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Latin America鈥檚 turbulent Colonial history told through its music

Hannah French presents a programme of music and discussion exploring the turbulent history of Latin America through its sacred and secular music from the 16th to 18th centuries.

Hannah French presents a programme of music and discussion exploring the turbulent history of Latin America through its sacred and secular music from the 16th to 18th centuries.

1200
Hannah French introduces us to some of the sounds of Latin American Baroque, alongside her studio guests - Peruvian historian Dr Gabriela Ramos, and musicologist Leonardo Waisman.

1205 CONQUISTADORS, COLONISATION, GENOCIDE & GOLD
An exploration of the arrival of the Europeans and how they were first received in the Americas. It鈥檚 thought that during the initial Spanish and Portuguese conquest, up to 8 million indigenous people died, mainly through the spread of disease and slavery. In 1520 Hern谩n Cort茅s led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire, beginning the steady but ruthless colonisation of the Americas.

1220 ANCIENT TRADITIONS
Music archaeologists Matthias St枚ckli and Alexander Herrera tell us about their research into the ancient musical traditions of the Mayan Highlands and of the Andes.

1230 THE JESUITS
The Jesuits arrived in the region in the mid-16th century. They evangelised the indigenous people, built mission towns, schools and churches and acted as diplomats between the colonialists and the local population. Much of the evangelising involved music and, over time, indigenous instruments mixed with European instruments to form some of the sounds we know today.

1240 ARAKAENDER BOLIVIA
Ashley Solomon talks about a project that he has been involved with since the early 2000s. Working with the biennial Festivals Misiones de Chiquitos, he has helped to set up a national choir and ensemble: Arakaender - Bolivia鈥檚 first baroque orchestra on period instruments.

1300 LANGUAGE
Dr Alice Corr reflects on the cross-pollination of language from and to Latin America.

1310 VILLANCICOS
The villancico was a secular genre until religious villancicos gained popularity in the second half of the 16thC in Spain and Latin America. The texts were didactic, designed to help converts understand and enjoy the new religion.

1325 SLAVE TRADE
Professor David Treece tells us about the beginnings of the slave trade in colonial Latin America and the cultural influence it had on the population. Over 350 years, more than 10m Africans were taken by force to the region and made to work in mines or on plantations. The rhythms they brought with them became the single most important part of Latin American music. Exchanges of dances and songs formed the roots of Lundu, Candombe & Samba.

1340 CAPOEIRA
Here we find out about another centuries-old practice from Brazil: Capoeira - a combination of martial arts, dance & music, originally conceived in plantations by enslaved Africans to defend themselves from their Portuguese masters.

1350 SANTERIA
The mesmerising appeal of Cuban music is due in part to Santer铆a - a religion blending traditional Yoruba rituals, deities and the sacred bat谩 drums brought by slaves, with beliefs from Roman Catholicism. Much Latin music we know today - mambo, cha-cha-ch谩 and salsa - has its roots in this potent amalgamation. Crispin Robinson, a Santer铆a practitioner himself, tells us about its ancient roots, along with his Cuban spiritual guide, who sings for us some of the melodies kept alive across time.

1400 PUEBLA CATHEDRAL
100km south-east of Mexico City lies Puebla, a UNESCO world heritage site enclosed in a dramatic volcanic basin. In its colonial central square stands a magnificent cathedral - a physical embodiment of the Baroque with its bell towers, 14 chapels and sublime interior. Ireri E. Ch谩vez-B谩rcenas , Drew Edward Davies & Andrew Cashner explore the Cathedral鈥檚 place in the historical landscape and its 17th century musicians.

1425 CODEX TRUJILLO
A unique snapshot of late-18th-century Peru, almost unparalleled in the history of Latin America, the so-called Codex Trujillo is in nine volumes, contains 20 musical scores and around 1,400 watercolours, including images of musicians in action - some of indigenous extraction, some of African descent. We hear from three ensembles who鈥檝e recorded the music about the challenges posed by this repertoire and the contrasting ways in which they鈥檝e approached it in an attempt to bring its amazing soundscape back to life.

1450 LATIN AMERICAN FOOD
Food writer Sandra A. Gutierrez explains how certain indigenous Latin American ingredients introduced to Europe in the 15th century have shaped the way we eat today globally. But the culinary exchange went both ways.

2 hours, 59 minutes

Last on

Sun 18 Oct 2020 12:00
麻豆约拍 Radio 3

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Music Played

  • Anonymous

    Matais de inc锚ndios

    Ensemble: Orquestra e Coro Vox Brasiliensis. Conductor: Ricardo Kanji.
    • K617.

  • Anon.

    Danza de Moctezuma

    Performer: Andrew Lawrence鈥怟ing. Performer: Enrique Barona.
    • ALIA VOX.

  • Antonio Vivaldi

    Overture: Montezuma, RV.723 (1st Allegro)

    Ensemble: La Grande 脡curie et la Chambre du Roy. Conductor: Jean鈥怌laude Malgoire.
    • ASTREE.

  • Ennio Morricone

    Gabriel's Oboe [The Mission (1986) soundtrack]

    Orchestra: London Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: David Bedford.
    • The Mission (Original Soundtrack From The Film).
    • VIRGIN.
    • 2.

  • Ignazio Balbi

    Sonata Chiquitanas (excerpt)

    Ensemble: Florilegium.

  • Domenico Zipoli

    Missa San Ignacio (Kyrie)

    Ensemble: Ensemble Elyma. Director: Gabriel Garrido.
    • K617.

  • Anon.

    Hanacpachap Cussicuinin

    Ensemble: The Boston Camerata. Director: Joel Cohen.
    • APEX.

  • Gaspar Fernandes

    Tleycantimo Choquiliya

    Ensemble: Ensemble Elyma. Director: Gabriel Garrido.
    • GLOSSA.

  • Roque Jacinto de Chavarr铆a

    Fuera, Fuera! Haganles lugar

    Ensemble: Ensemble Vox Antiqua. Conductor: Leonardo Waisman.

  • Jos茅 Maur铆cio Nunes Garcia

    Tota pulchra es Maria

    Ensemble: Vox Brasiliensis. Conductor: Ricardo Kanji.
    • PAN CLASSICS.

  • Juan Guti茅rrez de Padilla

    Stabat Mater

    Choir: The Sixteen. Conductor: Harry Christophers.
    • CORO.

  • Juan de Araujo

    Dixit Dominus a 8

    Ensemble: Cappella Mediterranea. Choir: Namur Chamber Choir. Conductor: Leonardo Garc铆a Alarc贸n.
    • RICERCAR.

  • Henry Purcell

    Chacony in G minor, Z.730 (excerpt)

    Ensemble: Accademia Bizantina. Director: Stefano Montanari.
    • Decca.

  • George Frideric Handel

    Sarabande [Suite in D minor, HWV.437] (excerpt)

    Performer: Olivier Baumont.
    • Bayard Musique.

  • Tom谩s de Torrej贸n y Velasco

    Loa: Viva Viva! [La Purpura della Rosa]

    Ensemble: The Harp Consort. Director: Andrew Lawrence鈥怟ing.
    • DEUTSCHE HARMONIA MUNDI.

  • Antonio Valente

    Follias Criollas

    Ensemble: Hesp猫rion XXI. Director: Jordi Savall.
    • ALIA VOX.

Broadcast

  • Sun 18 Oct 2020 12:00
    麻豆约拍 Radio 3

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