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Native Aymara dance and music
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English version by Sarai Coteron
It is difficult to decide on the antiquity of the pinkhullu, punkhullu,
ancestor of the modern pinkillos, chacallos, quena-quenas, mosenos, lawa k'umus,
tarqas etc. Various archaeological remains tell us that the first pinkhullus of
the Aymaras of antiquity were made of ceramic and the long bones of the llama,
up to the time they discovered the sonorous quality of the bamboo cane found in
the area of Yungas, and some of the low lying interandean valleys like Socosani,
(suqusani meaning: place of reeds) in Arequipa. The cane provided the means for
the invention of the siku (siqus).
Following the introduction of the Spanish guitar the charango, khirkhinchu, was
invented, as all signs indicate, in some place of today's Potosi. The
selection of sound archives below, is a sample of the richness of the Aymara
music being created now, at the start of the 21st century. We have made an
effort so that the pieces in this list are those composed, arranged and
performed by native Aymara bands from a diversity of farming communities in Peru
and Bolivia. We decided to include in this selection the band "Los Awatinas",
on account of their true aymara origin, and also because within the range of
professional bands making Andean music, they prove to be the closest to it.
These archives can be reproduced by any mp3 player. They cannot be
stored/saved as the digital conversion is of a low quality at 32 KB/sec on a
sampling frequency band of 11200 KHz. The reasons for this shortfall are so as
to reduce the frequency band at the Aymara.org server, and also to avoid the mp3
harvesters, who collect mainly mp3 of quality 128 KB/sec and 44100 KHz, for
resale.
Within the whole range of musical instruments that were born originally within
the Aymara culture of antiquity, the phusas-phusas or siqus are those of
greatest notoriety. These instruments vary in name and in their form of
execution: sikuris, zamponas, antaras, toyos, etc. An ordinary siqu consists
of either 15 or 13 bamboo reeds varying in diameter from small to large, then
arranged in two rows and bound together to make a scale, thus producing certain
musical notes whenever air is made to pass through them. If an instrument
consists of 15 reeds, the top row is made of 7 of these, and if it has 13 reeds
overall, the top row has then 6 reeds. It is called irpiri, (ira = conductor).
The bottom row consists of 8 reeds if the instrument has 15 reeds overall, or it
has 7 reeds when the instrument has been made with 13 reeds; it is the arkiri,
(arca = follower). The melodies for siqu are executed using a technique of
musical dialogue between the irpiri and the arkiri. This technique is termed in
Aymara: Jactasina Irpirimpi Arkirimpi (interaction between conductor and
follower).
1.- Sikuris
The term siquri is possibly in origin a contraction of siqus phusiri (he that
plays/blows the reed). Because the post-velar sound
q
is unknown in ears
of Spanish speakers it has been transcribed into Spanish as siku (sikuri).
Chiluco
author's copyright, interpreted by "Conjunto Sikuris de Taypi
Ayka", from Italaque, La Paz, Bolivia.
2.- Zampoñas
Llora
Zampoña, athor's copyright Angel Serrano, interpreted by "Conjunto
Zamponas de Camilaca (Qamilaka), from Tacna, Peru.
Mi Campiña
author's copyright Francisci Esquia, interpreted by "Conjunto
Zamponas de Cairani", (k'ayrani), Tacna, Peru.
3.- Lakitas
This is a variant of the siku played by the Chilean Aymaras. Lakita is an
Aymara word, that can mean distributed, shared out, or grouped together.
According to Braulio Avila Inostraza, a student of Andean music from Chile,
"lakita" here means distributed or shared out, in allusion to IRA and ARKA,
those parts which share the musical scale of the lakita (siku). In some areas
around the cities, the use of PVC is quite common for the manufacture of this
instrument instead of the bamboo reed. The tune below is an interpretation
contributed by Braulio which he kindly forwarded to us for this webpage.
Danza de las
Kullakas popular folklore copyright , interpreted by "Ballet
Folklorico Nacional de Chile".
Today the pinkillus, similar instruments to the European flute, constitute the
family of Aymara musical instruments of greatest popularity during the
festivities of the various ayllus and communities. It is often found in any
popular traditional festivity in the interior of La Paz and Puno, and especially
at the Carnival, accompanied by any one of its variants such as: pinkillu,
requinto, chaqallu, mosena, tarqi, lawa k'umu, (chacarero), qina qina, etc. A
possible origin of the word pinkillu could be phunkhullu, a word of uncertain
meaning.
2.-Pinkillu
Type of flute that bears the original name of the family of instruments to
which it belongs; it is still popular in Larecaja, La Paz.
Nayraqataru
; popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Conjunto Musical Comunidad
Tambocusi", from Larecaja, La paz.
Aymar P'ampachawi
Jarawi; nostalgic Aymara poetry accompanied with pinkillus, by "Conjunto
Musical Comunidad Tambocusi", from Larecaja, La Paz.
2.Chaqallus
There are many popular dances to accompany this instrument, which is widely
played throughout the ayllus in the province of Puno during the carnival season.
-
Recuerdos de
Laraqiri; popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Conjunto Chaqallada
Juventud Clavelitos", from Camacani, Plateria, Puno.
-
Rio
Chiwani; popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Conjunto Chaqallada
Super Ayarcachi", from Lacachi, Acora, Puno.
3.Lawa K'umus
Because of its melancholy, it is thought that this type of music and dance was
originally to be performed as part of funeral rites. Nowadays however, it is
played during the carnival season throughout the Ayllus of the district of
Acora, Puno. The main instrument within this group is made of Qantuta tree
bark, and its name Lawa K'umu means "bent stick", describing the shape of the
instrument.
-
Wilancha;
popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Juventud Chacareros", from
Juruhuani, Acora, Puno.
-
Suma
Juanita; popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Juventud Chacareros",
from Juruhuani, Acora, Puno.
4.Quena Quenas
Quite a similar instrument to the lawa k'umu from Acora, Puno. Both variants
of the pinkillu, they both possibly share a common origin. The closest points
between the regions of Acora and Munecas lie at least a hundred kilometres apart
on a straight line and at not less than two hundred kilometres rounding Lake
Titicaca. The main performing bands of quena- quenas come from the province of
Munecas, La Paz.
Liqi Liqi;
popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Conjunto Musical Quena Quenas", from
the community of Huancanipampa, Ayata, Munecas, La Paz.
5.Mosenadas
Eres Tu;
popular folklore copyright, interpreted by"Conjunto Real Kantuta" from Apuraya,
Omasuyos, La Paz.
6.Tarqueadas
The 'tarqi' or 'tarqa' is the most recent member of the family of the pinkillu.
It is a peculiar instrument in that it is not made of bamboo cane and it is not
cylindrical; it is made of wood in the shape of a cube.
-
Linda
Paisanita; popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Tarqueadada
Juventud Imperial", from Chicachata, Ilave, Puno.
-
Yunta
Toro; copyright Mario Mollo M., "Tarqueada 10 de Febrero", from San Pedro de
Totora, Oruro.
The Awatinas, in their own words "our culture's watchdog" is, among the groups
of Aymara professional musicians, that which most identify with Aymara music. A
simple explanation for this is their roots in the Aymara region of modern
Bolivia. Their album "Kollasuyu-Ja", (My Bolivia), with the motto
"winaypachjakapxananakasakipunirakiwa" (We, the Aymaras, must live for all
eternity ), contains the following piece titled: "Musica Aymara"; track 9 in the
album mentioned.
Musica
Aymara; a long mix of 15.5 minutes duration consisting of six pieces of
Aymara music compiled by The Awatinas.
1. Palla Palla (to pick up, to collect), sikus, AADD Sobodaycom.
2. Llamerada, sikus, AADD Sobodaycom.
3. Qina Qina, Aymar Chacha (Hombre Aymara Qena Qena), AADD Sodaycom.
4. Jallu (rain), jach'a sikus/Province of Omasuyu, (Mario and Miguel Conde).
5. Auki Auki Sip Siji (the mayor), Pifanos, AADD Sobodaycom.
6. Wari (vicuna), sikuriada sikus, Mario Conde.
All of the historical evidence found suggests that string instruments were
unknown to the Aymaras of antiquity. The Spanish introduced the guitar among
the Aymaras, and at some point during the 17th century, someplace on the plateau
of Lake Titicaca the khirkhinchu was invented; a relative of the guitar though
smaller, which is generally known today as Charango. Khirkhinchu is an Aymara
word meaning 'armadillo', a small animal with an osseous carapace quite typical
in South America. It was this carapace precisely that was used in earlier times
as the soundbox for the charango, fitted with either ten or twelve strings tuned
into five or six courses of two strings each.
Kajelo
(q'ajilu); popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Conjunto Theodoro
Valcarcel", from Puno.
Recuerdos
de Mi Tierra; popular folklore copyright, interpreted by "Trio Yanahuara",
from Arequipa.
Ayrampitu
popular folklore copyright, interpreted by Hnos. Paniagua from
Puno.
Of a war-like nature, the t'inku can be considered the martial music of Andean
culture, and particularly so among the Aymara people. The t'inku combined with
the sound of the shaking of wiphalas is becoming more and more common during the
popular demonstrations we have been seeing recently. Originally to be played on
the siquri, it is also played by metallic bands.
Mix-Tinku;
(long mix of 18.6 minutes duration), popular folklore copyright, interpreted by
"Banda Sensacion Nietos del Folklore", from Oruro.
