El Alba del Alhelí is a work that reveals cultural and intellectual influences in the music of composer Juan Orrego-Salas. Despite being one of the most significant Latin American composers of the 20th century, his music is not frequently performed today. The presentation of this song cycle illustrates a facet of 20th-century Latin American music that does not necessarily conform to the nationalistic or folkloristic ideal that is typically expected. Its analysis reveals Orrego-Salas' way of integrating European and American trends of the 20th century and is at the same time a resource to enliven the interest in Latin American music and composers. Lack of familiarity with the Spanish language is another aspect that leads to not venturing into the Latin American repertoire. In this work, the free translation that accompanies the original edition is replaced by a translation that allows the singer a closer approximation to the content of the poems.
