In the score program note, Ortiz wrote, "Each year, these Native Mexicans embark on a symbolic journey to 'hunt' the blue deer, making offerings in gratitude for having been granted access to the invisible world, through which they also are able to heal the wounds of the soul."
[1] Reviewing the world premiere, Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times praised the piece as "magical" and wrote, "With her kaleidoscopic eyes (and ears), this Gaby in the sky with diamonds turned the jaunty tune into a ravishing vision, its repetitious rhythms keeping a listener glued while the changing instrumental colors created the unnerving effect of feeling unglued.
"[2] Jim Farber of the San Francisco Classical Voice similarly described the performance as "quite special," remarking, "Imbued with the musical flavors of her native Mexico, Kauyumari depicts a journey, over the course of a brief six minutes, from the shadowy rumblings of a bass drum and gong, to shafts of radiant light peeling forth in the brass, much the same way they do in Aaron Copland's Fanfare for the Common Man.
Ultimately, the spirit of a Mexican folk dance makes its entrance as a solo piccolo, then grows into a rhythmically interweaving, pulsating explosion of hope and renewal.
"[4] However, David Wright of the New York Classical Review was more critical of the piece, describing it "elusive" and opining, "It opened promisingly with distant thunder in the timpani, a drip of percussion rain, and a 'sunrise' for brass and winds, then settled into a phrase repeated over and over with changing orchestration, in what might be called a bit of Meximalism."