Ensamble Gurrufío
Encyclopedia
The Ensamble Gurrufío is a celebrated quartet
dedicated to the research, arrangement and reinterpretation of Venezuelan instrumental
music. Their approach has to do with a new, classically-schooled, educated style, but allowing for improvisation as a fundamental element, leaving ample room for the spontaneous, the unexpected, the ability to extract the most from the virtuosity of each one of its members, resulting in unique and hardly repeatable performances.
), Cristóbal Soto (mandolin
), and Cheo Hurtado
(cuatro
). David Peña (bass
) completed the quartet in 1989. All of the four are academy musicians and teachers with considerable background as soloists and performers. The group immediately became well-known for their lively persona, instrumental virtuosity, and sense of humor. Their mood can vary from rigorous and solemn, up to festive and hilarious, a quality greatly enjoyed by the public when they perform live. A fifth member, Juan Ernesto Laya (maracas
) joined the ensemble since 1998, when Cristóbal Soto moved to a permanent residence in France. The group has occasionally incorporated additional members, such as Jaime Martínez (oboe
) and Moisés Torrealba (bandola
). The emsemnle has performed in collaboration with other celebrated Venezuelan groups, such as Serenata Guayanesa
, the Camerata Criolla, and the Great Marshal of Ayacucho Symphony orchestra
. Similarly, they have recorded together with acclaimed foreign musicians like Bela Fleck
, among others.
The reason why this ensemble
is regarded as among the most important of the genre lies not only in their virtuosity, but also in their contemporary sense, expressed through the urban traditional genre of Venezuelan music. Gurrufio conserves the romanticism, the melancholy and the “cool” sense of the Venezuelan instrumental tradition, and at the same time adopts present-day harmony and rhythm. Improvisation is exploited to the maximum, always resulting in exceptionally pleasant renditions.
In their works, sparkling, romantic, affectionate, lyric, and virtuoso passages flow and coexist effortlessly. Gurrufio resists to be placed in a category. Their graceful and refreshing style does not truly belong to folklore
, or to classical music, or to jazz
, or to new age
. What they offer is a versatile, multi-faced contemporary instrumental music, deeply rooted in the Venezuelan tradition. To be able to watch them performing live is a unique and most enjoyable experience.
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
dedicated to the research, arrangement and reinterpretation of Venezuelan instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
music. Their approach has to do with a new, classically-schooled, educated style, but allowing for improvisation as a fundamental element, leaving ample room for the spontaneous, the unexpected, the ability to extract the most from the virtuosity of each one of its members, resulting in unique and hardly repeatable performances.
History
The Ensamble Gurrufío was founded on 1984 by three young musicians, Luis Julio Toro (fluteFlute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
), Cristóbal Soto (mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
), and Cheo Hurtado
Cheo Hurtado
Cheo Hurtado is a Venezuelan musician, one of the most celebrated virtuoso performers of the cuatro, whose extremely agile strumming technique is currently believed to be unsurpassed. He also plays mandolin, bandola and guitar.-Biography:...
(cuatro
Cuatro (instrument)
The cuatro is any of several Latin American instruments of the guitar or lute family. The cuatro is smaller than a guitar. Cuatro means four in Spanish, although current instruments may have more than four strings....
). David Peña (bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
) completed the quartet in 1989. All of the four are academy musicians and teachers with considerable background as soloists and performers. The group immediately became well-known for their lively persona, instrumental virtuosity, and sense of humor. Their mood can vary from rigorous and solemn, up to festive and hilarious, a quality greatly enjoyed by the public when they perform live. A fifth member, Juan Ernesto Laya (maracas
Maracás
Maracás is a town and municipality in the state of Bahia in the North-East region of Brazil.-References:...
) joined the ensemble since 1998, when Cristóbal Soto moved to a permanent residence in France. The group has occasionally incorporated additional members, such as Jaime Martínez (oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
) and Moisés Torrealba (bandola
Bandola
This article refers to various South American instruments. Bandola is also Portuguese for Mandola.The Bandola is one oif many varieties of small pear-shape chordophones found in Venezuela and Colombia...
). The emsemnle has performed in collaboration with other celebrated Venezuelan groups, such as Serenata Guayanesa
Serenata Guayanesa
Serenata Guayanesa is a vocal and instrumental quartet that plays typical Venezuelan folk music. It is one of the two best known groups playing this music .-Origins of the group:...
, the Camerata Criolla, and the Great Marshal of Ayacucho Symphony orchestra
Great Marshal of Ayacucho Symphony orchestra
Since its foundation in 1989, Grand Marshal of Ayacucho Symphony Orchestra has united a group of young Venezuelan musicians.-History:The Grand Marshal of Ayacucho Symphony orchestra was created in 1989, through the agreement signed by the Grand Marshal of Ayacucho foundation and the state...
. Similarly, they have recorded together with acclaimed foreign musicians like Bela Fleck
Béla Fleck
Béla Anton Leoš Fleck is an American banjo player. Widely acknowledged as one of the world's most innovative and technically proficient banjo players, he is best known for his work with the bands New Grass Revival and Béla Fleck and the Flecktones.-Early life and career details:Fleck was born in...
, among others.
The reason why this ensemble
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
is regarded as among the most important of the genre lies not only in their virtuosity, but also in their contemporary sense, expressed through the urban traditional genre of Venezuelan music. Gurrufio conserves the romanticism, the melancholy and the “cool” sense of the Venezuelan instrumental tradition, and at the same time adopts present-day harmony and rhythm. Improvisation is exploited to the maximum, always resulting in exceptionally pleasant renditions.
Repertoire and Style
Gurrufío’s repertoire, comprising works of yesterday and today, and often including their own original compositions, is enriched by the individual musical sense of each member. Their live performances and recordings are characterized by the addition of long-forgotten pieces, rescued through research and interaction with other scholars experienced in Venezuelan music.In their works, sparkling, romantic, affectionate, lyric, and virtuoso passages flow and coexist effortlessly. Gurrufio resists to be placed in a category. Their graceful and refreshing style does not truly belong to folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
, or to classical music, or to jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, or to new age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
. What they offer is a versatile, multi-faced contemporary instrumental music, deeply rooted in the Venezuelan tradition. To be able to watch them performing live is a unique and most enjoyable experience.