Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Purchasable with gift card
Download available in 24-bit/96kHz.
€7EUR or more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Includes unlimited streaming of La Voz de las Cumbres (Music of Guatemala)
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
First reissue of these cult 1974 recordings of a Mayan brass band playing funeral dirges and popular songs in its distinctive extended harmonic and rhythmic style. The members of the San Lucas Band lived in the mountain village of San Lucas Tolimán, Guatemala, playing local events of both religious and social nature. The pride of its town since 1922, the band represented a fast-disappearing musical tradition when these recordings were originally released in 1975. Its unique sound derived from an unusual combination of instruments, a repertoire including pieces dating from more than fifty years before the recordings were made to more recent ones, and above all from the highland Maya style of its playing, which is characterized by a preference for freer rhythmic structures and a wider variety of pitches than Western scales allow. One of Jon Hassell and Charlie Haden's favorite records, it was nominated for a Grammy Award upon first release and has remained much beloved by a small community of enthusiasts for decades. A profound and rewarding musical experience for all adventurous listeners, notably fans of Albert Ayler, microtonal and raw cosmic music.
credits
released January 12, 2024
Recorded in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala in 1974 by Kathryn King and Linda O’Brien
Originally released in 1975
Reissue produced by Vincent de Roguin, Kathryn King, and Linda O’Brien-Rothe
Notes by Linda O’Brien-Rothe
Audio transfer by Scott Hull
Audio restoration and mastering by Timothy Stollenwerk
Design by Xavier Robel and Vincent de Roguin
Front cover band photo by James McCormac
Insert photos by Kathryn King and Linda O’Brien
This album speaks to the continuum of African diasporic culture that is central to the vibrant canon of Americana folk music. Bandcamp Album of the Day May 29, 2020
Sweet harmonies & strummed melodies; the duo delve into decades-old folk, jazz, and country to find a timeless kind of love and connection. Bandcamp New & Notable May 23, 2018