Eva Ayllon
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Eva Ayllon

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Music

The best kept secret in music

Press


"LA Times: Peruvian magic in Ayllon's stylings"

Peruvian singer Eva Ayllon has been performing for more than 30 years in her native country, where she is considered the prime exponent of musica criolla, a vibrant array of folkloric styles. But it's only been in the last several years that she has toured extensively with her own band outside her country.

Appearing Friday at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, the engaging singer graciously trumpeted her dual nominations in this year's Latin Grammys.

"Oh, I can be really obnoxious with this business about the nominations," she jokingly told her adoring, near-capacity audience in Spanish. 'But I'm not going to stop what I'm doing until every American has heard these songs."

That's certainly a worthy goal, since Peru's pop is among the most beautiful but least appreciated in the Americas. Judging from the overwhelmingly Peruvian crowd at the Ford, Ayllon still faces the challenge of winning converts from her fellow Latin Americans first.

Most people in the U.S. associate Peru with the mournful, flute- dominated music of the Andes, popularized by Paul Simon with "El Condor Pasa."

Ayllon, however, focuses on the elegant and lively genres of the coastal plains, of Lima in particular. Her songbook includes the ultra-romantic vals criollo, poetic torch songs set to a tasty waltz tempo and adorned by shimmering Spanish guitar riffs. Her other specialty is the danceable music of black Peru, featuring a panoply of infectious, pelvic-thrusting rhythms such as lando, festejo and alcatraz. On Friday, Ayllon's crack sextet (plus two chorus singers) put the percussion up front, with three dazzling drummers in short- sleeved shirts and ties sitting on the distinctive cajon, or box, an instrument that mimics the hollow sound of workers smacking fruit- packing crates.

The other half of the band was stripped to basics of keyboard, bass and guitar. That yielded a somewhat sharp and shallow live sound, compared to Ayllon's richly layered recordings textured with acoustic piano, sax, flute and even accordion and marimba.

But when she sang, the backup didn't matter. At 47, Ayllon still has all her robust range and smoky nuance. With her dramatic, a cappella rendition of "Bello Durmiente" (Sleeping Beauty), a tribute to her homeland, the singer hushed the festive, sing-along crowd, creating an almost prayer-like stillness in the balmy night.
- Agustin Gurza; Aug 11, 2003


"LA Times:"

".....the Tina Turner of Afro-Peruvian music -- energetic and playful, sexy and fully charged" - -


"Newsday"

“To discover the prodigious talent of Eva Ayllón at this late date is like suddenly noticing Niagara Falls” - -


"NY Times"

“Strong and outrageously good”
- -


"Washington Post"

Peruvian singer Eva Ayllon is a diva, but she's also a folkloric artist with a message about race, class and self-esteem in her home country. A black Peruvian, she began singing musica criolla in the late 1970s, and now plays to crowds of 30,000 in Lima. Her genre's combination of ballads and up-tempo dance numbers, once a nearly forgotten approach, draws from African and Spanish influences blended by slaves who worked Peru's silver mines and sugar plantations.

Saturday night at the Lincoln Theatre, Ayllon and a nine-piece band turned traditionals and 20th-century poetry into contemporary vehicles for flirting, strutting and educating. Wearing a long, close-fitting velvet dress, the nearly 50-year-old South American legend gyrated sensually on speedy festejos such as the mixed-race tale "Inga," supported by an exuberant percussive cacophony.

Instrumentalists on cajon (a wooden box), mini-maracas, the quijada (donkey jawbone), bongos and bass provided the mother-country-rooted bottom, while the acoustic guitarist added the Iberian-derived flamenco-like high end. On waltz-based numbers like "Fina Estampa" and soulful landos like "Negra Presentuosa," the keyboardist led the more syrupy playing, while Ayllon struck theatrical poses and sang powerfully if a bit too melodramatically on certain numbers.

By evening's end, many pleased audience members were pulling out their cell phones to take pictures of Ayllon, who blew kisses to them during the encore.


- Steve Kiviat


"Boston Herald"

“It’s all about Eva”

- -


"LA Times"

“...[her] throaty, potent,
chocolatey voice recalls the
passion and intensity of
Celia Cruz and Cesaria Evora.” - -


"Miami Herald"

“A voice with no borders.”
- -


Discography

MULTIPLE PLATINUM

1.) GRANDES EXITOS # 01 1991

2.) CONCIERTO DE GALA 1992

3.) GRANDES EXITOS # 02 1993

4.) GRACIAS A LA VIDA 1993

5.) PARA TENERTE 1994

DOUBLE PLATINUM

1.) RITMO COLOR Y SABOR 1996

2.) 30 AÑOS EN VIVO 2001

PLATINUM

1.) GRACIAS A LA VIDA 1993

2.) 25 AÑOS 25 EXITOS 1995

3.) AMANECER EN TI 1998

4.) JUNTOS LLEVAMOS LA PAZ 1999

5.) EVA -EVA

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

New Album "Eva!Leyenda Peruana" due to be released on September 7th, 2004.

If you ask a typical Peruvian who is your favorite singer, the answer that you'd get may surprise you. It is Eva Ayllón. Eva Ayllón is a superstar in Perú with more than 20 hit albums in a star-studded career spanning a quarter century. Eva is the leading exponent of Peruvian música criolla, a broad genre with both African and Spanish origins. After being introduced to North American audiences in David Byrne’s compilation “The Soul of Black Perú,” Eva’s dynamic concerts are now making headlines in the United States and Europe. Eva’s performances burst with poetic energy, an explosion of her gifted vocalization and the impeccable musicianship of her virtuoso musicians from Perú. In 2003 Eva enjoyed a double Latin Grammy nomination for her self-titled album and for her leading role with Los Hijos del Sol.

Eva Ayllón was born María Angélica Ayllón Urbina on February 7, 1956, adopting the name “Eva” after her maternal grandmother who initiated her in vocalization at the age of three. Within a few years, she was singing at school, youth competitions and later, on television and radio. In the early 70’s she began to appear in many of the local peñas criollas, a gathering of musician friends, and began to define herself as one of the leading interpreters of Perú’s Música Criolla. From 1973 through 1975, she sang as the lead voice in the popular trio Los Kipus, eventually leaving the group to pursue a solo career. By 1979, she began touring internationally, with appearances in Europe, the United States, Canada, and Japan and since then her music and live performances are requested on a yearly basis at international music events. In addition to Música Criolla, Eva emerged as the leading exponent of Afro-Peruvian landós and festejos. The most important interpreter of Peruvian music, deservedly known as the Queen of Landó, is today at her musical peak. Recently, Eva was selected to represent Perú at the Kennedy Center’s AmericArtes Festival “Celebrating the Arts of Latin America.”

Eva recently celebrated her professional career of 30 years before 20,000 adoring fans in Lima, Perú. In April 2002, Eva received her eighth award for achieving double platinum status for the album “30 años en Vivo.” To her credit, Eva Ayllón is the only Peruvian artist on the international stage that can completely sell out a performance venue.

“Being able to sing is the most wonderful gift that God bestowed on me and singing for my country, Perú, gives me a sense of great pride. Thanks to each and every single one of you who have supported me during my career, and thanks for keeping me in a little place in your hearts and in your homes.” – Eva Ayllón –