OVERVIEW
The section explores different essential components that make up Afro-Peruvian music culture. First, it reviews Afro-Peruvian instrumentation presenting audiovisual examples of the most representative instruments such as the cajón, the cajita, the quijada, and the guitar. Second, it presents a review of the most notable and representative artists of Afro-Peruvian music. Third, a list of notable Afro-Peruvian record productions is presented for further immersion in the Afro-Peruvian sound. Fourth, additional resources such as documentaries (in English) and videos are listed.
18 min (reading)
1 hour (videos)
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Afro-Peruvian music employs a variety of percussion instruments and the Spanish guitar. Some of these percussion instruments were created by Afro-Peruvians, such as the cajón (Peru’s national instrument), cajita, and quijada, while other secondary percussion instruments were introduced from Afro-Cuban traditions, such as the congas, bongos, guiro, and cowbell. Handclaps (particularly in landó pieces) from musicians and audience members as a means of encouragement are also commonly used for percussion.
1. CAJÓN
The sound of the cajón is of critical importance to the identity of Afro-Peruvian music. It's recognized globally as Peru’s national instrument and considered a significant contribution of Afro-descendant populations to the musical wealth of Peru.
2. CAJITA
The cajita is a small wooden box with a hinged top that is suspended from the player’s neck by a rope. A variety of dry sounds can be produced by opening and closing the top and hitting different parts of the cajita with a stick or mallet. Historians believe that the creation of the cajita was inspired by the boxes used in church to collect alms (Tompkins, 2011).
3. QUIJADA
This instrument is literally the jawbone of a donkey. Even though it is commonly regarded as an Afro-Peruvian instrument, quijadas are also found in other African-descendent communities in Latin American countries, such as Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, and El Salvador (Chocano, 2016).
Freddy "Huevito" Lobatón demonstrates basic playing techniques for the quijada.
4. GUITAR
The guitar is an essential component of Afro-Peruvian music, which is in charge of providing the harmonic and melodic dimensions of songs, as well as accompanying the solo voice. Of Spanish origin, it has become arguably the most important and necessary of all instruments in Afro-Peruvian music (Alegria, 2006). Together with the cajón, it is one of the two core instruments that symbolically expresses the dual African and European roots of Afro-Peruvian music (Susnjar, 2013).
Yuri Juárez and Freddy "Huevito" Lobatón improvising a landó and playing a festejo song.
The Soul of Black Peru - Afro-Peruvian Classics
Various Artists
Son de Los Diablos
Perú Negro
The Warrior Women of Afro-Peruvian Music (Documentary)
A Grammy Award nominated 10 episode documentary that explores the music culture of Afro-Peruvian women.
REFERENCES
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Carazas, M. M. (2018). El testimonio Afroperuano. [Doctoral dissertation, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos]. https://es.scribd.com/document/442207359/CARAZAS-2018-El-testimonio-afroperuano
Chocano, R. (2016). Patrimonio cultural inmaterial Afroperuano. Ministerio de Cultura. https://centroderecursos.cultura.pe/sites/default/files/rb/pdf/PATRIMONIO%20CULTURAL%20INMATERIAL%20AFROPERUANO%20MINCU.pdf
Feldman, H. C. (2010). Translation acts: Afro-peruvian music in the united states. Journal of Popular Music Studies, 22(2), 139-165. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1533-1598.2010.01233.x
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Paredes, K. S. (2019). La música Afroperuana de la región Lambayeque [Thesis, Universidad Nacional Pedro Ruiz Gallo]. https://repositorio.unprg.edu.pe/handle/20.500.12893/8615
Susnjar, D. S. (2013). A methodology for the application of Afro-Peruvian rhythms to the drum set for use in a contemporary jazz setting [Doctoral dissertation, University of Miami]. https://scholarship.miami.edu/esploro/outputs/doctoral/A-Methodology-for-the-Application-of/991031447363802976
Tompkins, W. D. (2011). Las tradiciones musicales de los negros de la costa del Perú (1. en español. ed.). CEMDUC.