Peru Negro, celebrates once-hidden tradition

By Jory Fan

FOR THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH .

For almost 200 years, the songs and rhythms were passed down in secret kept alive by drummers and dancers in the homes of black families in Peru.

Then, in the 1950s, producer Jose Durand staged a musical that included Afro-Peruvian music and dance, and the middle class got taste of a culture it mostly didn't know.

The work, Pancho Fierro, helped pave the way for the 1969 formation of Peru .Negro, a folkloric group dedicated to Afro-Peruvian traditions.

"Our music was preserved in oral traditions in the homes and at religious celebrations during most of the early part of the country's history through the early 20th century," Ronny Campos, artistic director, said from Lima.

"The songs and dances originally came from slaves who were brought to Peru from a wide variety of regions in Africa but included many West African Bantus and Kikongos.”

Central Ohio will have an opportunity to experience such songs and dances on Friday, when the 22 member Peru Negro performs in the Southern Theatre. 

The dominant European population of Argentina continues to deny the strong African roots of the tango.

Yet most Peruvians, Campos said, have embraced their musical heritage as well as Peru Negro, although no more than 5 percent of the population has African origins.

"The Peruvian experience is different from other countries," the -year-old said. "Denial wasn't a significant factor. There is a strong sense of pride about the Afro-Peruvian heritage of our country's music."

Campos, an Afro-Peruvian himself, was born into a family of musicians and dancers.

His father, Ronaldo Campos de la Colina, served as director of Peru Negro until his death in 2001.

Its sound is epitomized by the cajon, a percussion instrument adapted from fruit crates; a musician straddles the boxes and beats them by hand.

Other instruments include donkey jawbone (quijada), which produces a rattling when struck on the side or a scratching when the teeth are scraped with a stick.

The dancing of Peru Negro sensuous and symbolic is largely influenced, with elements of Latino and indigenous Peruvian forms.

Not surprising is that some of the music bears similarities to Afro-Cuban rhythms.

The elder Campos developed a friendship with the famous Cuban percussionist Jesus Regueira Nicasio, known as "El Nino."

"El Nino fell in love with Peruvian woman and stayed in Peru," the younger Campos said. "Together, he and Ronaldo Campos adapted the cajon patterns to the congas and bongos which revolutionized the sound of the group and of Afro- Peruvian music at large."

The Afro-Cuban influence is heard infestejo, a music strongly influenced by the Cuban rumba.

Among the most expressive of -Peruvian styles, it was historically danced to mark

harvests or celebrate birthdays.

"Today," Campos said, "festejo is danced in nightclubs and parties as any other style of dance music."

Peru Negro has won acclaim worldwide.

Its latest album, Jolgorio (2004), was nominated for Latin Grammy in the traditional category and for a Grammy in the world-music area.

In live shows, Peru Negro per forms everything from lando to alcatraz in which a dancing couple with lighted candles try to ignite a piece of cloth sewn to the skirt or pants of the partner.

"Lando is soulful," Campos said. "Its original lyrics spoke about the abuses of slavery, but now it deals more with life's hardships and broken hearts."