On October 13th, following our General Studies week schedule, the Raúl Baillères Hall hosted a Jazz concert. During the concert, Dr. Víctor Alberto Villavicencio Navarro, professor at the General Studies Academic department, took control of the drums. We had the opportunity to interview the professor about his relationship to music, his time as a drummer and his experience returning to stage at ITAM University.
A drummers beginnings
Dr. Villavicencio shared with us that he started playing the drums when he was 10 years old and his musical journey began at school. His love for playing the drums was not learnt, nobody on his family knew how to play them, and after high-school he decided to pursue a career in Music.
Professor Villavicencio applied to the former National School of Music at UNAM, currently called the National Autonomous University of Mexico´s Faculty of Music. Music was not his only passion, he also started his mayor in History in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters at UNAM while being enrolled in Music. After some time, he decided to focus on his career in History, but never did he abandon his passion for music, it has always been present in his life.
A journey through college
During his college years he played the drums professionally. He formed a band with some of his middle-school friends and got to play in weddings and parties. After some time, new singers joined the band and made it more versatile, leading them to more events.
“Near the year 2000, alongside my best friends of over 25 years, I started playing Jazz. (…) Those were difficult times for us, sometimes we had multiple events the same day. At the end, the enjoyment that playing among friends and loving what we did gave us the energy to play our best on every stage.”, shared professor Villavicencio
Furthermore, Dr. Villavicencio spoke on his journey through his postgraduate and Doctoral studies, when he left his musical career behind. His next time on stage was at ITAM University, at one of the concerts organized by ITAM Música. The professor considers the work that ITAM Musica does to be of the utmost importance, they support the students relax and enjoy music.
“To be back on stage is really gratifying (…) Playing can become something you need in your life and it has always brought me joy, making music with other people is a unique experience. (…) I believe ITAM Musica´s work to be of the utmost importance for our Community. ” commented Villavicencio.
The Jazz concert
Professor Villavicencio was the only member of our faculty to participate in the concert. He was, nevertheless, in good company. His friends Vinicio and José Manuel played the electric bass and the piano, while his son Juan Manuel, nailed the guitar. His participation in the event derived from an invitation from professor Mansur.
The General Studies week is held in October and consists of conferences, book presentations and cultural activities. This year arose the opportunity to diversify the program with some music, so professor Vilaviencio took the lead to organize a Jazz concert for the Community.
ANUNCIO
