Cantos Wiwa - Traditional Music of the Wiwa People of Columbia
SKU
08-FY8072
From a Columbia ravaged by internal conflict and tormented by outsidepressure, caught in the three-fold grip of powerful mafias, corruptinstitutions and self-styled guerrillas with dodgy agendas, comes a musical message that offers a faint but significant glimmer of hope. As one of the countries that has contributed most to the spread of Latin American music, Columbia's musical culture at first glance seems to be synonymous with that typical mix of complex rhythms and syncompated melodies known as cumbia or else with its related forms such as the regional vallenato or the world-famous salsa. The field recordings on this CD, however, have little to do even with the rural traditions of porros bands or musica llanera; nor are they related to the bambuco melodies typical of Andean groups of the cordigliera. This music is closely linked to the rhythms of daily life and to the rituals and ceremonies of a people who since time immemorial have dwelt on these lushly forested mountains. This is no doubt why the apparently simple sounds produced by traditional instruments such as flutes and Jew's harps appear on closer inspection to be so rich in spirit and so timelessly fascinating. The continuing vitality of the Wiwa's music is then both an expression of the local community's determination to keep their traditions alive.