Traditional music
As in most parts of Latin America, music is a core part of the local culture. In this relatively small country, there is a surprising variety of musical styles, changing colours according to the region. For example, in the province of Esmeraldas, Afro-Ecuadorian music reigns, while Andean music is played and listened to throughout the Sierra and varies according to the community.
In the northern provinces, the heart of the Afro-Ecuadorian population of the country, the music is thus influenced by African roots and is divided into two families: marimba music, taking its name from the important use of marimbas (alongside bombos, guasas and conunos) and the bomba style, originating from the Chota valley and named after the bomba drum. The emblematic instrument - and namesake - of the marimba is a percussion instrument arranged like a xylophone but made up of wooden bars that produce sounds as bright as they are soft. Typically, strong West African-style rhythms support the choral arrangements, and traditional dances such as the bambuco
may accompany the music. In the bomba, the drum is played in single or double time, usually accompanied by a set of three guitars and vocals.Although they appear today mainly at celebrations and parties, this traditional music has been essential in helping the Afro-Ecuadorian people maintain their living identity, carried by entities such as the remarkable Grupo Bambuco, based in Esmeraldas, or the Grupo Ochún. Two popular and very representative formations of this Afro-Ecuadorian music.
Another essential traditional aesthetic, Andean music dates back to the first ages of pre-Columbian culture, archaeologists and historians having highlighted the presence of musical instruments (flutes and percussion) at the time, particularly in the central Andes (Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia). Similarly, instruments were represented on many ceramics of the region, in the context of religious scenes or hunting until the Inca period. A purely oral tradition until the Inca period, Andean music originally consisted mainly of songs whose words were passed down from generation to generation. With the arrival of the Spaniards and the slave trade from Africa, Andean music was enriched with new instruments and a new musical grammar. The guitar, borrowed from the Iberians, has played a major role in Andean music up to the present day, even though the charango
(small guitar), said to date from the 18th century, probably existed in another form before the colonial era.The Andean music is immediately recognizable by its lascivious and nostalgic melodies. A feeling exacerbated by the sound of the rondador, the national instrument of Ecuador. This pan flute, emblematic of the genre (it is the one heard in El Condor Pasa), is distinguished from other Andean instruments such as the zampoña and the quena by its single row of bamboo pipes organized in a succession of sections of increasing size. While there is a common feeling that runs through Andean music as a whole, there are regional forms and styles. For example, the Sierra Mountains are home to a style of ceremonial music and dance called Sanjuanito, characterized by its joyful rhythm and melancholy melody. Other folkloric rhythms that can be heard on festive days include cachullapi, yumbo and danzante
.Musicians such as the group Huayanay, José Luis Pichamba, the famous ambassador of Otavalo music, and the more eccentric Delfin Quishpe - who performs Andean folklore songs in a comical-techno style - have greatly contributed to the popularization of Ecuadorian Andean music in the world. Otherwise, there are places in the country where you can be sure to get a taste of the local musical traditions: the peñas. It is in these taverns that the Andean music is played, privileged scenes of the folkloric music groups. Among the most recommended, in Quito we will go to Ñucanchi, a real institution with a friendly atmosphere and in Otavalo, we will go to Amauta, certainly the most famous peña of the region, known for its atmosphere, its decor and the quality of its (Andean) music. Apart from the peñas, some addresses more focused on dance will delight the curious like the National Folkloric Ballet Jacchigua which, through rich and colorful choreographies, offers a beautiful panorama on the religious and pagan traditions of the different indigenous ethnic groups of the country. In the same spirit, let's mention the Fundacion Cultural Humanizarte
, a folkloric ballet that takes up the classic themes of the Andean culture in an intimate setting. Festivals and various celebrations, both religious and non-religious, are also excellent opportunities to get up close and personal with folklore. Starting with the Carnival, one of the most remarkable festivities of the country. Celebrated in most Ecuadorian cities during the four days preceding Lent, it brings together in a feverish atmosphere traditional parades, folkloric music and crazy disguises. Another must-see event is Corpus Christi, held every year in mid-June in Pujilí. People come from all over the country, but also from Peru and Bolivia, to thank the fertile land and it is the occasion for numerous folkloric dances and parades. Let's not forget to mention the Festival of the Cosecha de Maíz, a corn harvest festival held on August 16 in Tarqui (near Cuenca), celebrated with great pomp and ceremony with folkloric dances and local music groups, or the Commemoration of the foundation of Quito, every December 6, with its share of folkloric music and decorated floats.Popular music
If you ask anyone in Ecuador what the great Ecuadorian style is, some will tell you it is the pasillo. A true national music, which had its moment of glory in the 1960s with the success of Julio Jaramillo, the legend of the genre, this derivative of the waltz appeared in the 19th century during the wars of Independence. Often slow and melancholic, these poignant songs deal with themes of disillusionment, heartache and nostalgia or regret. Having fallen somewhat out of fashion at one point, in recent years there seems to be a resurgence of enthusiasm for the style, with the pasillo
sometimes even making its way into local rock songs.As mentioned earlier, the golden voice of the pasillo was Julio Jaramillo (1935-1978). Originally from Guayaquil, the singer became a legend during his lifetime thanks to such timeless songs as Nuestro Juramento. When he died prematurely at the age of 42, some 250,000 people turned out to pay their last respects at his funeral. Among the other great national names of the genre, it is impossible not to mention Olimpo Cardenas (1919-1991), the other great representative of the pasillo with Jaramillo, Francisco Paredes Herrera (1891-1952) who was nicknamed the " king of the Ecuadorian pasillo ", Carlos Rubira Infante (1921-2018), author of numerous hymns, Rafael María Carpio Abad (1905-2004) composer of pasillos who soaked a lot of Andean music such as the sanjuanito in his works, Carlos Brito Benavides (1891-1943), composer of the famous pasillo Sombras or Nicasio Safadi (1902-1968), Ecuadorian musician of Lebanese origin who formed with Enrique Ibáñez the famous Dúo Ecuador and wrote some famous pasillos like Guayaquil de mis amores
(popularized by Julio Jaramillo). Outside of the pasillo, Ecuador also has some variety stars that are more than common to hear once you're there: Jaime Guevara, once a local rock figure, Wendy Vera, a singer so popular that she was a member of the Ecuadorian National Assembly, and Juan Fernando Velasco, a romantic singer.Classical music
Although there is no real classical music tradition in Ecuador, the genre does include some important names for the country. These include Carlos Amable Ortiz (1859-1937), violinist, pianist and composer, author of No te Olvidaré
, a true national anthem, Segundo Cueva Celi (1901-1969), composer of some of the country's best known melodies, Sixto Duran Maria (1875-1947), a great pianist who divided his work between folk, classical and chamber music, and Carlos Bonilla Chávez (1923-2010), one of the pioneers of the classical guitar in the country. Let's not forget to mention Antonio Neumane, a Corsican who composed the national anthem, Enrique Espín Yépez, a talented violinist who wrote some very sophisticated pasillos and breathed Ecuadorian sounds into his symphonies, or Segundo Luis Moreno, a nationalist researcher and composer who collected popular and indigenous music to establish an Ecuadorian style. In the contemporary register, Ecuador is known for the compositions of Diego Luzuriaga, who was influenced by Andean music as much as spectral music, Messie Maiguashca, a close collaborator of Stockhausen, Arturo Rodas, who touched on all the learned avant-gardes of the 20th century, and Jorge Luis Valverde, who wrote symphonies as well as sonatas in a style that he himself describes as Ecuadorian. And let's not forget to mention the conductor Freddy Cadena, the most internationally renowned Ecuadorian performer, who is very active on the Moscow scene and a former teacher at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory. Like almost every country, Ecuador has its own National Symphony Orchestra, which performs at the Casa del Musica. Otherwise, most classical concerts take place at the Teatro Nacional Sucre, the oldest theatre in the city, where the whole of Quito flocks to see plays, ballets or classical music concerts, as well as at the Fundación Teatro Bolívar, which, behind its beautiful Art Deco facade, houses a programme to watch.Current music
Less noticed - perhaps because it is later - than its Colombian and Peruvian neighbours, the Ecuadorian scene has also experienced a real explosion in recent years. A constant ebullition which allowed the emergence of new figures like Nicola Cruz. Although he was born in France, he has been living and working in Quito for many years, where he produces a hybrid electronic music full of Ecuadorian colours. Revealed thanks to Nicolas Jaar, he released his first album in 2015 Prender el alma, unanimously acclaimed by the critics. In his wake, Mateo Kingman, a native of the Ecuadorian Amazon produces sensory and organic electronic music filled with Ecuadorian landscapes. In this talented anthill that is the young Ecuadorian scene, bands and artists such as EVHA, which reinterprets the national folklore with synthesizers, stand out; Swing Original Monks, a hyper colored fusion that mixes Ecuadorian folklore, rock, swing and electro; Quixosis, softly psychedelicambient
close to her Ecuadorian roots; Maria Usbeck, a local figure of indie pop now based in Brooklyn; Elia Ezker, an indie pop outsider based in Seattle; and finally Paola Navarrete, the queen of Ecuadorian alternative pop, who has stayed on her home ground.If you want to know why there's so much going on, just look at the number of places to see concerts in the capital. Here, there is something for everyone, with each genre having its own scene allowing the public to discover and support local bands. Cafe Democratico, La Cafetina, Ochoymedio, La Juliana or the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo
(which programs concerts) are all addresses where you can discover the local young guard. And, of course, as in almost every South American country, reggaeton is a real night-time treat here, and you can find it in every club in Quito or Guayaquil. While the country imports the biggest hits from neighbouring Colombia, some Ecuadorians also excel in the field, such as Don Day, Johann Vera, Bebo Yau, Diego Villacis and Mad Fuentes and Bombotunes.
