Riddle MagazineShipwrecked Accordions
Traditionally performed with three instruments, one of which is an accordion, vallenato music crosses the social divides in Colombia
Article by Boris Seckovic
Legend has it that sometime in the 1800s a German vessel was shipwrecked in the Magdalena River, just off the Atlantic coast of Colombia. The goods that had been on their way to Argentina, hundreds of accordions, ended up washed up along Colombia’s northern coastline. Stumbling upon these strange yet magically sounding three-reed instruments, the natives churned out a new musical genre that eventually became known as Vallenato and, alongside the accordion itself, is a major hallmark of Colombian culture. The accordion’s popularity within Colombia has grown to such an extent that today the German music powerhouse Hohner sells more accordions in Colombia than in any other market in the world.
Similar in its essence to American country music, vallenato has evolved to become Colombia’s most popular traditional music genre. The best of it is on show in late April every year when it’s hometown, Valledupar, an otherwise sleepy rural town of some 400,000 inhabitants, comes alive as fans of vallenato music from all over the country and beyond come to join in the festivities. Founded in 1967, El Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata is a cultural spectacle, an authentic yet spirited festival that culminates in the crowing of the Rey Vallenato (Vallenato King), the best interpreter of the diatonic accordion, the centrepiece of vallenato music. For five days straight the sound of the accordion fills the streets while people stroll from one parranda (party) to another, each of which lasting well into the next day. Crowds flock onto the main squares to watch the competitors compete across four categories of accordion proficiency; professional, amateur, juvenile and infant. Traditionally performed with three instruments, vallenato happens to be the music that best represents the cultural makeup of Colombia’s society. There’s the guacharaca, a wooden scraper, owning its origins to the country’s indigenous communities, the caja drum, representative of the Afro-Colombian population, and finally the accordion, an instrument of European descent.
The roots of vallenato date back to the late 19th century, right around the first appearance of the accordion itself. At a time when communication was difficult and travel was arduous, the rural communities of the Magdalena, Cesar and La Guajira regions relied on messengers to pass on information and convey news to families and loved ones. These messengers were in fact minstrels, “juglares” in Spanish, a form of troubadours that would relay stories from village to village in exchange for food and drinks. Usually travelling on donkey or mule, these juglares would stay in each village for a few days, soaking up the gossip and messages to pass on to the next. The events they witnessed and the experiences they had would gradually develop into songs. At the turn of the century a new musical genre was born within the poorer classes of northern Colombia’s rural population and by the 1920s the town of Valle De Upar (today Valledupar) would become its home.
Vallenato music was first heard in Valledupar during colitas (tails), after-parties that the service staff would organise after their work at the formal events of the evening had ceased. Hearing the melancholic sound of the accordion and poetic stories, guests from the higher social circles were drawn-in and often ended up partying with their servants. However, in the Club de Valledupar, a country-club popular with the town’s elite, both the music and the accordion as an instrument were banned, making way for pianos, violins and waltzes. Ironically it was in Bogota that vallenato gained momentum, as the capital’s intellectuals caught onto the catchy tunes and intriguing stories of life, love, heartbreak, and everyday struggles gripping the rural communities. It was actually a former president, Alfonso Lopez Michelsen, who became an authority on the genre and went on to co-found the vallenato festival. A friend of the great composer Rafael Escalona, Michelsen and his esteemed colleagues were the seal of approval needed to make vallenato acceptable in its hometown. And as the colitas grew into parrandas vallenatas, the rest of the country slowly began taking note of this highly passionate music. However, a bridge was still needed to ignite vallenato’s popularity not only in Colombia but throughout Latin America. This came in the form of Carlos Vives, a former actor turned pop singer. Much like Elvis popularised blues music in the Unites States, Carlos Vives took traditional vallenato songs and gave them a modern makeover. The results were spectacular. Two Grammy awards, 9 Latin Grammy awards and a shift in perception that would lead vallenato to overtake cumbia as Colombia’s representative music genre. All over the country, otherwise regionally isolated custom and culture wise, Colombians would dance and sing along to songs written by little known and often underprivileged composers from the plains of northern Colombia.
Gabriel Garcia Marquez once referred to his greatest work, One Hundred Years of Solitude, as a 400 page vallenato, a significant compliment and testimony to the music’s profoundness. Unfortunately, today vallenato music has metamorphasised into something else, the “nueva ola” or new wave as they call it. Much of the initial meaning has been lost as emphasis is given to straightforward and often meaningless lyrics in an effort to compete against reggaeton, the most popular music genre amongst the young. However, during the five days of the festival, Valledupar pays homage to the great composers and accordion players of past and present and reminds us that classic vallenato is not only alive and well but also remains of fundamental importance in the everyday lives of millions of Colombians. To think that a key part of Colombia’s cultural identity would not exist today had those accordions made it to Argentina.
Boris is a contributing writer alongside his co-founder Marc at Amakuna, a boutique travel company specialising in creating bespoke holidays in Colombia. Working to create a unique and unforgettable journey, Amakuna’s local access and knowledge allows travellers to immerse themselves in what the country can offer. Enquiries: [email protected] / 0207 1937582