamlok’s life and music. Born in Germany, Mamlok escaped Nazi persecution with her family, lived in Latin America, and later moved to New York to study. She later became an American citizen and spent much of her career in the United States. Martínez described her percussion works as rarely performed, despite their musical interest. “They need to be heard,” she said, reflecting the same conviction that inspired her to establish the festival.

The November 11 concert, African American Music for Voice and Piano, features soprano Roberta Philip and pianist Valentina Wang in works by Florence Price, Margaret Bonds, William Grant Still, George Walker, Undine Smith Moore, and other composers. The following evening, Solos, Duos and More presents contemporary chamber music, including Daniel Asia’s Pine’s Last Poems, performed by Hong Kong mezzo-soprano Salome Siu. Martínez had recently rehearsed with Siu and spoke enthusiastically about her voice, particularly its strong lower register.

Muriel Herbert’s I Hear an Army Charging, performed by Salome Chung Kwan Siu (mezzo-soprano) & Lucas Saraiva Cunha (piano)

The festival concludes on November 13 with Choral Works from America, performed by VOCE under the direction of Suzi Digby OBE. The program features music by Eric Whitacre, Caroline Shaw, Nico Muhly, Reena Esmail, Michael Gordon, Jake Runestad, Dolly Parton, and Martínez herself.

Martínez’s contribution, Three Afro-Cuban Poems, sets poetry by Nicolás Guillén and reflects her Cuban heritage. Having known some of Guillén’s poetry for years, she revisited his work and selected three poems to set to music, drawing on the distinctive language and rhythms of Afro-Cuban Spanish.

Born in Cuba, Martínez moved to the United States with her sister at age eleven, and her parents followed six years later. She grew up in Arizona and later New Orleans, where she encountered the city’s vibrant musical traditions. Although she has spent much of her life outside Cuba, her heritage continues to find expression in her music.

Martínez’s international career has also been shaped by her experiences as a woman conductor. In 1984, at the age of 34, she became the first woman to conduct a BBC Promenade Concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall.

Beyond conducting and championing lesser-known repertoire, Martínez is also an accomplished composer whose operas include Sister Aimée and Imoinda: A Story of Love and Slavery. She is now working on a new opera inspired by the life and death of Spanish poet Federico García Lorca, incorporating some of his poetry into the work.

Imoinda 40 Sec Trailer

Martínez finds opera particularly appealing because it combines music, words, and drama. “What better combination do you want?” she said. Although she continues to conduct, she hopes to devote more time to composing. “I think I need the time to compose,” she explained.

After five decades with Lontano and twenty years with the London Festival of American Music, Martínez continues to champion composers whose music deserves wider recognition. As she turns more of her attention toward composition, the festival remains an important part of her work, bringing unfamiliar repertoire to new audiences and reflecting the diversity of American music.