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Hailed in Peru, Ayllon brings sound to U.S.
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Chicago Tribune, Hailed in Peru, Ayllon brings sound to U.S. >>
For the last two and a half decades, Peruvian diva Eva Ayllon has been recognized as one of her country's most talented and influential vocalists.
So what is she doing living in New Jersey?
Had she stayed in South America, Ayllon would most likely be enjoying the lifestyle of a superstar--as opposed to the relative anonymity she experiences these days, living and performing in the U.S.
"I'm not afraid of sounding vain when I say that I left a big mark in my country," says Ayllon with that throaty voice that earned her the nickname of "La Voz Dorada del Peru" (The Golden Voice of Peru).
"I was a prophet in my own land," she continues. "But I got married to a man that I have known for the last 23 years. I married mi amor eterno--my endless love. That's what brought me to the 973 area code."
Yes, Ayllon has embraced domesticity. But she continues recording and touring Europe and the U.S. (She performs two shows at the HotHouse on Thursday.) Her latest album, the excellent "Eva!--Leyenda Peruana," was nominated for a Latin Grammy award last year, and she is busy preparing a follow-up.
As a vocalist, Ayllon sounds sensuous and intense. Her music is laced with soaring female choruses, anchored on the dry sound of the cajon (Peru's quintessential, box-like percussion instrument) and the lilting strains of acoustic guitars. From the moment her 1979 album "Esta Noche" became a huge hit in Peru, Ayllon has never abandoned her mission to preserve the music born in the coastal areas of her country--a volatile fusion of African rhythm, European melody and the earthy flavor of Peru's indigenous roots.
"Eva is one of the most representative singers of Afro-Peruvian music," says Nelly Apaza Retamoso, a journalist from Peru who covers Latin music for Los Angeles-based Spanish newspaper La Opinion. "She has a prodigious voice and a unique kind of elegance that underscores her black origins. . . . Eva's music is meant for partying. You can't help but start dancing when you listen to her songs."
The more demure Susana Baca was the singer responsible for introducing Afro-Peruvian music to the rest of the world. It all started in 1995, when David Byrne's Luaka Bop label released "The Soul of Black Peru," an eye-opening compilation showcasing the richness of a sound that was infinitely more funky than Peru's traditional Andean music. The compilation included tracks by Baca and Ayllon, as well as other notable artists including Lucila Campos and Chabuca Granda.
"Susana has enjoyed the most recognition," acknowledges Ayllon. "Fortunately, people who fell in love with her material started exploring the genre and discovered the rest of us."
Afro-Peruvian music is one of the few Latin genres consistently dominated by female performers.
"When you think of traditional song formats in la musica negra (black music) like the lando and the festejo, those are really meant for women to dance to them," she explains. "Men don't look that sexy dancing, you know."
But Ayllon's career needed time to take off.
"There were just too many musical stars [in] the Peruvian sky," she laughs. "It was quite marvelous, actually, the level of competition that existed in the '70s. You had groups playing traditional music, cumbia, salsa, boleros. It was a movement that gradually disappeared."
Through the years, the singer has experimented with a broader sonic palette, going beyond the Afro-Peruvian tinge that made her famous. Leyenda Peruana, for instance, includes an implacable salsa tune performed as a duet with Puerto Rican salsero Gilberto Santa Rosa ("Cuando Llegue La Hora"). Ayllon also will sing ballads and has ventured into jazz with Hijos del Sol, a fusion group created by former Weather Report drummer Alex Acuna, who also calls Peru his home.
"I've added a few extraneous instruments to my sound in order to make it more international," she explains. "But this is not about reinventing the wheel. Our music demands to be played the way it was done 30 years ago. The new singers have become a bit too electric for my taste. This is not the music that my generation used to party to."
-Ernesto Lechner 07/17/05 >> go there
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