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PERU TRAVEL PLANNER
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Peruvian Music
Latin America's oldest musical traditions are those of the
Amerindians of the Andes. Their music is best known outside these countries
through the characteristic panpipes of poncho-clad folklore groups. However,
there's a multitude of rhythms and popular musics found here deserve a lot more
recognition, incuding huayno and chicha, still relatively unknown abroad, as
well as the distinct coastal tradition of Afro-Peruvian music, rooted in black
slaves brought to work in the mines.
For most people outside Latin America the sound of the Andes is that of bamboo
panpipes and quena flutes. What is most remarkable is that these instruments
have been used to create music in various parts of this large area of mountains
- which stretch 4500 miles from Venezula down to southernmost Chile - since
before the time of the Incas. Pre-Conquest Andean instruments - conch shell
trumpets, shakers which used nuts for rattles, ocarinas, wind instruments and
drums - are ever present in museum collections. And the influence of the Inca
empire means that the Andean region and its music spreads far beyond the
mountains themselves. It can be defined partly through ethnicity, partly through
language - Quechna (currently spoken by over six million people) and Aymara ,
both of which are spoken alongside Spanish and other Amerindian languages.
The dominant areas of Andean culture are Peru , Ecuador and Bolivia, the
countries with the largest indigenous Amerindian populations in South America.
Here, in rural areas, highly traditional Andean music, probably little different
from pre-Inca times, still thrives today at every kind of celebration and
ritual. But beyond this is a huge diversity of music, differing widely not only
between countries but between individual communities. Andean people tend to
identify themselves by the specific place they come from: in music, the villages
have different ways of making and tuning instruments and composing tunes, in the
same way as they have distinctive weaving designs, ways of dressing or wearing
their hats. Use of different scales involving four, five, six and seven notes
and different singing styles are also found from place to place, tied to
specific ritual occasions and the music which goes with them.
Tours of Machu Picchu
Andean music can be divided roughly into three types. Firstly, that which is of
indigenous origin , found mostly amongst rural Amerindian peoples still living
very much by the seasons with root Amerindian beliefs; secondly music of
European origin , and thirdly mestizo music , which continues to fuse the
indigenous with European in a whole host of ways. In general, Quechna people
have more vocal music than the Aymara.
Written by Jan Fairley, with thanks to Thomas Turino and Raúl Romero, Gilka Wara
Céspedes, Martin Morales and Margaret Bullen. Adapted from The Rough Guide to
World Music, Vol 2.
Traditional music
Panpipes , known by the Aymara as siku, by the Quechna as antara and by the
Spanish as zampoña, are ancient instruments and archeologists have unearthed
panpipes tuned to a variety of scales. While modern panpipes...
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Afro-Peruvian music
Afro-Peruvian music has its roots in the communities of black slaves brought to
work in the mines along the Peruvian coast. As such, it's a fair way from the
Andes, culturally and geographically. However, as it developed, particularly in
this...
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Chicha
Chicha , the fermented maize beer, has given its name to a new and hugely
popular brew of Andean tropical music - a fusion of urban cumbia (local versions
of the original Colombian dance), traditional highland huayno, and...
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Peru's performers
Many performers have achieved mass appeal and recording contracts in Peru and
can support themselves solely by their work as musicians. Nationally celebrated
performers include Florcita de Pisaq (a huayno vocalist), Pastorita...
read more >>
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Published articles and reviews about us

2009
Testimonials
Ajay
Parikh
Date:
Thu,16 Jul 2009
Hello all the folks at Peru Gateway Travel,
We had a fantastic time in Peru. We thank you all for making
our trip a success.
The only concern is that the accommodation in Cusco was below
average and we would not recommend the Emparada Plaza (?) to
anyone. Even though the staff was good, the room/bathroom,
breakfast was very bad.
Once again, thanks a lot for making our trip to your country a
memorable one. All the guides, especially Guillarmo in Lima
and Erica in Cusco, were excellent.
Kazuaki Kubo
Date:
Thu,16 Jul 2009
I want to thank
you and all of the staff of Peru Gateway Travel for the perfect
arrangement of my trip in June.
Everything was so fantastic and I was made to think about another
trip to Peru.
Sincerely, Denise Pratico
Date:
Mon, 6 Jul 2009
I am writing to let you know that we
enjoyed Peru very much. The city tour led by Marco was fantastic. We
will be happy to recommend your agency to other Americans
Jane
Date:
Mon, 6 Jul 2009
We have
completed our trip to Peru and are now back in New York City.
I want to thank you for all the arrangements you made. The
trip was wonderful and all our accommodations excellent. Thank
you for making our trip a success.
Best regards, Marcy
Date:
Mon, 6 Jul 2009
We arrived home at 4 o'clock in the
morning, very tired (we had a long lay-over in Amsterdam) but very
very happy. I am so pleased to tell you that our Peru vacation that
you planned for us was excellent! Everything was just as the
itinerary said it would be. We were very pleased with the hotels,
and the transfer people and guides were always there and everybody
was so nice and knowledgeable. We learned a lot about your very
exciting country and its history, particularly about the Quechua
culture. We will always remember the Inti Raymi festival in Cusco. I
am so glad we were able to see that. Of course Machu Picchu was also
a great highlight. And, Michael and I also very much liked Arequipa.
We didn't know much about that city, but we had a very great time
there on our free day and visited the cathedral, spent a lot of time
going through the Santa Catalina monastario and, of course, went to
the museum to see "Juanita". Beautiful architecture there too.
Really, every day was wonderful, and we would like to thank you so
much for all your efforts. Also please extend our thanks to Maria
Carmen who was so helpful on the phone and to Julia, who came to the
hotel our first night to explain many things to us and give us all
our tickets and vouchers. And perhaps you also had something to do
with our last night in Lima at the Libertador. We got a suite -- a
very big beautiful room! Thank you so much.
We wish you and your family all the best, and for sure we will be
recommending Peru Gateway Travel to our friends.
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