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I first heard Lila Downs' distinctive sultry, sassy voice in the film "Frida." The movie's entire soundtrack is extraordinary, and I still listen to the CD frequently. Fortunately Ms. Downs has come out with four albums since then. I bought them all because I love the passion and soul she puts into her music. "La Sandunga," her debut album released in 1997, is one of my favorites, with its highly original arrangements. She weaves the indigenous music of her native lands - Mexico and the United States - into a multicultural fabric. Her variegated sound is a real fusion of Mexican folk songs, rich American blues and jazz, along with some pop, mixed in with Afro-Cuban and Brazilian rhythms. Lyrics are in Spanish, English and Mexico's Mayan, Zapotec, Nahuatl, and Mixtec Indian dialects. I have never heard the classics "La Llorona" and "La Malaguena" sung quite like this before. Absolutely fantastic!!
"La Sandunga" is an unusually eclectic mix, based on Ms. Downs' international artistic vision! Her formal vocal training (opera) gives her a tremendously varied range. Her songs come from the villages whose culture she studied after leaving opera studies and her repertoire includes boleros, ballads and rancheros, as well as original compositions backed by a multi-ethnic, very talented band. A Brazilian guitarist, a Cuban bassist, a Chilean drummer, a Mexican harpist, and a pianist/saxophonist/musical director from New Jersey create a creative, crisp, jazzy, at times bluesy Latin sound.
The title song, "La Sandunga," is a traditional Zapotec folk song. It is usually played at local festivities and at weddings. "La Zandunga" is a type of cancion performed as a Mexican waltz. It is a result of the music of the conquistadores,' who arrived from the Spanish provinces of Navarra and Leon, combined with that of indigenous cultures.
Other highlights include: "Pobre Changuita," which epitomizes Mexican country music and is one of my favorite cuts; "Ofrenda" is a corrido inspired by Mixtec immigrants who come to the US to find work and die here; "Yunu Yucu Ninu" is an extraordinary Mixtec poem written by Juan de Dios Ortiz, a Mixtec poet from San Miguel el Grande. It is truly beautiful. There is a Spanish and English translation in the linear notes; "Pinotepa," another favorite, is known as a chilena, a musical style brought from Chile by African slaves; The last three songs, bonus tracks, "Perfume de Gardenias," "La Maleguena," "Besame Mucho," are "part of a musical collaboration with choreographer Cecilia Lugo and the contemporary dance company Contempodanza. They were originally part of a collection called 'Trazos,' released in limited edition in 1999." I already mentioned "La Llorona" above.
Lila Downs is a Mexican-American vocalist, with a Scottish-American father, and a Mixteca mother. She grew up in both the Mexican state of Oaxaca and in Minnesota, USA, bi-lingual and bi-cultural. Lila received formal voice training in Mexico and in the States, and performs her own compositions, as well as tapping into the rich music from Mexico's indigenous peoples. Ms. Downs stated during an interview: "I have this special relationship with my voice. Though I've never considered myself to be a spiritual person....it's a spiritual feeling I have, which began when I studied anthropology. I began to have something approaching awe for this thing that came out of my body, which had to do with something bigger than me. Awe for this gift."
La Sandunga" is a wonderful CD! Lila Downs is a unique artist - simply superb! Highly recommended.
JANA
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