Latin America Musica Viva

Now it's time for a complete change of pace. It's fascinating to gauge people's perceptions of Latin American music. If you talk to a fashion conscious teenager you might hear a Gloria, a Lopez, a Ricky or even an Enrique. Slightly older people might add Carlos Santana, Los Lobos or even a lambada to the list…..or tropical dancers salsa…Afrophiles might cite any number of drum and vocal ensembles from any number of countries….Have you got all day? Even if you broached the subject of Andean music with its adherents you'd probably be only just lukewarm when it comes to the music contained in Latin America Musica Viva (Latisphere), a collection of instrumental music of South America, Mexico and the Caribbean.

While it does contain superb performances of music of the Andes and Ecuador this lovingly compiled record leans more towards stringed music traditions. 14 pieces are shared between 8 congregations of musicians.

Ecuadorians Pepe Santana & Atahualpa Poalasin contribute two exquisitely performed traditional songs on Andean harp and guitar. If the reader listens to the two unaccompanied entries by the Gonzalo Mata, a virtuoso of the folk harp of Veracruz he/she can hear a unique fusion between African and Indian music in the rippling melodies and lines and a strong connection with the music of the Mexican band Conjunto Jardin whose powerful brand of contemporary son jarocho is reviewed in the review section of this website.

Colombian ensemble Aires Colombianos consist of two guitarists, percussion and local instruments such as tiple and bandola. Their zesty melodious songs are based on the Colombian pasillo rhythm. Tico Da Costa is a guitarist who leads a group who play a Brazilian style known as choro fronted in their one selection by warm lyrical flute playing. The one interloper here (and a welcome one at that) is American jazz/world guitarist Marc Ribot. He teams up for two pieces with Haitian master guitarist, the late Frantz Casseus whose classical style draws inspiration from Haiti's African traditions. Frantz is credited with virtually single-handedly popularising the guitar in his country.

Needless to say this teaming produces music that is both virtuosic and reflective of tradition. Sukay are an internationally renowned Andean folk group based in California. They use their indigenous flute based sound as a basis for some lovely fresh rearrangements. The duo Los Troveros Cuyanos bring an Andean sound to their music which derives from northwest Argentina. Finally the one contribution from El Sexteto Criollo is the Puerto Rican interpretation of the European mazurka performed masterfully on the local guitar variant, the cuatro.Anyone with the slightest penchant for traditional music played by outstanding exponents of its varied styles is going to love this record. July 2003