"A mi ciudad nativa - To My Native City" Art Songs of Latin America Volume II. (2006), is a compilation of 28 songs by Latin American composers from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, México, Perú and Venezuela. Most of the songs are first time recorded. The importance of a recording like that which we present today dwells not only in the fact that a number of songs are recorded here for the first time which makes this CD an interesting development in terms of the recorded repertory, but also in its musicological importance and in the possibilities of disseminating this “new” repertory. Some of the songs of this CD are publish in the book: The Latin American Art Song: A Critical Anthology and Interpretative Guide for Singers by Patricia Caicedo. This book was publish in September 2005 by Edicions Trito in Barcelona, Spain. Among the songs that are recorded in this CD are the "Cuatro canciones incaicas" (Four Inca Songs) that are recorded for first time. This songs represented a landmark in the history of the Latin American Art Song for having been some of the first art songs written in an indigenous language, the Quechua. The accompanist is Ms. Eugenia Gassull a Catalan pianist who is teacher at the Conservatory Municipal de Barcelona. This CD has a 28 page booklet with comments about the songs and the composers. It also has the poems in the original language and with English translations. About the Artist Colombian soprano Patricia Caicedo is recognized as a leading interpreter of the Latin American and Spanish lieder repertory and has sung in the United States, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Spain, and Colombia to public and critical acclaim. Her well-received CDs include To My Native City - Art Songs of Latin America (2005), Lied: Art songs of Latin America (2001),La Felicidad, a collection of works by Colombian composer Jorge Olaya Muñoz, recorded with the Banda Sinfónica Santafé de Bogotá in 1997. Ms. Caicedo has earned highest honors in numerous festivals and competitions, including a prize awarded by Sony Music for best classical soloist in 1998 in Colombia and first prize in the "Concurso Nacional del Bambuco" competition, also in Colombia, in 1993. In addition to her busy performing schedule, Ms. Caicedo is an expert in the history and musical interpretation of the Latin American art song; A popular teacher as well as performer, Ms. Caicedo regularly gives concert-lectures, master classes, and serves as Artist-in-Residence at leading universities and as a Cultural Ambassador for the Colombian Diplomatic Corps. Ms. Caicedo made her professional debut in 1993 when, as a part of the International Festival of Classical Music, she was a soloist in Gabriel Faure´s Requiem, accompanied by the Tolima Symphony Orchestra. Since then she has been a soloist in J.C. De Arriaga´s Stabat Mater, G.B. Pergolessi´s Stabat Mater and given recitals all around the world. Born in Ibagué, Colombia, Ms. Caicedo began studying piano, music theory, and voice as a child at the Tolima music conservatory; then continued with private instructors in Bogotá. After completing medical studies in Bogotá, she resumed her voice studies and has since worked with Alfredo Krauss, Maya Maiska and Gilberto Escobar. Soprano Patricia Caicedo's main objective is making the Latin American art song repertory known worldwide. Her interest in this repertory started in her native Colombia when her first voice teacher, soprano Rocío Ríos, taught her the works of Colombian and Argentine composers telling her that singers should sing in their own language at the beginning of their training. Patricia later became interested in this repertory with which she feels a strong identification a result of performing popular songs, the Latin American folklore repertory, and especially songs from the Colombian Andes in her childhood and adolescence. She subsequently began to look for art songs by Latin American composers but ran into many obstacles, the first of which was the fact that these songs could not be found in music stores. Over time Patricia discovered that these songs were often not published or that they had been published in the 1930s and 1940s but were now out of print which made them especially difficult to find. At the same time, Patricia began to include these songs in her concert programs and to propose programs made up exclusively of this repertory. However, she encountered resistance from programmers some of whom suggested that she sing traditional lied by composers such as Schubert, Shumann, and others. It seemed like Latin American art songs were not considered to be at the same level as traditional lieder. Patricia then began her search for songs in family records, libraries of different countries and contacting composers or their descendants directly. She is driven by the desire to make the repertory known and to help it achieve its rightful place in the international context. To achieve this goal it was not sufficient to perform these songs in concert. It was necessary to break the vicious circle of the songs' not being known in various places:`Performaing the songs in concert halls,Recording,Publishing (sheet music and academic articles on the subject),Teaching (Master Classes and individual students,Promoting composers and performers of this repertory. Today Patricia is one of the most recognized performers and promoters of this repertory and is active international concert artist. She is frequently invited to give Master Classes and lectures at universities in the United States, Latin America, and Europe. Her personal library includes more than 2000 songs by Latin American composers.