My Peru diary - day 15 (all about the BIG SHOOT)

Peru diary (Dec. 19, 2014)

Well, yesterday was the BIG SHOOT, the reason that I scheduled my trip when I did, so that I could get all three great percussionists together:  Lalo Izquierdo, Juan Medrano Cotito, and Huevito Lobatón.

We filmed the conversation part in "my apartment."  l to r:  Cotito, Huevito Lobatón and Lalo Izquierdo.

And they were, well, great!

We started off by filming a conversation between the three of them, in which I presented three topics and asked them simply to talk about them.  The first topic was...how did they learn Afro-Peruvian rhythms.  Of course, I knew they had all learned as kids in their homes, watching parents, family, and friends but I wanted them to talk about this in front of the camera.

They did, indeed, talk.  After an hour on the topic, I had to raise my hand and ask them to stop since I was running out of film.  (I still shoot with videotape, although the other two camera people had video cards.)

Me with Huevito Lobatón.  We filmed the interviews in a park in Barranco (another district of Lima).

What they said as they talked was really fun and interesting.  I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Because of the time factor, we had to skip topic two, and I had them move briefly through topic three (what they think is the future of Afro-Peruvian music, rhythms and dance).

Next, we filmed short interviews in which I asked each of them separately a very few questions.

Lalo Izquierdo and Juan Medrano Cotito in the park.

Finally, the big thing:  the performance part.  We filmed this in a cultural organization which has a stage and puts on performances.  It's called Casa Shenan.

They did four numbers:  one with just the three of them playing cajón and singing;  one with Lalo Izquierdo and Huevito Lobatón performing zapateo footwork (with a guitar accompanying them) and two with a guitar, a singer, and the three of them playing percussion - cajón and some quijada de burro.

In Casa Shenan, setting up for the performance part.

It was really great.  In fact, I've decided I'll use this material (supplemented by other things I shot in Peru) to make a documentary called Masters of Percussion...because they really are, and all three are fascinating people.

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I am in Peru for reasons related to our documentary, A Zest for Life, and other work about Afro-Peruvians.

(For more photos, go to the Facebook page of Palomino Productions, A Zest for Life Afro-Peruvian, and Eve A. Ma.)

My Peru diary - day 5 (filming)

Diary, day 5 (Dec. 9, 2014)

FILMING

Since I've arrived, I've recorded a very interesting interview with Luis Rocca, director and one of the founders of the Museo Afropeuano de Zaña (Afro-Peruvian Museum of Zaña) and filmed two interesting interviews plus some  really great cajón demonstrations with Lalo Izquierdo (a percussionist, dancer, choreographer and folklorist...as well as a great human being).  Tomorrow, I'm supposed to film an interview with the widow of a former Afro-Peruvian percussionist great, Ronaldo Campos.

Luis Rocca, with Luisa (Nachi) Bustamante (wife of Cotito) and their son, Carlos Medrano.

My camera person for the Lalo Izquierdo filming did not do as good a job as I'd hoped...not a disaster, but problematical enough so that I'll do the filming tomorrow all by myself...and interview the widow at the same time.  My fingers are crossed that it will turn out well!  

I have other camera people, and a sound person for the BIG SHOOT on Dec. 18, where we'll film three percussionists and a guitarist performing, and also film an interview with the percussionists.

Setting up for the interview with Lalo Izquierdo.

Locations are always a problem, and Lima is even noisier than Jerez de la Frontera.  Thank goodness for those little mics you clip to your lapel.  They make it possible to record a decent interview even in noisy circumstances.  Thank goodness for my precious Zoom H-2 mic and digital recorder.  Thank goodness for....

I also seem to have surmounted the various technical problems I encountered on first arriving, but don't want to overstate this.  There can always be new technical problems tomorrow.

Me with Lalo at the time of the interview.

And that's it, folks.  I'm attaching a few photos here for your pleasure and general edification.  As you see, the ocean is way, way down there.

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(For more photos, go to the Facebook pages of Palomino Productions, A Zest for Life Afro-Peruvian, and Eve A. Ma.)

I am in Peru for reasons related to our documentary, A Zest for Life, and other work about Afro-Peruvians.

My Peru diary, day 5

(diary entry, Dec. 9,  2014)

Ok, FOOD:

Ceviche.  I've eaten a lot of it here.  It's very good.  Whenever I see both fish and seafood ceviche offered, I ask someone else to choose for me and they always choose fish.  So next time you're in Lima, remember:  fish ceviche it is.

There are plenty of places to eat near where I'm staying.

Purée.  I've always thought of purée as something you can do to various foodstuffs, like puréed peas....but here, it's a dish.  Potatoes and corn puréed together.  There may also be some milk added;  I'm not sure.  It's pasty yellowish, but tastes pretty good.

Rice and seafood.  Very tasty.

Befstek (beefstead).  Overcooked, at least where I ordered it.  Avoid if possible.

Vegetables.  Kind of few and far between.

Camoche.  It's sweet potato and comes as a side with many things, including ceviche.  Good stuff.

Avocados.  Gigantic.  Tasty.  Usually stuffed, or chopped and put into other dishes.

A lovely park near where I'm staying:  Parque 7 de julio.

Papayas.  Even more gigantic.  Some have reddish flesh.  Very good, as is the other fruit here.

Italian food.  There's a nice little Italian restaurant near my place with nice little overpriced food.

Chocolate.  There's a museum of chocolate near my place.  (Yes, a museum of chocolate.)  You can watch them make chocolate.  You can read the seven or eight steps involved.  By the end of reading them, you will be totally confused.  You can purchase their hand-made, fair price, expensive but good chocolate.  I still prefer the Lindt chocolate I get in California.

There are 50-100 feral kitties in the Parque Kennedy, next to the Parque 7 de julio.  An organization provides them with food and tries to find homes for them

WATER

Everyone warned me about drinking the water.  Bottled water is the only way to go, they said, and don't even let anyone give you a drink with ice in it.

So on day 2, when I was given some fruit juice, after 3 swallows I thought to ask if it was pure juice or if it had been mixed with water.  I was told it had been mixed with water.  Uh, oh.  

BUT nothing happened.  No bad effects.

So 2 days later, I deliberately drank one and a half glasses of fruit juice mixed with water (chichi).  No bad effects.

A fine-looking church near where I'm staying.

Today, I ordered the freshly squeezed (I asked) lemonade.  I drank 3 and one half glasses.   That was at 4:30pm.  It is now nearly 11pm.  So far, no bad effects but  maybe in 5 minutes????  

(By the way, the lemons here are small and green, and look like limes, but they don't TASTE like limes.)

If nothing happens, in another couple of days I'll try drinking some tap water.

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(For more photos, go to the Palomino Productions' Facebook page.)

I am in Peru for reasons related to our documentary, A Zest for Life, and other work about Afro-Peruvians.

My Peru diary, day 3

(diary entry, Dec. 7, 2014)

Last night, I went to a performance at The Jazz Zone to see a group called Colectiva Palenque.  Most of the people in the group look to be in their 30s, and they perform Afro-Peruvian fusion.  It was a lot of fun.  I've forgotten all their names (the show was to start at 11pm but didn't really get underway until around midnight and I was kind of sleepy), but the group's leader and his cousin were fantastic dancers of zapateo (very elaborate and dramatic Afro-Peruvian footwork) and were also very good on the cajón and quijada de burro.  In addition, they were personable and charismatic.

The same was true of the other members of the group.   Those who really stood out from my point of view, other than the two mentioned above, were the vocalist and the guy who spent 15 minutes solo making strange noises into the microphone, delivered in ever-changing rhythms.  You had to have been there....

There was also a guy who did rap in Spanish (of course in Spanish) who was plenty good enough, the guitarists were fine, but again, the two who danced zapateo and played the cajón, etc., were the stars of the show.

The Jazz Zone is located in this alley in Miraflores, one of the nicest parts of Lima

There was song, there was poetry, there was LOTS of rhythm, there was even a dance of the Son de los Diablos.

By the end, many in the audience (yours truly included) were on their feet, dancing.  A good time was had by all.

In the meantime, I've made further, elaborate arrangements about filming and have been meeting with people I should meet with.  Tomorrow at mid-day, I'll interview Luis Rocca, the director of the Museo Afroperuano de Zaña (Zaña is a small city in the northern coastal region) and on Monday, will film an interview with Lalo Izquierdo plus one with the widow of a former Afro-Peruvian percussionist great, Ronaldo Campos.

Juan Medrano Cotito (right) with wife Nachi (Luisa) Bustamante.

Then, there's always the bus experience, the food (including some really great ceviche), and the problem cable (this has to do with Apple, Inc....which has now ditched its firewire cables and connections-bad, bad, bad Apple, Inc.).

Onwards, ever onwards.

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(For more photos, go to the Facebook page of Palomino Productions, A Zest for Life Afro-Peruvian, and Eve A. Ma.)

I am in Peru for reasons related to our documentary, A Zest for Life, and other work about Afro-Peruvians.

My Peru diary, day 2

(Diary entry, Dec. 6, 2014)

I arrived in Lima, Peru, on Dec. 4 on a trip to film and investigate themes related to Afro-Peruvian music and dance.  Some of what I film will serve to add to the documentary I've already produced, A Zest for Life:  Afro-Peruvian Rhythms, a Source of Latin Jazz.

Others will form the basis for a trailer to be used to solicit funding for a new project I have in mind.

Here are some of the photos I took in Lima, in my first 48 hours in the city.

Lima, with over 7 million inhabitants, is home to nearly one third of the entire population of Peru.  The city, or rather, the metropolitan area of Lima, grew to engulf many surrounding towns and cities which are now simply districts in the larger urban area.

The street in front of the building where I'm staying.

I have rented a room in an apartment in Miraflores, one of the nicer districts that borders the Pacific Ocean.

In my first 48 hours in Lima, I consulted with a sound tech and after discussing with him, chosen two locations where we'll shoot.  I then went to the local city hall (Municipalidad de Miraflores) to ask permission re one of the locations.  Then I rushed off to central Lima to meet with Lalo Izquierdo, one of the three people we'll be filming.  Meeting him involved a memorable trip on a local bus.

Proof that I was there:  me, with the building's guard dog.

I rushed back from the meeting with Lalo to meet with Nachi Bustamante, wife of Cotito;  Cotito is another one of the three principal people that we'll be filming.  I went out with her to have some lunch (at 6:30pm...hadn't had time before that).  After eating, she showed me around and she told me about a show I should go to featuring a group of younger people celebrating the Afro-Peruvian experience (Colectiva Palenque).  It was a lively and fun event.

After these several meetings, I developed a plan.  Life, of course, intervened when I learned, among other things, that one of the locations I had chosen (the one for which I requested permission from city hall) wouldn't work because it was under construction!

My room in Lima is about 4 blocks from the shore of the Pacific.

One way or another, clearly, my time in Peru will be filled.  In addition to several shootings and interviews in Lima, I will go to el Carmen, to San Luis de Cañete, to Zaña, possibly to Guayabo.  I'll be filming in almost all of these.

This means I won't be able to make it to Manchu Pichu.  There´s just not enough time.

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(For more photos, go to the Facebook pages for Palomino Productions, A Zest for Life Afro-Peruvian, and Eve A. Ma.)

I am in Peru for reasons related to our documentary, A Zest for Life, and other work about Afro-Peruvians.

Lalo Izquierdo in Peru: an interview & a cajón demonstration

Yesterday (Dec 8, 2014) we filmed an interview and cajón demonstration with Lalo Izquierdo in the patio of the apartment where I'm staying in Lima, Peru. "We" means me and a camera operator/all around assistant. He will remain nameless because the quality of his work was kind of mediocre.

On the whole, things went fine and I think I know how to fix a few of the little problems that cropped up with the image. But life is full of little bumps in the road, right?

Lalo Izquierdo (right) and me.  A bit of a contrast, right?

Our first bump came when Lalo couldn't find the apartment. Lima is a big city, and when I say I'm staying in Lima, I really mean I'm staying in greater Lima, in the Lima metropolitan area.

My particular section is called Miraflores, and the apartment is on a short street named la Libertad. I called Lalo on his cell phone 15 minutes after he was due, and found out he was wandering around, looking for the street. I passed the phone over to the camera operator who explained to Lalo how to get here. Twenty minutes later, I got a call from Lalo...he was still wandering around.  Lost.

The upper half of "my" short street, la Libertad.

In the end I had to send the camera operator out to find him and guide him over here.

Next problem: I was short one camera battery. (We were filming with three of my cameras, using two different formats). That was solved when we found an electrical outlet close enough for one of the cameras to use.

Starting to set up.

After overcoming several other little problems, we obtained a fairly decent image and good sound for two separate interviews (one for each format) and two separate cajón demonstrations, plus shots of Lalo and me walking down the street. 

What we missed, which is important, is a second interview to be conducted in Sucro with an elderly woman (wife of a deceased Afro-Peruvian percussionist great, Ronaldo Campos). With the problems of Lalo getting lost and the time it took to film everything in Miraflores, she had gone out.

Lalo on set with the cajón.

We'll catch her another day.

And the problems with the camera operator? He doesn't know how to zoom, and the only idea he has of filming an interview is to point the camera towards the people to be filmed and punch the "record" button.

SIGH!

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We are working on making a few revisions in our documentary film, A Zest for Life: Afro-Peruvian Rhythms, a Source of Latin Jazz, and shooting a trailer for a new, more comprehensive work about Afro-Peruvian music and the Afro-Peruvian community.

P.S.  Thanks to María del Carment López Quispe for help with some of my makeup.

5th Annual International Cajón Festival

The Fifth Annual International Cajón Festival is in progress right now in Lima, Peru.  It runs from April 10-22.  Yesterday, organizers were expecting 1,500 cajón players (of all skills) to participate in a massive -- and undoubtedly loud and upbeat -- celebration open to anyone who had a cajón was invited to this event, intended to break the record set last year.

On other days, the festival features famous cajón players including Rafael Santa Cruz, Cotito (seen briefly in our documentary, A Zest for Life--both in a photo and also playing the checo), and performers from Spain (including two flamenco performances), from Brazil, Cuba, Mexico and Venezuela as well as, of course, many from Peru.

Cotito, with cajón, checo, and other Afro-Peruvian percussion instruments.

There are also videos, lectures, conferences, music clinics, and a couple of slots set aside for the checo...and again, LOTS of cajón performance.  If you are a percussionist, this is where you should be!

The web site for the festival is here LINK, but it is in Spanish.....

Although people of all kinds (and all races) now play the Afro-Peruvian cajón, the festival is giving due attention to its origins in the Afro-Peruvian community, featuring many great Afro-Peruvian percussionists as well as plenty of focus in the talks, videos, etc., about the Afro-Peruvian origins of this instrument.

OUR NEXT POST will be about the upcoming trip to Berlin for the Black International Film Festival (where A Zest for Life will be screened).  OK--next post will be about a video of zapateo, cajon, etc. that a nice person named Kevin sent me, and the one AFTER that will be about Berlin.

Some black Latino history as told by Lalo Izquierdo

As I think we've mentioned, Lalo Izquierdo, the star of our documentary, A Zest for Life:  Afro-Peruvian Rhythms, a Source of Latin Jazz, is not only a master dancer and percussionist, not only a choreographer, but also a folklorist.  We filmed some very interesting interviews with him that didn't fit well into the documentary itself, but they're much too good to just cast aside.

Here is one of them, in which he explains how it is that Lima, Peru (Peru's capitol city) has so many Afro-Peruvian peddlers.



We hope in the future to post some other of his interviews, but in the meantime, we'd love to know how you like this one.

Izquierdo now has his own performance group in Lima, Peru and in addition, has recently been appointed Director of the Institute of Cultural Expression in the National Afro-Peruvian Museum in Peru.  A busy man!

Lalo Izquierdo

 He's also a man who loves to smile.  Nice guy.


OUR NEXT BLOG will be about Gabriel Alegria, my article on Afro-Peruvian jazz, etc.