Serenata Guayanesa
Encyclopedia
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 (the other being Un Solo Pueblo).
native singers and musicians Mauricio Castro Rodríguez (countertenor and drums), Hernán Gamboa
(tenor and cuatro
player), Iván Pérez Rossi
(baritone and second cuatro player) and César Pérez Rossi (bass and drums) who were already experienced in playing and singing in other musical groups, met to sing together informally with some friends at the house of the then-governor, Manuel Guarrido. Mr. Guarrido asked them to make a recording of the music of the Guayana Region
. They accepted and decided to record it with a local group led by the veteran musician and composer Carmito Gamboa (father of Hernán Gamboa
), including players of the mandolin
, violin
, accordion
and the Venezuelan cuatro
(played by Hernán Gamboa), with the voices of the four young singers standing out. This LP was produced independently that August and called "Serenata Guayanesa" and it was released for the Zapoara Feria, celebrated in Ciudad Bolívar
in 1971.
It seems that a copy of that LP arrived at the offices of the Caraqueño
TV station "Cadena Venezolana de Televisión" (now VTV
) and the four singers took part in a variety programme. When the presenter asked the name of the group, one of them answered that it was the same as the LP – until then none of the group had considered what the name should be.
In 2000, for the Expo 2000
in Hannover, Germany
, they had one of their rare concerts outside South-America. In honor to the "Venezuelan Day", they sang with a German Children's Cuatro
Group.
Wanting to boost their popularity in the Venezuelan capital, the four members of the new group obtained their first recording contract in 1972 with the company "Palacio de la Música" (Music Palace), which put their recordings out under the label "Decca-London" (although the group were not formally contracted to Decca). That year a record “Serenata Guayanesa” appeared, with a different content to their first recording. The numbers "El Sapo" and the aguinaldo "Casta Paloma" by the Bolivaran
composer Alejandro Vargas appeared, as well as the first composition by Iván Pérez Rossi (integrante), the aguinaldo "¿Donde está San Nicolás?", which became a hit later. However, their real success began with the album "Serenata Guayanesa Volume 2" (1973), with the songs "Calypso del Callao" (composed by the "Sociedad de Amigos del Calypso de El Callao") and the classic Venezuelan Christmas number "Aguinaldo Criollo" (by the writer Isabel de Umérez and composer Luis Morales Bance), both great hits, as well as the llanero number "Fiesta en Elorza" by the Venezuelan musician, composer and singer Eneas Perdomo.
In 1978 the group decided to record an album of aguinaldo
Christmas music, which was not widely known across Venezuela. This album, entitled "Serenata Guayanesa Volume 5: Popular Venezuelan Aguinaldos " included the hits "Corre Caballito" (anonymous) and "El Furruquero" (Iván Pérez Rossi). On this album the group’s singers, together with the singers and drummers Mauricio Castro and César Pérez Rossi, played their own accompaniment on instruments like the chineco and the furruco (vinculados for Christmas music).
In 1981 their contract with "Palacio de la Música" expired and they signed with the Organización Diego Cisneros Sonorodven, who brought out an album of their greatest hits, including one new number "Señor Gabán". That contract also expired quicly and they signed with Sonográfica. By this time the group was established as the biggest in Venezuelan popular music. They then hit upon the idea of making an album of music for children, called "Cantemos con los niños" (Let’s sing with the children), which included specially written songs, poems set to music and traditional folk songs. This album was again a great hit, even among adults, with the numbers "La Pulga y el Piojo" and "Este Niño Don Simón". It is interesting to note that one very sentimental song was called "En Mi Pueblo Había Un Río" (In my village there was a river), which told the story of a village in which the native plants and wildlife died out.
In 1983 Sonográfica brought out a series of records in homage to the nationalist leader Simón Bolívar
including two albums with songs and fragments of speeches by Bolívar himself. The actor Gustavo Rodríguez read the speeches and the music was recorded by Serenata Guayanesa with Hernán Gamboa (his first recordings as a solo artist) and the late internationally renowned artist Jesús Soto, for the first and only time recorded singing and playing the guitar. After that Hernán Gamboa went on to pursue a solo career, while the pediatrician, singer and cuatrista caraqueño Miguel Ángel Bosch joined the group.
With Bosch, the group recorded in 1984 a second album of music for children ("Cantemos con los niños, volumen 2") less successful than the first. However, the group recorded a second navideno LP entitled "Viene la parranda", with other musicians, for example a guest appearance by the cuatro and violin player Gualberto Ibarreto. Two years later, for their fifteenth anniversary, the group brought out an album "Caribe Abajo" of Latin American music, some composed specially, some already known. In this album the group was supported by the musicians Rafael, Kenny and Carlos Arrieta (on the caja, guacharaca and accordion, respectively) for a performance of the number in vallenato style "Mis Peroles" (composed by Iván Pérez Rossi), and their first videoclip was recorded in a humorous style.
In 1991, the group recorded their first CD entitled "Si la tierra, tierra fuera", promoted by a further video. They had a new hit from this album with the interpretation of the pasodoble
"Caracas Mi Ciudad" with the trumpeter Jorge Montenegro and the drummer Antonio Cestari. Their stay with the Sonográfica label was ended with their first live album, recorded at a concert at the Teresa Carreño Theatre
, celebrating their 25th anniversary. This double album entitled "Una Amistad de 25 Años" (A 25 Year Friendship) had contributions by well known Venezuelan artists such as María Teresa Chacín
, Cheo Hurtado
, Simón Díaz
, Gualberto Ibarreto
, Vidal Colmenares
, Ismael Querales, and the gaita zuliana singers Ricardo Cepeda and Abdenago "Neguito" Borjas.
After this, Serenata Guayanesa began to produce their own recordings, reissuing their previous albums with Sonográfica CD format, including numbers recorded in past times with new compositions. in 2003 the CD "Cantemos Con Los Niños" (Let’s Sing with the Children) presents a revised edition of their first album of Venezuelan music for children, in 2005 Serenata Guayanesa made the album El Ferrocarril, with new compositions and new songs.
Culture of Venezuela
The Venezuelan people have a rich cultural heritage. From the original American Indians to the Spanish and Africans who arrived after the Spanish conquest, the twentieth century waves of immigration brought many Italians, Portuguese, Arabs, Germans, Moroccan Jews, and others from the bordering...
folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
. It is one of the two best known groups playing this music (the other being Un Solo Pueblo).
Origins of the group
In June 1971, the Bolivar stateBolívar (state)
Bolívar State , is one of the 23 states into which Venezuela is divided. The state capital city is Ciudad Bolívar. Bolívar State covers a total surface area of 238,000 km² and in June 30, 2010 had an estimated population of 1,620,359....
native singers and musicians Mauricio Castro Rodríguez (countertenor and drums), Hernán Gamboa
Hernán Gamboa
Hernan Gamboa was born in San Tomé, in the State of Anzoátegui, located in the eastern part of Venezuela, June 18, 1946. He is the son of Carmito Gamboa Almeida and Carmen Alexis Gamboa....
(tenor and cuatro
Cuatro (Venezuela)
The cuatro of Venezuela has four single nylon strings, tuned . It is similar in shape and tuning to the ukulele, but their character and playing technique are vastly different. It is tuned in a similar fashion to the traditional D tuning of the ukulele, but the A and B are an octave lower...
player), Iván Pérez Rossi
Iván Pérez Rossi
Iván Pérez Rossi is a singer and musician born in Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela, August 3, 1943. His musical career has been intimately tied to the life of the musical group Serenata Guayanesa, of which has been a charter member since 1971. Within this group, has evolved not only as a singer and...
(baritone and second cuatro player) and César Pérez Rossi (bass and drums) who were already experienced in playing and singing in other musical groups, met to sing together informally with some friends at the house of the then-governor, Manuel Guarrido. Mr. Guarrido asked them to make a recording of the music of the Guayana Region
Guayana Region
The Guayana Region is an administrative region of Venezuela.The region has a population of 1,383,297 inhabitants and a territory of 458,344 km². It borders the independent nation of Guyana which forms part of The Guyanas...
. They accepted and decided to record it with a local group led by the veteran musician and composer Carmito Gamboa (father of Hernán Gamboa
Hernán Gamboa
Hernan Gamboa was born in San Tomé, in the State of Anzoátegui, located in the eastern part of Venezuela, June 18, 1946. He is the son of Carmito Gamboa Almeida and Carmen Alexis Gamboa....
), including players of the 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...
, violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
and the Venezuelan 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....
(played by Hernán Gamboa), with the voices of the four young singers standing out. This LP was produced independently that August and called "Serenata Guayanesa" and it was released for the Zapoara Feria, celebrated in Ciudad Bolívar
Ciudad Bolívar
Ciudad Bolívar is the capital of Venezuela's southeastern Bolivar State. It was founded with the name Angostura in 1764, renamed in 1846, and, as of 2010, had an estimated population of 350,691....
in 1971.
It seems that a copy of that LP arrived at the offices of the Caraqueño
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
TV station "Cadena Venezolana de Televisión" (now VTV
Venezolana de Televisión
Corporación Venezolana de Televisión or VTV is a state-owned television network based in Caracas, Venezuela, which can be seen throughout the country on channel eight...
) and the four singers took part in a variety programme. When the presenter asked the name of the group, one of them answered that it was the same as the LP – until then none of the group had considered what the name should be.
In 2000, for the Expo 2000
Expo 2000
Expo 2000 was a World's Fair held in Hanover, Germany from Thursday, June 1 to Tuesday, October 31, 2000. It was located on the Hanover fairground , which is famous for hosting CeBIT...
in Hannover, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, they had one of their rare concerts outside South-America. In honor to the "Venezuelan Day", they sang with a German Children's 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....
Group.
Discography
Bolívar (state)
Bolívar State , is one of the 23 states into which Venezuela is divided. The state capital city is Ciudad Bolívar. Bolívar State covers a total surface area of 238,000 km² and in June 30, 2010 had an estimated population of 1,620,359....
composer Alejandro Vargas appeared, as well as the first composition by Iván Pérez Rossi (integrante), the aguinaldo "¿Donde está San Nicolás?", which became a hit later. However, their real success began with the album "Serenata Guayanesa Volume 2" (1973), with the songs "Calypso del Callao" (composed by the "Sociedad de Amigos del Calypso de El Callao") and the classic Venezuelan Christmas number "Aguinaldo Criollo" (by the writer Isabel de Umérez and composer Luis Morales Bance), both great hits, as well as the llanero number "Fiesta en Elorza" by the Venezuelan musician, composer and singer Eneas Perdomo.
In 1978 the group decided to record an album of aguinaldo
Aguinaldo
Aguinaldo is a folk genre of Christmas music in Puerto Rico, and is based on an archaic form of Spanish Christmas carols. Aguinaldo music is often performed by what is called parrandas—a casual group of people, often family or friends, who go from house to house.- Puerto Rican aguinaldo :In...
Christmas music, which was not widely known across Venezuela. This album, entitled "Serenata Guayanesa Volume 5: Popular Venezuelan Aguinaldos " included the hits "Corre Caballito" (anonymous) and "El Furruquero" (Iván Pérez Rossi). On this album the group’s singers, together with the singers and drummers Mauricio Castro and César Pérez Rossi, played their own accompaniment on instruments like the chineco and the furruco (vinculados for Christmas music).
In 1981 their contract with "Palacio de la Música" expired and they signed with the Organización Diego Cisneros Sonorodven, who brought out an album of their greatest hits, including one new number "Señor Gabán". That contract also expired quicly and they signed with Sonográfica. By this time the group was established as the biggest in Venezuelan popular music. They then hit upon the idea of making an album of music for children, called "Cantemos con los niños" (Let’s sing with the children), which included specially written songs, poems set to music and traditional folk songs. This album was again a great hit, even among adults, with the numbers "La Pulga y el Piojo" and "Este Niño Don Simón". It is interesting to note that one very sentimental song was called "En Mi Pueblo Había Un Río" (In my village there was a river), which told the story of a village in which the native plants and wildlife died out.
Simón Bolívar
Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Yeiter, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military and political leader...
including two albums with songs and fragments of speeches by Bolívar himself. The actor Gustavo Rodríguez read the speeches and the music was recorded by Serenata Guayanesa with Hernán Gamboa (his first recordings as a solo artist) and the late internationally renowned artist Jesús Soto, for the first and only time recorded singing and playing the guitar. After that Hernán Gamboa went on to pursue a solo career, while the pediatrician, singer and cuatrista caraqueño Miguel Ángel Bosch joined the group.
With Bosch, the group recorded in 1984 a second album of music for children ("Cantemos con los niños, volumen 2") less successful than the first. However, the group recorded a second navideno LP entitled "Viene la parranda", with other musicians, for example a guest appearance by the cuatro and violin player Gualberto Ibarreto. Two years later, for their fifteenth anniversary, the group brought out an album "Caribe Abajo" of Latin American music, some composed specially, some already known. In this album the group was supported by the musicians Rafael, Kenny and Carlos Arrieta (on the caja, guacharaca and accordion, respectively) for a performance of the number in vallenato style "Mis Peroles" (composed by Iván Pérez Rossi), and their first videoclip was recorded in a humorous style.
In 1991, the group recorded their first CD entitled "Si la tierra, tierra fuera", promoted by a further video. They had a new hit from this album with the interpretation of the pasodoble
Pasodoble
Pasodoble is a typical dance from Spain march-like musical style as well as the corresponding dance style danced by a couple. It is the type of music typically played in bullfights during the bullfighters' entrance to the ring or during the passes just before the kill...
"Caracas Mi Ciudad" with the trumpeter Jorge Montenegro and the drummer Antonio Cestari. Their stay with the Sonográfica label was ended with their first live album, recorded at a concert at the Teresa Carreño Theatre
Teresa Carreño Cultural Complex
The Teresa Carreño Cultural Complex , also known as Teresa Carreño Theater , is the most important theatre of Caracas and Venezuela, where performances include symphonic and popular concerts, opera, ballet and plays...
, celebrating their 25th anniversary. This double album entitled "Una Amistad de 25 Años" (A 25 Year Friendship) had contributions by well known Venezuelan artists such as María Teresa Chacín
María Teresa Chacín
'María Teresa Chacín , is a famous Venezuelan singer, in her career has brought Venezuelan music to all parts of her country, and has become one of the most popular figures of Venezuela...
, 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:...
, Simón Díaz
Simón Díaz
Simón Narciso Díaz Márquez is a singer and Grammy Award winning composer of Venezuelan music.- Career :Díaz has endeavored to recover the folklore and musical traditions of the llanos, the Venezuelan plains...
, Gualberto Ibarreto
Gualberto Ibarreto
Gualberto Ibarreto , is a folk singer who plays the mandolin, cuatro, and guitar.During his childhood, he taught himself how to play several instruments after observing popular musicians of the Venezuelan east. He later received some slight knowledge of academic music from Tobías Hernandez and Raul...
, Vidal Colmenares
Vidal Colmenares
Vidal Colmenares was born on February 14, 1952 in Caño de Indio, a neighborhood in Barinas, deep inside the llanos.When he was 15 years old, started to sing parrandas llaneras in his home town...
, Ismael Querales, and the gaita zuliana singers Ricardo Cepeda and Abdenago "Neguito" Borjas.
After this, Serenata Guayanesa began to produce their own recordings, reissuing their previous albums with Sonográfica CD format, including numbers recorded in past times with new compositions. in 2003 the CD "Cantemos Con Los Niños" (Let’s Sing with the Children) presents a revised edition of their first album of Venezuelan music for children, in 2005 Serenata Guayanesa made the album El Ferrocarril, with new compositions and new songs.