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Wanderlust
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A little mind game: If the Beatles did get a record deal with Decca Record, and the producers in charge liked the Latin flavor so much that the Beatles’ music moved further in that direction, how might their music have evolved? Maybe like this?
(no, no not meant seriously, but still an interesting thought) ????
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The Girl from Ipanema is the better-known English title of a popular Brazilian song composed in 1962 by Antônio Carlos Jobim. The Portuguese-language original, whose lyrics were written by Vinícius de Moraes, has the equivalent title “Garota de Ipanema”. At the time the song was written, Ipanema, a district of Rio de Janeiro, was considered the artists’ quarter of the Brazilian metropolis. A recording for the Verve music label in New York on March 19, 1963, which appeared on the Getz/Gilberto long-playing record the following year, made The Girl from Ipanema one of the world’s most famous bossa nova songs.
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What would the world of music and dance be without the tango from Argentina and Uruguay (Tango Argentino)? Maybe one of the most famous and recognizable tangos of all time was written and composed by the Uruguayan musician Gerardo Matos Rodríguez in 1917.
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A beautiful tango adaptation: the melody of Georgia Gibb’s first #1 hit in 1952 comes from the composition “El Choclo”:
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„El Choclo“, composed by the musician Ángel Gregorio Villoldos, is the title of the following tango, which was first performed in Buenos Aires on 3 November 1903 in the elegant restaurant “El Americano”. With this, the tango was also established in the upper class. Until then, the tango was rather the music of the poor and common people.
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Hi David, I took up your idea of the Peruvian flute band on the campus of the University of Wisconsin. „Los Kjarkas“ are a Bolivian music group formed in Capinota in 1965 by Hermosa brothers – Wilson, Castel and Gonzalo – and Édgar Villarroel. The group’s name derives from the word „qarka“, which means “strength” or “power” in the Quechua language. The group became very popular not only in Bolivia but with concerts all over South America, as well as in Europe, North America and Japan. There are also some fine live performances of „Los Kjarkas“ available online.
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Hi Jurgen, some awesome Latin style music videos. I love the feel of Latin music, like in the Garota de IpanemaGarota de Ipanema video. I had a friend a long time ago who was from El Salvador, and she revealed a whole world of beautiful Latin music, culture, and foods to me. I even tried to learn some Spanish phrases back then. I love the Spanish Guitar, and Mona and Lisa uses it wonderfully in “Time Of The Season”.
Have you seen the movie about Sixto Rodgriguez called “Searching For Sugarman”, a true story about the impact he had in South Africa music scene? A really moving story I highly recommend for anyone who loves music. His music definitely has a Latin feel to it. I love Mona and Lisa’s cover of Sixto Rodgriguez cover of “Sugar Man”. Captures that Latin feel to perfection, a superb and beautiful performance. In the Advent Calendar from 2 years ago, Mona and Lisa mentioned this movie as one of their favourite docu-movies. Lisa’s singing and style in Sugar Man is absolutely stunning and beautiful!. They are both stunning and beautiful here. Some awesome Spanish guitar work here by both. Just proves how diverse Mona and Lisa are, they can do anything!
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Hi Jung,
thank you for the music video. I didn’t know Sixto Rodriguez and the movie “Searching for Sugarman” before, but I will catch up. The song „Sugar Man“ by Mona and Lisa is very nice and catchy. The video was not so present to me now (a nice paraphrase for “I somehow also did not know…). I am glad that you have a pronounced affinity for Latin American music. I like songs with Spanish and Portuguese lyrics very much (even if I don’t understand them). The singing exudes an elegance and lightness, a joie de vivre that I often miss here with us.
My love for South American music was awakened by Manuela. She lived in Chile for a while with her sister and spoke Spanish quite well. Her enthusiasm for Latin American music has also been transferred to me. It is something very special when a person who is close to you brings you closer to such music or even parts of a culture. I think it happened to you in the same way. Maybe you also know some nice music from El Salvador?
This wonderful bolero was written in 1955 by Panamanian composer Carlos Eleta Almaran as a tribute to the beloved wife of his brother Fernando, she died in childbirth. Sad and beautiful at the same time.
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Hey, Juergen. I misplaced that Wisconsin album a long time ago, but by pure chance I found it a couple of days ago while I was looking for something else. (My memory is a bit hazy: it’s a cassette, not a CD, and it’s Chiquitita, not Fernando.) The group has a number of performances on YouTube, but I can’t find anything from that particular album. Here’s their most viewed video:
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Thanks for the video link David. Wow, the group ÑUCANCHI ÑAN is already a real “big band”. Most of the panpipe players who performed with us were three or four musicians and rather unknown, but they played beautiful music. However, they do not come close to the professionalism of this group.
Have you ever been to Central or South America? I would like to see and experience Machu Picchu (and the Amazon, but I already wrote about that). Two years ago I had a little Andean experience. There are some private people near us who keep alpacas and offer hikes with these animals. Each participant gets his own alpaca and leads it on a leash next to him. So it’s kind of like walking a dog, only this particular dog is a little bigger. Alpacas are very sensitive animals. We passed a horse pasture and the animals got very nervous, because they don’t like the presence of other large animals and like to react by fleeing. And very stubborn they can be too. Well, now a hike in the German lowlands can not necessarily replace the Andes, but it was still nice. I also ordered an alpaca blanket (from the animal I went for a walk with). Very light and cuddly warm in winter).
You can get to Machu Picchu either by foot or by train. I’ve been looking for a nice video documenting the train ride up to Machu Picchu for some time. Surprisingly, most travel videos on this subject either show young men chattering into the camera the whole time or some luxury trains serving cocktails and champagne. Did the travelers also get anything of the landscape and the culture there or just looked at their red wine and food all the time? ????
Anyway, here are two nice video clips: Machu Picchu by train…
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….and Machu Picchu by foot.
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Juergen, I’ve never been out of the U.S., but if I had a chance to visit South America, places like Machu Picchu would be high on my list. I’d love to learn more about what was going on in my hemisphere in pre-colonial days. And I probably wouldn’t even notice the glasses of wine that apparently would be constantly handed to me.
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Gloria Estefan was born in Havana and is known for performing with her band Miami Sound Machine. She later focused on a solo career, producing songs presented in her native language.
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From Machu Picchu and Peru now a short jump to Cuba, the birthplace of Gloria Estefan (by the way, her full name is Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García)….
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…and the musicians of “Buena Vista Social Club”. Behind this somewhat unwieldy name hides the American guitarist Ry Cooder, who, together with some of the old masters of Cuban music, recorded the music album of the same name, which became a great success:
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Hi Jurgen, lots of beautiful Latin music there. Watching that train going through the Andes just reminds me there is too much of this world to see and not enough time, and I have to do something about it before the “book closes”.
Some of those videos from Cuba are quite amazing, music setting a beautiful atmosphere of a place that feels frozen in time with those old 50s vehicles that they perpetually keep on the road forever with spare parts. A fascinating place to visit, I think all of Central and South America is.
I don’t really know any specific music from “El Salvador”, but the Cuban music in your videos sounds like the Latin music my friend Ana use to listen to a lot. I couldn’t understand the lyrics, but enjoyed the music. I remember the music playing in the background all the time, always a happy beautiful atmosphere in the room. One thing of El Salvador I do know and remember are Popusa’s, flat cornmeal bread filled with beef, chicken, or cheese. The cheese Popusa’s were especially great. She got me hooked on it, especially around the holidays.
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Thanks for the music Jung. El Condor Pasa must of course not be missing from this collection. The video with the nature shots is very beautiful to watch. The original, by the way, can be traced back to a Peruvian folk tune from the 18th century. It was composed by a certain Daniel Alomía Robles and became popular (as we all know) through the version by Simon & Garfunkel. Enough theory…
Fine that you brought up the topic of food, because that was also a question that came to mind when I read your last post: „What delicacies did Ana cook?“ The secret has been revealed: Popusa’s sounds delicious. It reminds me of the „Tapas“ that you can order here in Spanish restaurants: fish and seafood specialities, stews and various potato dishes, served in small bowls, accompanied by fresh, crusty bread, aioli, olives and chillies (prepared with lots of garlic, wonderful). Now as I write I’m getting hungry. Maybe we should open a separate topic: a culinary trip around the world (of course garnished with lots of music). Count me in.
Yes, you’re right, there are still so many places that you should have seen before “the book closes“. The old cars in Cuba are really hot. It looks like a journey back in time to days gone by.
In the 80s, the band Miami Sound Machine was quite popular with us. Kind of a „happy pop latin music mix“. That still sounds pretty cool today:
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I am not a very good Rider. I know that. Unfortunately, horses know that too. They always try to get rid of me quickly. As a child I had one or the other crash landing (fortunately without any damage). In Costa Rica, I was brave enough to get back on a horse. I was older and more mature, and so was the horse. It’s name was Charles (no, not the third) and it had terrible flatulence. But otherwise a calm and relaxed animal. Charles was kind enough to carry me all the way up to the Irazú volcano. To compensate my hurting butt, there was salsa music in the evening:
PS: Why I had to wear the stupid cooking pot on my head, I don’t know myself. When you fall off a horse, you don’t usually fall on your head…
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Jurgen, that looks like an awesome way to explore nature when you were in Costa Rica, on horseback. Sounded like a great day ending with Salsa music. I’ve only been on a horse once on a guided tour near Whistler. I started to get the hang of it. It was a thrill when it started to gallop a little. My horse was calm and gentle like Charles I think. I always wanted to try riding a “burro” (donkey), they are such funny and cute animals, but I have a feeling they are a little more rough if you try to ride one. In that last MLT DIY video with Mona’s patches and they talked about donkeys, I recall in Latin culture someone who is stubborn are often referred to as being a “burro”, for being as stubborn as a donkey.
That video you posted of Gloria Estefan “Hoy” is nice. I never heard her sing in Spanish, always associating her with her 80s pop/dance style of music. You can see where she got her musical roots from, very nice singing.
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Hi Jung,
luckily we found two such patient mounts. The relationship between rider and horse can sometimes be quite complicated…
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