MUSIC OF COLOMBIA – MUSICA LLANERA
In South America, a large part of the Orinoco River basin is situated in Colombia. This is identified by the wide expanse of llanos (plains) and the east-facing slope of the Eastern Cordillera, which is part of the great Andean range.
The region is marked by a diverse spectrum of Indigenous families and languages, including the Arawak, Carib and Chibchan speakers.
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The llanos and their ranch lands stretch across the area and more than a century and a half of cattle herding has left a mark on the lifestyle of its people. In the late 1900s, petroleum extraction began to compete for economic dominancy, creating a new way of life.
On the one hand, the region’s musical heritage evokes centuries of sounds and sentiments of its Spanish colonial past and on the other ,the post-independence period of the 19th century.
Harps, guitars of different varieties (bandola and bandolón), violins, maracas, friction drums (zambomba or furruco) and rasps (chácharo and carraca) indicate the Spanish and perhaps indigenous sources. The rhythmic drive and cyclicality of the music reflects the style and sensibilities of enslaved African people.
Colombia prides itself on having many regional musical traditions that still remain firmly rooted among newer generations. One of these is música llanera, the music of the expansive eastern fluvial plains that water the mighty Orinoco River and continue on into western Venezuela.
For the llaneros, who live in the region, cattle ranching is their economic lifeblood, el trabajo de llano. Beginning in November each year, ranchers recruit cowboys who will drive and herd the cattle.
Through many generations, the cultural archetypes of the working llaneros have been crystallized in joropo recio, a musical language and tradition which differs significantly from the more familiar cumbia, which many people associate with the Latin American diaspora.
Llanero songs usually reflect the daily life of the llanero and the inhabitants of the region. Verses talk of love, the land, work with cattle and horses and the pride of belonging to this region, a culture and a country.
Música llanera (music of the plains) is particularly distinctive through its use of the harp, maracas and a small guitar called a cuatro. The typical plains vocal style is also distinctive and regionally uniform. Slightly nasal, usually loud and always extroverted, it is most appropriate for the two principal musical genres of the region, both joropo and pasaje.
The characteristically recio (aggressive) style of joropo is fast-moving and word-heavy, with singers adding heated emphasis to the text.
Not all joropos are sung, but among those that are, none is more popular than the minor-key pajarillo and major-key seis por derecho. In both, the singer typically launches his song with a long, loud, high-pitched sustained cry called a leco. The pasaje is a slower-paced, more lyrical song with fixed verses and melody.
The word joropo was first coined in Venezuela and the initial joropo performers appeared there in the coastal areas. Eventually, joropo extended throughout all of Venezuela and became a symbol of national identity, while it also expanded into a quarter of Colombia’s territory.
Joropo is performed with vocals or in instrumental form. There are three types of joropo classified by region. Each variant has different instrumentation and style and these include the joropo oriental (eastern joropo), joropo central and the joropo llanero.
Joropo music features both slower, more lyrical songs called pasajes and faster tunes called golpes. The hallmarks of the traditional joropo singer are a powerful voice that can handle the fast, hard-edged vocal style and the ability to improvise the lyrics. The joropo has become a llanero dance that is now the national dance of not only the llanos of Colombia, but also of all of Venezuela.
While llanero music is relatively unknown outside of both countries, the musical groups of Los Llaneros and Cimarrón have toured throughout the world.
The main instrument of llanera music is perhaps an unexpected one, the harp, which was introduced into South America during the 18th century by the Spaniards.
In the hands of the llanero, or plains cowboy, the harp became a percussive instrument that serves as the backbone of música llanera.
Joropo llanero ensembles are generally comprised of the harp, the bandola llanera (a four-stringed pear-shaped guitar), the small four-stringed cuatro, contrabajo (acoustic bass), completed by maracas (gourd rattles) and vocals.
The basic rhythm of llanero music is the Joropo and it has these divisions of the passage, the tune and the llanero beats.
The Llanera Harp is the principal instrument, with a melodic triangular sound box with thirty-two vertical strings and is played with both hands.
The Cuatro is a harmonic and chromatic instrument that has four strings, hence where its name comes from. It is a small guitar, an accompanying instrument, which is not plucked. It is played using strumming, while the person who plays the instrument is called a cuatrista.
Maracas are a percussion instrument made up of two gourds, which have seeds inside that produce sound when played. They are essential to accompany the harp, four-string guitar and bandola to achieve the llanera festivals. The person who plays this instrument is called a maraquero.
Bandola Llanera is a melodic instrument with a wide, round sound box, the same length as the cuatro. It has 7 frets and four strings, with the first two made of nylon and the third and fourth made of steel, called drones. This type of bandola is traditionally played by Colombian and Venezuelan musicians.
Bandola Casanareña has between 18 and 20 frets. Its size and shape are those of a tiple, but it has four strings in the same order as the traditional bandola. The person who plays it is called a bandolisto.
Bass is used nowadays in the performance of llanera music, but it is not indigenous or llanero and it has replaced the furruco (drum). It is electronic and has four steel strings and requires an amplifier to make its sound heard. It complements and fills the musical deficiencies of the traditional instruments of llanera music, giving greater harmony to each of the songs it accompanies.
FAMOUS LLANERA MUSIC VOCALISTS
The group Cimarrón has been reinterpreting joropo music for the past 20 years on the international stage. They are known for their lively and colourful performances, as well as the twist they give to llanero music.
The structure of their music comes from African songs, with call-and-response lyrics. These are songs with a vocalist and a chorus.
To pay homage to the indigenous communities and their influence on joropo music, Cimarrón has added sounds from the cacho de venado, a deer skull whistle used in indigenous religious ceremonies, thus adding a level of spirituality to their music.
Aries Vigoth is a Colombian singer and songwriter, born in Hato Corozal, Casanare in 1957. He initially participated as a singer in the llanero music festival of San Martín, which launched a successful career in Colombia and Venezuela.
María Alejandra Castillo is a Colombian singer of the llanera genre. She was born in Villavicencio, Meta, on November 27, 1993. She has managed to please and delight audiences on some of the biggest Colombian stages. She has a melodious yet powerful voice.
Awarded as a singer with an order of honour from the most prestigious Llanera Music Festival of Colombia, thanks to her long career as a joropo dancer and performer of all the instruments of llanera music. She has shared the stage with artists such as Orlando El Cholo Valderrama and Walter Silva, among others.
Joropo music is at its most distinctive best in how it melds African, Andalusian and Native American roots.
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