The Afro-Peruvian tradition dates from the introduction of slaves in the 1700's. By the middle of the last century it had almost disappeared, but a rising interest in black pride rekindled an interest in the old tradition. In Peru, a number of groups began tapping the memories of old-timers and bringing back the old ways. It wasn't until Peru Negros's triumphant debut at the 1969 Hispanoamerican Festival of Song and Dance, however, that the interest became a craze.
It was a dance craze. This music makes people move, an effect that is also a cause. Even in the studio, recording Peru Negro's newest CD, "Jolgorio" (a Spanish term that refers to a state of celebratory frenzy), the musicians wouldn't think of playing without their human metronomes: the dancers, keeping time in their bodies. There's tradition in those bodies, too. Peru Negro's flirtatious courtship dances resemble their Afro-Cuban cousins. Other times, the dancers look possessed, as in the rituals of santeria, by spirits from Africa.
Some resonances are closer to home. The early banning of drums, for example, led Peruvian field slaves to discover the music's signature instrument, the box or cajon (only recently adopted by flamenco groups), in the same way that American slaves developed tap dancing. Peruvians improvised with their feet as well, in stomping duels called zapateo. And their dances mocking the stiffness of their European masters recall the high-stepping cakewalk of American slaves.
| That's almost all of Brian Seibert's New York Times article "From Peru's African Heritage"
Update: Jack Anderson's New York Times article "A Spirited Celebration of Peru's African Heritage"
posted in articles on February 15, 2004 7:48 AM | t (0)
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