Alturas de Macchu Picchu

Last updated
Alturas de Macchu Picchu
Alturas de Macchu Picchu.jpg
Studio album by
Los Jaivas
ReleasedOctober 1981
StudioPathé Marconi
Genre
Length37:08
Label SyM
Producer Daniel Camino
Los Jaivas chronology
Canción del Sur
(1977)		Alturas de Macchu Picchu
(1981)		Aconcagua
(1982)

Alturas de Macchu Picchu is a studio album by the Chilean rock band Los Jaivas, released in October 1981 on SyM label. It is a concept album that musicalizes the homonymous poem by Chilean poet Pablo Neruda that appeared in his 1950 book Canto General . [5] Prior to its launch, a television special recorded in the ruins of Machu Picchu was presented on Chilean and Peruvian television.

Contents

Background

After the release of Canción del Sur in 1977, Los Jaivas along with their team migrated to France and arrived in Paris on March 23 of that year. [6] They spent a season in Biarritz, [7] and in the town of Les Glycines, in the outskirts of Paris, they found a mansion that they would use to live for many years and continue their creative work. During their stay in France, they managed concerts in order to survive. [6] In Buenos Aires they had met the Peruvian producer Daniel Camino Diez Canseco, who had also arrived in Paris. [8] In December 1980, [7] Daniel proposed that they make a concept album to musicalize Alturas de Macchu Picchu, [9] [10] a poem from the 1950 book, Canto General by the Chilean Nobel prize winner, poet Pablo Neruda. [11] He also proposed recording a television special in Machu Picchu. [2]

Los Jaivas initially refused, in response, Camino told them "I'm going to Peru, but I'm going to be in Madrid for a month or so. If you change your mind, here's the phone number where you can reach me". [8] Argentine musician Alberto Toledo mixed the zampoña and delay effects with bird sounds recorded in the garden of the mansion where they lived for "Del Aire Al Aire". [12] It was recorded with the French sound engineer Dominique Strabach before going to the United States. [7] It served as the foundation to begin the creation of Alturas de Macchu Picchu. A few days later, they called Daniel to say they had already started the creation of "La Poderosa Muerte", Camino stated that: "Immediately, I’ll get Machu Picchu with my friend " [8] Mario Mutis, who had left the group aside during the creation of Los Sueños de América (1974) decided to return. At first they planned to include the collaboration of Chabuca Granda and Yma Sumac, however, the album was recorded by Los Jaivas alone. [6]

Composition

For the album, the fragments of Neruda's poem that would be set to music were chosen. In the documentary Los Jaivas cuentan la historia, the band vocalist Eduardo "Gato" Alquinta commented that they were always used to creating the melodies first and then adding the lyrics, however in this case, melodies had to be arranged on a letter already written. [6] As Los Jaivas had never visited Machu Picchu, they used an image of the place to be inspired by the creation of "La Poderosa Muerte", "Antigua América" and "Amor Americano". [7]

Recording

The album was recorded in Paris and during their tours during three months. [6] [8] "La Poderosa Muerte" featured tarka, electric guitar (played by Alquinta), [13] bass, drums, trutruca, minimoog, tubular bells, electric piano and piano. [12] During the recording, he lost his voice completely and following the advice of a singer friend of the band, they called a practitioner from the Boulougne sector, in the suburbs of Paris, where he was recording the song. With his help and the effects of the intravenous injection of sulfur, Alquinta managed to recover his voice and thus sing the song. [13] Alquinta played quena and ocarina in "La Poderosa Muerte" and "Sube a Nacer Conmigo Hermano", [13] he also featured quena in "Águila Sideral". [12]

Mario Mutis played bass and Alquinta played guitar in "Águila Sideral". [12] "Sube a Nacer Conmigo Hermano" was recorded on a tour of Germany with an Italian sound engineer who had been in charge of recording the voices. [7] The main riff of the song was created from a minimoog used by Claudio Parra, [12] Alquinta used the Gibson Les Paul Standard acoustic guitar, the Rickenbacker bass, a Venezuelan cuatro, and zampoña. [13] Most of the songs were recorded at Pathé Marconi studios, with the participation of technician Daniel Michle. By July 1981, the album was complete. [14]

Artwork

The album has two covers, one showing the sacred Intihuatana stone designed by René Olivares, [14] and another where a dancer with the Bolivian mask and a ball in his hand is shown. [7]

Release

Los Jaivas filming Alturas de Macchu Picchu Los Jaivas en Machu Picchu.jpg
Los Jaivas filming Alturas de Macchu Picchu

Before its release, they toured since August to September 1981. [15] On August 7, 15 and 16, they offered a recital at the Obras stadium. [16] [17] [18] Other presentations were made in various cities of the country, all with great box office and critical success. [14] Camino called them to confirm that the Peruvian president, Fernando Belaúnde, had allowed them to hold their television special in Machu Picchu. At first it was planned to have more artists apart from Los Jaivas, however this was not carried out. For the arrival in Machu Picchu, more than thirty people uploaded instruments that would be used in the concert, Claudio Parra's piano was transported through a helicopter. [2] [7]

It was filmed in September 1981 in Machu Picchu and they occupied the locations in the spaces free of tourists between 9 in the morning and 6 in the evening. [6] [7] [8] It was narrated by Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa and was presented on Chilean television by Canal 13 of the Pontifical Catholic University on October 8, 1981, [14] [19] it also was emitted on Peruvian television and radio. [12] [20] Alturas de Macchu Picchu was released in October 1981 on SyM label, owned by the duo Sonia y Myriam. [21] In November, they made a presentation full of lights in Lima, Peru. [22] When the group returned to Chile, they presented three concerts with a large audience at the Teatro Caopolicán, Santiago. [23] [14] At the San Carlos de Apoquindo stadium, the 40th anniversary of the album's release was celebrated on December 11, 2021. [24]

Reception

Retrospective reviews have been generally positive. NaciónRock's Gonzalo Ugarte C. wrote that it "represents the result of experimentation as a constant creative process and how it became the backbone of a group that gave this column a body, forming an amazing, sublime sound that returns the listener to the throbbing American land." [12] The Progressive Subway said: "They managed to create a unique and timeless sound that one could describe as Andes prog. In their warm and happy sound electric guitars and Fender rhodes go hand in hand with a plethora of traditional instruments." [25] In 2006, Al Borde place it as the twenty-fourth most important album of Ibero-American Rock. [26] It was considered the second best Chilean album of all time by Rolling Stone in 2008. [3] It's placed in the position 23 of the "600 Discos de Latinoamérica" list.

Track listing

Side one

  1. "Del Aire Al Aire" — 2:17
  2. "La Poderosa Muerte" — 11:12
  3. "Amor Americano" — 5:28

Side two

  1. "Águila Sideral" — 5:22
  2. "Antigua América" — 5:38
  3. "Sube a Nacer Conmigo Hermano" — 4:46
  4. "Final" — 2:37

Personnel

Adapted from the liner notes of the 1995 reissue. [27]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Machu Picchu</span> 15th-century Inca citadel in Peru

Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a mountain ridge at 2,430 meters (7,970 ft). Often referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas", it is the most familiar icon of the Inca Empire. It is located in the Machupicchu District within Urubamba Province above the Sacred Valley, which is 80 kilometers (50 mi) northwest of Cusco. The Urubamba River flows past it, cutting through the Cordillera and creating a canyon with a subtropical mountain climate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eduardo Alquinta</span> Musical artist

Eduardo Fernando Alquinta Espinoza, more commonly known by his friends and followers as "Gato" Alquinta, was a Chilean guitarist and vocalist from the folk/progressive rock group Los Jaivas, Chile's longest-surviving group. He died of a heart attack while on vacation in Coquimbo, Chile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Los Jaivas</span> Chilean musical group

Los Jaivas is a Chilean musical group who perform in folk, rock, psychedelic, and progressive rock styles formed in 1963 in Viña Del Mar, Chile. They are considered one of the most important and influential artists of all time in Latin America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juanita Parra</span> Musical artist

Juana (Juanita) Parra is a Chilean musician, known as the drummer and percussionist of the Chilean progressive rock–folk band Los Jaivas. Joining the band three years after her fathers death, she is the only woman to play in the band over it's fifty-year history. Her style of drumming was distinctive and known for successfully mixing Latin and Progressive Rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claudio Parra</span> Chilean musician and pianist

Claudio Parra Pizarro is a Chilean musician, pianist, and composer. He is one of the founders and current member of Chilean rock band Los Jaivas. He is an undisputed referent of the piano with a properly Chilean sound, and considered one of the most important in the history of popular music in Chile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andean music</span> Style of music

Andean music is a group of styles of music from the Andes region in South America.

Chilean music refers to all kinds of music developed in Chile, or by Chileans in other countries, from the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors to the modern day. It also includes the native pre-Columbian music from what is today Chilean territory.

<i>Canto General</i> Book of poems by Pablo Neruda

Canto General is Pablo Neruda's tenth book of poems. It was first published in Mexico in 1950, by Talleres Gráficos de la Nación. Neruda began to compose it in 1938.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quilapayún</span> Chilean folk music group

Quilapayún are a folk music group from Chile and among the longest lasting and most influential ambassadors of the Nueva Canción Chilena movement and genre. Formed during the mid-1960s, the group became inseparable with the revolution that occurred in the popular music of the country under the Popular Unity Government of Salvador Allende.

Chilean rock is rock music and its corresponding subgenres produced in Chile or by Chileans. Chilean rock lyrics are usually sung in Spanish so can be considered as part of rock en español, although they are sometimes sung in English as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huayna Picchu</span> Archaeological site in Peru

Huayna Picchu, Quechua: Wayna Pikchu, is a mountain in Peru around which the Urubamba River bends. It is located in the Cusco Region, Urubamba Province, Machupicchu District. It rises over Machu Picchu, the so-called Lost City of the Incas. The Incas built a trail up the side of the Huayna Picchu and constructed temples and terraces at its top. The peak of Huayna Picchu is 2,693 metres (8,835 ft) above sea level, or about 260 metres (850 ft) higher than Machu Picchu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Estadio San Carlos de Apoquindo</span> Football stadium in Chilie

Estadio San Carlos de Apoquindo is a football stadium, in Las Condes in the metropolitan region of Santiago de Chile. It is used mostly for home matches stadium of the Chilean top club Universidad Católica which also owns the stadium. The stadium was built in 1988 and currently holds 20,000 people.

<i>El derecho de vivir en paz</i> 1971 studio album by Víctor Jara

El derecho de vivir en paz is the sixth studio album by Chilean singer-songwriter Víctor Jara released in 1971 on DICAP and Odeon Records labels.

Patricio Castillo is a Chilean musician and former member of the Chilean folk music group Quilapayún. He is well known for his collaborations with the Chilean singer-songwriter, Víctor Jara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Entrama</span> Musical artist

Entrama is a Chilean music group that since its inception in 1997 develops instrumental music, fusing styles such as Latin American music of folkloric origin, with jazz and classical music, mainly using compositional techniques derived from the latter. It has also been catalogued as world music. According to the specialized critics they have been called as popular musicians for refined and demanding listeners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tilo González</span> Musical artist

Sergio Hernán González Morales, better known as Tilo González, is a Chilean drummer, percussionist, composer and arranger. Founding member of the prestigious Latin American fusion band Congreso, which he has led for over 50 years. The Rock Workers Association (ATR) recognized him in 1996 as the best drummer in Chile; although he is also one of the most extraordinary composers in the country, which he has demonstrated after a vast career as a composer, arranger and drummer of Congreso since its inception in 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francisco Sazo</span> Musical artist

Francisco Sazo better known in the musical industry as Pancho Sazo is a Chilean musician and professor of philosophy. Frontman, singer, instrumentalist and lyricist, he is a founding member of the group Congreso, with which he has been in business for more than 50 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Agustín Lizárraga</span> Peruvian explorer and farmer (1865–1912)

Agustín Lizárraga Ruiz was a Peruvian explorer and farmer who discovered Machu Picchu on 14 July 1902, nine years prior to American explorer Hiram Bingham.

René Olivares is a Chilean painter and designer.

References

  1. ↑ Ortega, Rubén (22 April 2021). "Seis óperas de rock en español para revivir su formato". Indie Rocks! (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 Rojas, Fabián Nuñez (3 December 2021). "Mario Mutis nos cuenta la épica historia de Alturas de Macchu Picchu". Rock&Pop (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  3. 1 2 Rojas, Fabián Nuñez (16 September 2021). "¿Estás de acuerdo? Los 10 mejores discos chilenos según Rolling Stone". Rock&Pop (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  4. ↑ Caretas: ilustración peruana (in Spanish). Empresa Editora Caretas S. A. August 2009. p. 8.
  5. ↑ Wiser, Danny (13 December 2020). "CHILE: Alturas De Machu Pichu - Los Jaivas". 200worldalbums.com. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "LOS JAIVAS Y LA MÚSICA LATINOAMERICANA - Cuaderno Pedagógico" (PDF). cultura.gob.cl (in Spanish). May 2015. pp. 18–43. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Una historia oral sobre «Alturas de Machu Picchu» por Mario Mutis -" (in Spanish). 22 September 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Los Jaivas: Eduardo Parra, desde París, a 40 años de 'Alturas de Machu Picchu' [Entrevista]". Peru21 (in Spanish). 14 August 2021. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  9. ↑ Chile, C. N. N. (13 August 2013). "Alturas de Machu Picchu: Un hito en la carrera de Los Jaivas". CNN Chile (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  10. ↑ Fricke, David (11 January 2018). "David Fricke's Year in Rock 2017: Tom Petty, Phish and More". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  11. ↑ Zuñiga, Fabio Salas (2003). La primavera terrestre: cartografías del rock chileno y la nueva canción chilena (in Spanish). Editorial Cuarto Propio. p. 90. ISBN   978-956-260-291-4.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ugarte C., Gonzalo (17 October 2017). "Disco Inmortal: Los Jaivas – Alturas de Macchu Picchu (1981)". Nación Rock (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Muñoz, Hector (15 January 2023). "Eduardo "Gato" Alquinta: 5 grandes interpretaciones en Los Jaivas". Futuro Chile (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 "Alturas de Macchu Picchu". Memoria Chilena, Biblioteca Nacional de Chile (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  15. ↑ García, Marisol (1 August 2013). Canción valiente (in Spanish). Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial Chile. p. 196. ISBN   978-956-9339-06-6 . Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  16. ↑ Guerrero, Gloria (1 February 2012). Estadio Obras. El templo del Rock: Elogio de la sed (in Spanish). Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial Argentina. p. 80. ISBN   978-950-07-3570-4 . Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  17. ↑ Bitar, Marcelo Fernandez (1 November 2015). 50 años de rock en Argentina (in Spanish). Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial Argentina. p. 272. ISBN   978-950-07-5429-3 . Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  18. ↑ Ordaz, Luis; Montenergro, R.; Horvath, Ricardo (1985). El Canto y el baile (in Spanish). Centro Editor de América Latina. p. 11. ISBN   978-950-25-0753-8.
  19. ↑ Vergara, Claudio (10 October 2021). "El hombre que inventó Alturas de Machu Picchu". La Tercera. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  20. ↑ "Temas220-232". Hoy (in Spanish). Araucaria Ltda.: 15 October 1981. Retrieved 19 October 2022.
  21. ↑ Vergara, Claudio (12 October 2021). "¿Cómo era Machu Picchu cuando Los Jaivas tocaron su mítico disco en 1981?". La Tercera. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  22. ↑ Oiga (in Spanish). Empresa Editora Eusko-Andina. 1983. p. 3.
  23. ↑ Minnis, Natalie (December 2004). Chile Insight Guide. Langenscheidt Publishing Group. p. 90. ISBN   978-981-234-890-6 . Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  24. ↑ Campillay, José (19 November 2021). "40 años de". ADN (in Spanish). Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  25. ↑ "Lost in Time: Los Jaivas – Alturas de Macchu Picchu". The Progressive Subway. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
  26. ↑ "Los 250 mejores álbumes de rock iberoamericano". Al Borde. 2006.
  27. ↑ Alturas De Macchu Picchu (booklet). Columbia Records. 1995. 2 - 462057.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.