Los Jaivas


Los Jaivas is a Chilean musical group who perform in folk, rock, psychedelic, and progressive rock styles formed in 1963 in Viña Del Mar, Chile. They are considered one of the most important and influential artists of all time in Latin America.

History

Los Jaivas was started by the brothers Eduardo, Claudio and Gabriel Parra, from Viña del Mar. Together with their friends and classmates from high school at the Liceo Guillermo Rivera Cotapos, they first played on August 15, 1963, under the name of The High & Bass as a progressive-rock-andino group, mixing rock with South American ancestral music.
At that time in Chile, it was customary to use English names for musical bands. Another source indicates that the name is a reference to the members differences in height, since the word in Spanish for bass guitar is the same as that for short. Another source explains the name as a reference to the bass guitar played at a very high volume compared to the other instruments. During the following six years, and with its stable formation the band played at parties and social gatherings in Viña del Mar, mainly performing music tropical, cha cha cha, bossa nova and boleros, with good results.
They quickly realized that an English-sounding name was not appropriate for a folk band, so they changed it to Jaivas.
Between 1970 and 1971, and with its Spanishized name "Los Jaivas", the group's concerts became absolute improvisations, without scripts or prepared schemes, and with each musical instrument generating its own atmosphere, even with the help of the audience. Improvisation led them to the appreciation of Latin American musical roots and to the exploration of the sounds of ancestral instruments, which allowed them to combine apparently irreconcilable styles, but which Los Jaivas decided to capture in their subsequent musical creation.
Several concerts from this time, including those held at the Vanguard Music Festival of Viña del Mar, the Sala de la Reforma of the Faculty of Musical Arts and Sciences of the University of Chile, the Cine Arte de Viña del Mar and the Park of the Cultural Institute of Las Condes, in addition to the soundtrack prepared for a film that was never made, are reflected in the five-disc collection entitled La Vorágine, which documents the stage known as the Prehistory of Los Jaivas.
During this time, in addition, the group participates in the mythical Red Stone Festival and records its first official record label, homonymous, but known as El Volantín, due to its characteristic cover. The album, released in 1971, contains improvisations along the lines of the avant-garde explored previously, but it also includes the first compositional sketches, especially on songs like "Foto de Primera Comunión" and "Que o la Tumba Seras".
In 1972 they released the Todos Juntos album. Its title track was a plea for unity among the people while "Mira Ninita" became another staple of the band's live set.
However the next year the band was forced to take refuge in Argentina after the military dictatorship took over in Chile. In 1977, they headed to France, where they resided for a long time.
During this period of exile, they released the albums Los Jaivas , Cancion Del Sur and their most acclaimed album Alturas de Macchu Picchu, which was based on the poems of Pablo Neruda.
The band also flew to Peru to record a seminal concert video on the grounds of the famous Incan castle.
Subsequent albums included Aconcagua and Obras De Violeta Parra. The latter album was based on the works of the Chilean communist folk singer Violeta Parra.
Tragedy struck the band in 1988 when Gabriel died in Peru in a car crash. His daughter Juanita took his place behind the drums. In January 2003, the main singer, Gato Alquinta, died in Coquimbo, Chile, of a heart attack while swimming in the sea.
Gato's three sons soon joined the band to replace him: Ankatu, Eloy and Aurora. Aurora left shortly after, and Eloy died of a heart attack in 2004. Ankatu, however, is still a member of the band.
Among various other activities, in 2006 the group performed a historic concert on Easter Island, in addition to the Chilean Navy orchestra, and as part of the celebrations for the month of the sea. On September 20, 2006, Canal 13 broadcasts the television special Los Jaivas en Rapa Nui: Ojos Que Miran el Universo, which includes fragments of the recital, as well as interviews with the group and with inhabitants of the Island. The DVD that includes the event It was finally launched on the market in November 2007 under the title of Los Jaivas en Rapa Nui. On March 22, 2011, Los Jaivas make a presentation in tribute to the then American president Barack Obama in the courtyard of Los Cañones of the Palacio de La Moneda.

Homage

The band celebrated its 50th anniversary in an open concert on the front of the National Museum of Fine Arts of Santiago de Chile. Special guests were Inti Illimani, Los Tres and Congreso among others. The concert attracted a multitude of over 60,000 people, causing major upheaval in the city, and the police had to intervene with water cannons.

Biopic

In March 2013, the same year as the celebration of the band's 50th anniversary, Chilean-Dutch filmmaker Erasmo de la Parra convinced the musicians to make a biopic based on the band's formative years. The film would be set in the 1960s in Viña del Mar, from the time they were known as "The High Bass" to the time they became known as "Los Jaivas". The director revealed on the film's official Facebook page that the production would have gone through long negotiations with Netflix, but that the production house eventually chose other projects. The film, titled The High Bass, is in pre-production with an unknown release date, and with the participation of Belgian, Dutch, and British producers.
In 2020, the 140-minute documentary Los Jaivas: Todos Juntos was released, honouring the band's 55-year history. It was directed by Rodolfo Garate.

Members

Current members

  • Claudio Parra – keyboards, piano, vocals
  • Mario Mutis – vocals, bass guitar, guitars, percussion
  • Juanita Parra – drums, percussion
  • Carlos Cabezas – vocals, charango, violin, flute
  • Francisco Bosco – saxophone, organ
  • Alan Reale – guitars, vocals

    Former members

  • Eduardo Parra – keyboards, organ, percussion
  • Eduardo "Gato" Alquinta – vocals, guitars
  • Gabriel Parra – drums, percussion
  • Julio Anderson – bass guitar
  • Alberto Ledo – quena, charango
  • Carlos Canzani – bass guitar, guitars
  • Fernando Flores – bass guitar
  • Marcelo Muñoz – drums, percussion
  • Aurora Alquinta – vocals
  • Ankatu Alquinta – vocals, guitars
  • Eloy Alquinta – vocals, saxophone, percussion
  • Carlos Eduardo Gonzalez - guitar
  • Juan Pablo Bosco – drums, percussion

    Discography

  • El Volantín 1971
  • Todos juntos 1972
  • La Ventana 1973
  • Palomita blanca 1973
  • Sueños de América 1974
  • Los Jaivas 1975
  • Canción Del Sur 1977
  • Mambo de Machaguay 1978
  • Alturas de Macchu Picchu 1981
  • Aconcagua 1982
  • Obras de Violeta Parra 1984
  • Si tu no estás 1989
  • Hijos de la Tierra 1995
  • Trilogia: El Rencuentro 1997
  • Mamalluca 1999
  • En El Bar-Restaurant Lo Que Nunca Se Supo 2000
  • Los Jaivas En Concierto: Gira Chile 2000 2000
  • Arrebol 2001
  • Obras Cumbres 2003
  • La Vorágine I, Pan Negro 2003
  • La Vorágine II, La Reforma 2003
  • La Vorágine III, El Tótem 2003
  • La Vorágine IV, Mucha Intensidad 2003
  • La Vorágine V, ¿Qué Hacer? 2003
  • Serie de Oro: Grandes Exitos 2004