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Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School

2009

From Grief and Joy We Sing: Social and

Cosmic Regenerative Processes in the Songs
of Q'Eros, Peru
Holly Wissler

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 FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF MUSIC

FROM GRIEF AND JOY WE SING:

SOCIAL AND COSMIC REGENERATIVE PROCESSES

IN THE SONGS OF QEROS, PERU

By

Holly Wissler

A Dissertation submitted to the

College of Music
in partial fulfillment for the
requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Awarded:
Summer Semester, 2009
The members of the Committee approve the Dissertation of Holly Wissler defended on
22 April 2009.

_____________________________
Dale A. Olsen
Professor Directing Dissertation

_____________________________
Michael Uzendoski
Outside Committee Member

_____________________________
Frank Gunderson
Committee Member

_____________________________
Benjamin D. Koen
Committee Member

The Graduate School has verified and approved the above named committee members.

ii

I dedicate this to my beloved parents,

Harv and Joyce Wissler

iii

 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Fieldwork in Peru for this project was supported by a Fulbright-Hays Doctoral

Dissertation Research Abroad Grant (2007), and initial stages, including an intensive Quechua
language course, were supported by a grant from the Presser Foundation (2002). I thank my
employer, Wilderness Travel, who gave me additional tour groups in Peru in 2005 and 2006,
which funded my fieldwork during those years.
Friends and scholars in Cusco, Peru helped in a variety of ways. Jorge Flores Ochoa
provided rich insight into Andean concepts, and Jos Luis Venero clarified classification of
Andean plants, flowers, and birds. Janett Vengoa de Ors, Ines Callalli, and Edith F. Zevallos
worked diligently with me on many transcriptions and translations of Quechua texts, and helped
in discussions with Qeros friends. In particular, Gina Maldonado spent many days, which
translated into months and years (20052007), working with me during intensive transcription
and translation sessions with the Qeros. The camaraderie and trust Gina and I developed, both
between ourselves and with the Qeros, led into hours of deep discussions that helped clarify so
much of the detail, nuance, and spiritual aspects of Qeros music-making, for which I am most
grateful and indebted. Peter Frost, Rosi Blume, Amy Tai, Luis Gonzales, and Carmela Sierra
were continual sources of friendship and support, always there to end an earwhen I needed to
discuss conflicts or bounce ideas.
I thank Paul Heggarty in England for his generous information about linguistic aspects of
Quechua. On the U.S. front, I am grateful to Trevor Harvey for his help and expertise in creating
my alternative transcription design that shows yanantin in song structure, and Deborah Olander
who helped my writing attain an active voice. I am most grateful to Catherine Allen who read
entire chapters of the dissertation, and gave poignant, guiding suggestions. I also thank my
advisor, Dale Olsen, whose expert writing and editing skills helped me to organize and articulate
my ideas in such a way so that they would be more easily accessible to the reader. Robin Davis,
Flynn Donovan, and my sister Terry Wissler were supportive friends who listened to my ideas,
conflicts, joys, and sorrows in every stage of this project.
In the spirit world I thank my Mom and Dad from whom I inherited some personality
traits that proved to be essential in both my fieldwork in Qeros and writing in the U.S. From my
Dad, his child-like ability to hunker down and joyfully hang out with anyone helped me in the

iv
field, and from my mother, her tenacity and discerning, critical thinking helped me to write it up.
Their presence was always with me.
Finally, I extend my heartfelt gratitude to John Cohen, who laid some of the essential
groundwork from which I was able to orient my own thoughts about Qeros music. Johns
continual stream of penetrating, prodding, forthright, and challenging questions and insightful
feedback have been foundational in my work, which this dissertation builds and expands on.
Lastly, no words can express my thanks to the Qeros community and my dear comadres
and compadres who took me in and taught me so much about love, humanness, conflict and
resolution in the Andean world, connection to the earth and spirits, and deeply meaningful ritual.
There are too many to name here, but some key figures have been: Vctor Flores Salas, whose
passion and zeal for learning and playing all kinds of music pulled me in from day one, and
whose outrageous sense of humor made it fun; the sage wisdom of Agustn Machacca Flores and
Isaac Flores Machacca, who provided deep insight into complex issues; Juliana Apasa Flores and
Juana Flores Salas, who loved me like a sister, and willingly taught me so much about the
womens role in Qeros music-making; the brothers Marcelino and Jacinto Qapa Huamn, who
provided profound detail about the relationship of music-making among the people, animals, and
the spirit world; and another set of brothers, Juan and Luis Quispe Calcina, and their wives
Rebecca Machacca Quispe and Sebastiana Machacca Apasa, who took me in like family and
were steady, subtle supports in practical aspects of my fieldwork. The list goes on and on, but
suffice to say that living and working with the Qeros has changed my own life and perceptions
in profound and subtle ways, and I am forever beholden to all Qeros people, the ones I know
well and the ones I have not yet met.

v
 ABSTRACT

The Quechua community of Qeros in the Andes of southeastern Peru is renowned in the
Cusco region and within various circles (layman, scholarly, esoteric, tourist). The Qeros are
also known nationally and internationally for their continued practice of indigenous customs
such as musical rituals that other Andean communities no longer maintain. This dissertation
shows how the Qeros two principal indigenous song genres, Pukllay taki (Carnaval songs) and
animal fertility songs, serve as active forms of social and cosmic renewal, regeneration, and
reproduction. Regenerative processes through musical performance occur on many levels: the
revitalization of relationship with the cosmological spirit powers, the Apu (mountain spirits) and
Pacha Mama (Mother Earth); the renewal and reinforcement of social ties and womens and
mens roles; and the re-creation and reproduction of cosmological worldview. This dissertation
shows how the Qeros actively regenerate, re-create, and reproduce social and cosmic
relationships and cosmological perceptions through their music-making.
Three Andean concepts that the Qeros specifically name and describe show how music
serves in the regenerative processes of social and cosmic relationships, and in cosmological
worldview: animu, yanantin, and ayni. Animu is the animated essence that is in every person,
object, and invisible spirit, which propels the life-governing concepts of yanantin
(complementary duality) and ayni (reciprocity). Yanantin is the union of two contrasting and
interdependent parts that are in movement with one another, in continual search of equilibrium,
and with a meeting and overlap in a center. The Qeros articulate the reproduction of the
cosmological worldview of yanantin in performance roles and instrument pairs. I argue that
yanantin is also expressed on the micro level of relationship between vocal and pinkuyllu (flute)
melodies in song structure and between songs, as well as on the macro level of communally sung
expressions of joy and grief.
Ayni is the most fundamental and life-sustaining form of reciprocal exchange in Qeros,
and many other, Andean communities. The Qeros give offerings in many forms (food, drink,
special ingredient bundles, and songs) to the Apu and Pacha Mama in exchange for the well-
being of the people and their animals. Qeros singing and flute playing are active forms of ayni,
in that they are musical offerings that are sent out through samay (breath, life essence and force)
in propitiation. To ensure receipt of the songs by the spirit powers, the Qeros employ a vocal

vi
technique they call aysariykuy (to pull): ends of phrases are sung in prolonged, held tones with
a final, forced expulsion of air. This is the Qeros active way to send the song out so that it will
reach the spirit powers. Once the spirit powers successfully receive a song, the powers will be
able to reciprocate beneficially. The tension caused by the desired necessary, successful
reciprocation from the spirit powers to the people, and remembrance of times when that has not
been the case, often result in the sung expression of grief and anxiety. The singing of grief and
anxiety rebuilds sociability that loss and death have disrupted.
By contrast, the joyful communal singing in the annual Carnaval celebration serves to re-
establish social ties and renew social relationships in the community, a practice that balances the
communal singing of grief during animal fertility. This dissertation shows that the regular and
expected release of joy and grief through music contributes to individual and communal balance
and healing.
The dissertation details the social and cosmic regenerative processes throughout in the
form of detailed ethnographic description; insight from the authors participation; interviews;
analyses of musical detail and aesthetics of specific audio examples; musical transcriptions (both
in five-line staff and alternative transcription design to show cosmological view imbedded in
song structure); and transcriptions, translations, and analyses of song texts.

vii
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
List of Maps .................................................................................................................................... x
List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. xi
List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... xii
List of Audio Examples ............................................................................................................... xiii
List of Musical Transcriptions ..................................................................................................... xiv
List of Song Texts ......................................................................................................................... xv

PART I: INTRODUCTION, HISTORY, AND COSMOLOGY .............................................. 1

1. Thesis, Introduction to Qeros Music, and Methodology ........................................................... 2

Thesis and Organization .................................................................................................... 2
Orthography....................................................................................................................... 8
Meeting Qeros Music ..................................................................................................... 11
Methodological Experience ............................................................................................. 13

2. Musical Overview, History, and Identity.................................................................................. 18

An Overview of Qeros Musics....................................................................................... 18
The Qeros Cultural Group.............................................................................................. 20
The Community of Hatun Qeros and Daily Life ........................................................... 24
Vertical Ecology and Historical Background .................................................................. 28
Identity: La Nacin Qeros; Qeros and/or Inca? ............................................................ 35

3. Foundations of Andean Cosmology: Animu, Yanantin, and Ayni ............................................ 42

Supernatural Vitalization: Animu .................................................................................... 42
Complementary Duality: Yanantin .................................................................................. 45
Reciprocity: Ayni ............................................................................................................. 55

PART II: COMMUNAL CELEBRATION IN PUKLLAY (CARNAVAL):

RENEWAL OF SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS ....................................................... 59

4. Pukllay Ethnography: Song Topics, and Womens and Mens Musical Roles ....................... 60
Introduction to the Nine-day Cycle of Pukllay ............................................................. 60
Kunan Pukllay Taki: Topics of Currently Active Carnaval Songs ................................. 63
Womens and Mens Festival Roles: Singers and Pinkuyllu players .................................. 71
Pukllay Ethnography ....................................................................................................... 76

5. Pukllay Musical Analysis: Musical Aesthetics, and Yanantin in Musical Production ............. 84
Musical Aesthetics of Pukllay taki Performance ............................................................ 84
Yanantin in Song Structure and Paired Pusunis Conch Shell Trumpets ......................... 89
Social and Cosmic Reproduction Elements in Pukllay ................................................. 102

viii

PART III: ANIMAL FERTILITY RITUALS: RENEWAL OF VITAL RELATIONSHIP

AMONG PEOPLE, ANIMALS, AND SPIRIT POWERS ................................. 109

6. Phallchay: Female Llamas and Alpacas ................................................................................. 110

Introduction to Llama and Alpaca Animal Fertility Rituals......................................... 110
Daily Herding: The Importance of Llamas and Alpacas.............................................. 112
The Eve of Phallchay: Vesper Offerings, Apu Sitima, and Ritual Objects .................. 117
Phallchay Ethnography and Introduction to Grief-Singing .......................................... 124
Pantilla Tika: Song for Llamas and Alpacas ............................................................ 132

7. Machu Fistay: Male Llamas.................................................................................................... 146

Machu Fistay Ethnography .......................................................................................... 146
Machu Taki: Song for the Male Llamas .................................................................... 159
Yanantin Relationship between the Songs Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika .......... 176

PART IV: SOCIAL AND COSMIC REPRODUCTION

IN THE PERFORMANCE OF INDIGENOUS QEROS SONGS ................... 182

8. Toward an Indigenous Andean Theory of Music ................................................................... 183

Aysariykuy: So that the Songs Arrive ......................................................................... 183
Origins of Music: Circulatory Ayni among People, Animals, and Spirit Powers ........ 189
Fertility Ritual as Framing Metaphor for Grief-Singing .............................................. 192
The Song Above, the Sorrow Below ........................................................................ 198

9. Conclusion: Social and Cosmic Renewal through Song........................................................ 208

Musical Production as Cosmological Reproduction ................................................... 213

Glossary ...................................................................................................................................... 217

Appendix A: An Overview of the Annual Ritual Cycle in Qeros ........................................... 222
Appendix B: Kunan Pukllay Taki (Current Carnaval Songs) ..................................................... 224
Thurpa ........................................................................................................................ 224
Phallcha ...................................................................................................................... 228
Walqa Pii.................................................................................................................. 230
Rinrillo ....................................................................................................................... 233
Wallata ....................................................................................................................... 235
Sirina .......................................................................................................................... 238
Kiyu ........................................................................................................................... 241
Appendix C: Chayampuy ............................................................................................................ 243
Appendix D: awpa Pukllay Taki (Past Carnaval Songs).......................................................... 246
Appendix E: Human Subjects Approval ..................................................................................... 249
Bibliography ............................................................................................................................... 250
Biographical Sketch .................................................................................................................... 264

ix

 LIST OF MAPS

1.1. Location of La Nacin Qeros in Peru .. 7

2.1. La Nacin Qeros, Nearby Regions and Cities 22
2.2. The Community of Hatun Qeros . 23

LIST OF TABLES

3.1 Yanantin Examples in the Andean World ...............................................................................53

3.2. Yanantin Examples in the Qeros Community and Music .....................................................54
4.2. The Pukllay Cycle ..................................................................................................................63
A. In Appendix A. An Overview of the Annual Ritual Cycle .....................................................221

xi

LIST OF FIGURES

2.2. The anexo of Challmachimpana in the rainy season .............................................................27

2.2. The community center of Hatun Qeros (11,000 feet) ............................................................27
2.3. A woman herds in the anexo of Challmachimpana in the dry season ...................................28
2.4. Men working in the potato fields. The man in foreground plows with foot plow .................28
4.1. A condor bone pinkuyllu .........................................................................................................73
4.2. Man playing a pinkuyllu made of toqoro ................................................................................73
4.3. Agustn Machacca Flores measures the space between finger holes in making a pinkuyllu ..74
4.4. Finished pinkuyllu alongside a piece of newly-harvested toqoro ...........................................74
4.5. Four drawings by John Cohen, courtesy of John Cohen .............................................................75
4.6. Four men in Pukllay dress.......................................................................................................80
4.7. Three women in Pukllay dress ................................................................................................80
4.8. Position of men and women in Inles Pampa during Pukllay ..................................................82
4.9. Performance in Inles Pampa from the womens perspective .................................................82
5.1. Yanantin is woven in the inti lloqsiy-haykuy design in a weaving .........................................99
5.2. Yanantin is woven in the opposing chunchu weaving pattern...............................................99
6.1. Isaac Flores Machacca selecting coca leaves (akllay) for kintu in the offering ..................121
6.2. Isaac Flores Machacca throwing libations of aqha on the herd............................................131
7.1. Inca Sings with his Red Llama. Drawing by Felipe Guamn Poma de Ayala, ca. 1615 ..147
7.2. Machu misa with the llamas bells, gourd pululu, qero cups, and phua leaves..................151
7.3. A woman receives a coca kintu over the machu misa in the mullucancha .........................152
7.4. A pululu has been tosssed into the llama herd and rolls back towards the people ...............152
7.5. Woman dancing with the rusayu (lead llama bells and fringe) ............................................155
7.6. A man feeding aqha to a llama .............................................................................................156
7.7. Men replacing the llamas ear tassels (tikachay) .................................................................156

xii

 LIST OF AUDIO EXAMPLES

5.1. Thurpa. Pukllay taki for 2005. Hatun Qeros, Ash Wednesday, 8 February 2005 .............86

5.2. Thurpa. Juliana Apasa Flores (singer), Agustn Machacca Flores (pinkuyllu).
Recorded out of context, in Cusco, Peru. 12 September 2005 ............................................90

5.3. Wallata. Domingo and Luisa Sera Chumpi of Kiku. 1964 recording by John Cohen.
Reissue 1991 [1964]. Mountain Music of Peru. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40020........93

6.1. Pantilla Tika. Isaac Flores Machacca, Vctor and Juana Flores Salas.
Recording: Challmachimpana (Qeros), 6 February 2005 ................................................133

7.1. Machu Taki. Juana Flores Salas (singer). The beginning of Machu Fistay in the home.
Recording: Challmachimpana (Qeros), 27 August 2005 ................................................160

7.2. Machu Taki. Juliana Apasa Flores (singer).

Recording: Qocha Moqo (Qeros), 2 September 2006 .......................................................165

7.3. Machu Taki. In the height of the ritual in the mullucancha with the male llamas.
Recording: Challmachimpana (Qeros), 27 August 2005 .................................................168

7.4. Machu Taki. Late in the afternoon, in the mullucancha. Dancing with lead llamas bells.
Recording: Qocha Moqo (Qeros), 2 September 2006 .......................................................175

7.5. Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika. Short excerpts of one stanza each to show yanantin
relationship between the songs ...........................................................................................177

8.1. Pantilla Tika. Monica Apasa Vargas (singer). 1984 recording by John Cohen.
Reissue 1991 [1964]. Mountain Music of Peru. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40020.....199

APPENDIX B
Thurpa ......................................................................................................................................224
Phallcha ....................................................................................................................................228
Walqa Pii ................................................................................................................................230
Rinrillo......................................................................................................................................233
Wallata......................................................................................................................................235
Sirina ........................................................................................................................................238
Kiyu ..........................................................................................................................................241

xiii
 LIST OF MUSICAL TRANSCRIPTIONS

5.1. Thurpa notated in a five-line staff.

(Recorded out of context, in Cusco, Peru, 12 September 2005) ...........................................90

5.2. Rodolfo Holzmanns transcription of John Cohens 1964 recording of Wallata.

(From: Holzmann, Rodolfo. 1986. Qero: Pueblo y Musica. Lima: Patronato Popular y
Provenir, p. 2389)... .........94

5.3. Thurpa notated to show yanantin relationship ....................................................................95

6.1. Pantilla Tika notated in a five-line staff. (Isaac Flores Machacca, Vctor and Juana Flores
Salas, 6 February 2005, Challmachimpana, Qeros). .........................................................134

7.1. Machu Taki notated in a five-line staff.

(Singer Juana Flores Salas, 27 August, 2005, Challmachimpana, Qeros ........................160

7.2. The Yanantin Relationship of Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika ......................................177

APPENDIX B
Thurpa ......................................................................................................................................224
Phallcha ....................................................................................................................................228
Walqa Pii ................................................................................................................................230
Rinrillo......................................................................................................................................233
Wallata......................................................................................................................................235
Sirina ........................................................................................................................................236
Kiyu ..........................................................................................................................................241

xiv
 LIST OF SONG TEXTS

4.1. Six verse-refrains (AB) of Thurpa

(Excerpted from Audio Example 5.1. Juliana Apasa Flores, September 12, 2005) ................69

6.1. Four Common Variations of the Refrain of Pantilla Tika .............................................135

6.2. Six common stanzas (ABA1) of Pantilla Tika...................................................................139

6.3. Pantilla Tika, excerpt of grief-singing. (From: Isaac Flores Machacca, Vctor and Juana
Flores Salas, recorded February 6, 2005, Challmachimpana, Qeros) ...............................142

7.1. Machu Taki, excerpt of morning singing in Machu Fistay (Transcription from Audio
Example 7.1. Recorded in Challmachimpana, August 27, 2005).......................................160

7.2. Machu Taki, excerpt of late morning singing in Machu Fistay.(Transcription from Audio
Example 7.2. Recorded in Qocha Moqo, September 2, 2006) ............................................165

7.3. Machu Taki, excerpt of afternoon singing in the mullucancha in Machu Fistay.
Recorded in Challmachimpana, 27 August 2005).............................................................169

8.1. Pantilla Tika, from Phallchay, 1984. Recording by John Cohen, from: 1991 [1964].
Mountain Music of Peru. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40020, track 38. Singer: Monica
Apasa Vargas) ......................................................................................................................199

APPENDIX B
Thurpa ......................................................................................................................................225
Phallcha ....................................................................................................................................229
Walqa Pii ................................................................................................................................231
Rinrillo......................................................................................................................................234
Wallata......................................................................................................................................236
Sirina ........................................................................................................................................239
Kiyu ..........................................................................................................................................242

xv
 PART I
INTRODUCTION, HISTORY, AND COSMOLOGY
 CHAPTER 1
THESIS, INTRODUCTION TO QEROS MUSIC, AND METHODOLOGY

Thesis and Organization

The Quechua community of Qeros in the Andes of southeastern Peru is
renowned in the Cusco region and within various circles (layman, scholarly, esoteric, tourist),
nationally and internationally for their continued practice of indigenous customs, such as musical
rituals, that other Andean communities no longer maintain. Qeros autochthonous music is one
custom among many that lends insight into ancient Andean tradition and belief. In this way,
many Peruvians and foreigners often consider the Qeros people to be the Last Inca ayllu
(community)that is, many view the Qeros through the lens of their being untouched or the
last indigenous stronghold in Peruvian Andean culture. These perceptions have their basis in
exaggerations of romanticized truths, yet ultimately are de-humanizing, and they mistakenly
place the Qeros in a static, ancient mystique. The present study aims to present a more realistic,
present-day view of a people whose cosmological foundation and perceptions are salient to the
struggle of their everyday lives as they express it via their music.
The intent of this dissertation is to show how the Qeros use their autochthonous songs as
active forms of social and cosmic renewal and regeneration. Social and cosmic regenerative
processes, through musical production, occur on many levels. On the most vital level, the Qeros
use song and specific aspects of sound production to revitalize relationship with the spirit
powers, which the Qeros believe hold the greatest sway on their livelihood. In this way, Qeros
songs serve as formulas for social action that revitalize the cosmic connections with these spirit
powers, which then allows for renewal and maintenance of relationship on other levels: socially
with fellow-community members, and among people and animals. Aspects of musical
production, such as song structure and instrument pairs, reproduce the Qeros social roles and
cosmological perceptions. The key is that music actively regenerates and re-creates, versus
simply reflects, social and cosmic relationships and worldview.
The use of music to renew and regenerate social ties and roles as well as cosmological
perceptions and relationships is best described by three local concepts: animu, yanantin, and

2
ayni. The Qeros believe that everything has animu (animated essence) and is alive.1 In other
words, the Qeros religious beliefs and practices are fundamentally animistic, with some
Catholic elements occasionally incorporated into their rituals.2 Animu is the essence that propels
the life-governing concepts of yanantin (complementary duality) and ayni (reciprocity). Yanantin
and ayni are structuring principles that underlie systems of exchange, which function through
continuous interaction and renewed relationship. These two basic cosmological concepts and
forms of exchange permeate the structure, performance, and intention of Qeros autochthonous
songs and music-making. In sum, animu, yanantin and ayni inform why and how the Qeros
make music the way they do.
Yanantin is the union of two contrasting and interdependent parts that are in movement
with one another, in continual search of equilibrium, and with a meeting and overlap in a center.
The two parts are labeled warmi/qhari (female/male) by the Qeros, and they cannot function
separately. Yanantin is expressed in time (rainy/dry seasons) and space (mountains/earth). The
Qeros reproduce yanantin in various aspects of their music, such as performance roles and
instrument pairs. I argue that yanantin is also expressed on the micro level of melodic
relationships within song structure and between songs, as well as on the macro level of
communally sung expressions of joy and grief.
Ayni is the most fundamental and life-sustaining form of reciprocal exchange, and has
been so in Andean communities since pre-Hispanic times. People extend mutual aid in single and
group relationships, and also with their animals and the spirit powers. For example, the Qeros
give offerings in many forms (food, drink, special ingredient bundles, and songs) to the Apu
(mountain spirits) and Pacha Mama (Mother Earth) in exchange for the well-being of the people
and their animals. Qeros singing and flute playing are musical offerings that are sent out through
samay (breath, life essence and force) in propitiation, and in this way singing and flute playing
are active forms of ayni. To ensure receipt of the songs by the spirit powers, the Qeros employ a

1
I refer to animu in the new, rehabilitated theory of animism (Descola 1996a and 1996b, Viveiros de
Castro 1998, Uzendoski 2005, and Allen N.d., 2008) where everything has life essence, versus the original theory of
anima as possession of supernatural force as posited by Edward Burnett Tylor in the nineteenth century.
2
For example, Christ is sometimes invoked in ceremonial offerings along with a pantheon of mountain
Gods. This synthesis is not a conflict; rather, my sense is that Christ, for the Qeros, is just another powerful spirit,
along with the many mountain spirits that influence Qeros livelihood. This kind of syncretism is common to some
degree in Andean communities, with Catholic elements stronger in some communities than others.

3
vocal technique they call aysariykuy (to pull): ends of phrases are sung in prolonged, held
tones with a final, forced expulsion of air. This beautiful pulling of the song (e.g., long tones),
as one Qeros friend called it, is the Qeros active way to send the song out so that it will reach
the spirit powers. Once the spirit powers successfully receive a song, the powers will be able to
reciprocate beneficially. The tension caused by the desired necessary, successful reciprocation
from the spirit powers to the people, and remembrance of times when that has not been the case,
often results in the sung expression of grief and anxiety. The singing of grief and anxiety
rebuilds sociability that loss and death have disrupted.
The joyful communal singing in the annual Carnaval celebration serves to re-establish
social ties and renew social relationships in the community, which contrasts and balances the
communal singing of grief during animal fertility. In this way the Qeros have differing musical
rituals where they fully express their joy and grief. I argue that the regular and expected release
of joy and grief through song contributes to individual and communal balance and healing. The
Qeros use of songs as forms of social and cosmic regeneration and reproduction comprises the
philosophical basis of an indigenous Qeros theory of music.
While the Qeros share these basic social and cosmological concepts of animu, yanantin,
and ayni with many of their Andean neighbors, the specificities of their musical production are
uniquely Qeros. The two song genres I focus on in this dissertation are the Carnaval songs and
the llama and alpaca fertility songs, which comprise the entire active repertoire of Qeros
autochthonous tritonic songs.3 The focus on these emblematic Qeros songs is another cohesive
element in the dissertation. This repertoire of songs lends insight into indigenous Andean
musical custom, as this tritonic mode is believed to date back to pre-European invasion (1532).
In addition, I feel it is necessary to document these particular songs because I have
observed that some of the songs and rituals are in decline with no evidence of replacement. This
observation partly motivates my choice to focus completely on them in this dissertation, and not
on the Qeros adopted styles, such as the songs and dances they perform in the popular
pilgrimage festival of Qoyllur Riti, the waynos (popular Andean dance/song genre) played in
Easter, or the popular bandurria (sixteen-string lute) music that some of the youth are learning to
perform.

3
I use the term tritonic to refer to songs comprised of three pitches, as opposed to intervals of a tritone,
or other possible definitions.

4
 Finally, the principal reason for focusing on this repertoire is to show how these songs
render deep insight into the Qeros perception, worldview, and motivations for music-making.
That is, these songs help us to understand who the Qeros really are, and what guides their daily
lives and actions, which is also a lens into indigenous Andean musical production. I choose not
to focus on Qeros history, with the exception of the introductory chapter that explains Qeros
historical context and background, again with the intent of showing who the Qeros are today
through the lens of musical production of their indigenous songs.
I organize the material of the dissertation into four parts: I) Introduction,
contextualization, and definition; II) Ethnography and meaning of Pukllay (Carnaval) celebration
and songs; III) Ethnography and meaning of the two annual and principal animal fertility rituals
and their respective songs; IV) Further analyses of the cosmic reproduction and grief-singing
aspects of fertility songs discussed in Part III, and conclusion of how Qeros autochthonous
songs are thereby formulas of social and cosmic reproduction.
In Chapter 2 I begin with a broad overview of the many types of musics sung and played
in Qeros. For purposes of contextualization, I present an outline of the historical circumstances
that partially contributed to the Qeros retention of indigenous musical practices, and the current
political situation of the Qeros people today, namely the formation of La Nacin Qeros as their
statement of solidarity. The chapter closes with a discussion of an Inca identity that has been
placed on the Qeros by outsiders, with the Qeros own perspective on this issue. These topics
a historically isolated way of life in comparison to their Andean neighbors, their formation of La
Nacin Qeros, and their renowned Incan identityhelp shed light on the unique position the
Qeros hold today as representatives of ancient, indigenous Andean culture, which is especially
held together and exemplified by their musical traditions. Though important for purposes of
contextualization, this is also a one-sided view, and alongside the practice of ancient customs,
they are also experiencing change, and even loss of cultural customs. This loss results from
increasingly facile interaction with urban centers due to nearing road access, the migration of
many of the younger generation (sometimes with whole families) to larger towns and cities for
purposes of education and ties to the capitalistic cash economy that erode the ideal model of
Andean equality and reciprocity. In the remainder of the dissertation I turn the focus from one of
contextualization of their historical circumstance and renown, to show how the Qeros actively
use music for regeneration of who they are and what they fundamentally believe in.

5
 In Chapter 3 I define at length the key cosmological concepts that drive ancient (Incan)
and current (Qeros) Andean culture: animu, yanantin, and ayni. These concepts are expanded
upon throughout the dissertation in order to show how they underpin Qeros music-making.
In Chapters 4 and 5 (Part II) I present ethnography and analyses of the largest festival of
the Qeros musical calendar: Carnaval, which the Qeros call Pukllay. In Chapter 4 I focus on
the essential components that comprise Pukllay performance: song topics, womens and mens
musical roles, and ethnographic description. In Chapter 5 I expand on this ethnography by
exploring the details of musical aesthetics of Pukllay taki (Carnaval songs) performance (to
include audio examples). I then present a five-line staff transcription of one Pukllay taki
(Thurpa) for understanding the Pukllay taki genre in Western musical terms. This is followed
by a transcription of another design where I show that the Qeros cosmological perception of
yanantin is reproduced and imbedded in the relationship between the womens and mens
melodic lines.
In Chapters 6 and 7 (Part III) I present ethnography, including meaning and symbolism,
of the two principal animal fertility rituals in Qeros: Phallchay for the female llamas and
alpacas, and Machu Fistay for the male llamas, respectively. I also analyze the two fertility songs
that pertain to each ritual, with audio examples and transcriptions. At the close of Chapter 7 I
argue that the fertility song in Phallchay and the one in Machu Fistay are in yanantin relationship
with one another. In both chapters I introduce the concept of grief-singing, which is expanded
upon and analyzed in Chapter 8.
Chapters 8 and 9 (Part IV) serve to bring deeper understanding and conclusion to the
previous chapters. In Chapter 8 I explain the vocal technique of aysariykuy as it specifically
contributes to social and cosmic reproduction in the Qeros lives. I argue that this vocal
technique lends insight into an indigenous Andean theory of music. I then examine how the ritual
space of animal fertility rituals (Chapters 6 and 7) often induces the singing of grief and loss,
with an analysis of one particular instance where this was expressed. And finally, in Chapter 9 I
show how the celebration of Pukllay and the animal fertility rituals are in yanantin relationship
to one another, the former for community social cohesion and expression of joy, and the latter for
reproduction of relationship with the cosmos and expression of grief. The musical production of
both Pukllay and animal increase rituals contribute to individual and social balance, and serve in
social and cosmic reproduction in Qeros life.

6
 Map 1.1: Location of La Nacin Qeros in Peru

Map courtesy of ACCA, Asociacin para la Conservacin de la Cuenca Amaznica,

Cusco, Per. www.acca.org.pe
Detail of maps by Sandro Arias (ACCA).

7
Orthography and Transcription
Throughout this dissertation, I use the Qeros terminology to refer to specific rituals,
aspects of and objects in rituals, song genres, musical techniques, instruments, and community
names, as opposed to a possibly more common terminology used by non-Qeros people. I
explain each term as it arises, indicating other name possibilities for the same ritual, instrument,
etc., for reference and broader context, finally choosing the term used by the Qeros to be the
definitive one. I encourage the reader to refer to the glossary provided, since I make significant
use of Quechua terminology throughout.
I intentionally capitalize all rituals out of respect for the reverence the Qeros have for
their rituals. Likewise, I also capitalize their one named musical genre, Pukllay taki (Carnaval
songs). Song titles are in quotation marks and are also capitalized, such as Thurpa and
Phallcha. Instead of the English spelling Carnival, I use the Spanish Carnaval, to clarify
that this is a reference to one of the largest festivals in all Latin America, which includes many
Andean communities.
The name Qeros has multiple references and can therefore be confusing. In its
broadest sense it refers to a cultural group consisting of eight communities. The people are
referred to as The Qeros/Los Qeros (English and Spanish, respectively), and runa (people
in Quechua) by the Qeros themselves.4 I refer to the people as the Qeros in order to
distinguish them from the other thousands of runa in the Andes. Hatun Qeros is the official
name of the one community of the eight where I conducted most of my research; however, the
Qeros people usually refer to that community simply as Qeros. Therefore, I fluctuate
between writing Qeros or Hatun Qeros to refer to the community.
Many past and current orthographies (all written by non-Qeros people) refer to the
people and the cultural area as Qero, without the s. I use the s, however, as this is more
commonly what the Qeros people say.5 Having said that I have also heard both Qero and

4
Runa is the common word used by indigenous people throughout the Peruvian Andes to refer to
themselves, often in opposition to non-indigenous people (including misti or mestizos).
5
Linguist Paul Heggarty states, -s is a well recognized Quechua suffix, obsolete in most regions now but
still found in place names (pers. com., 26 February 2009). Peruvian linguist Rodolfo Cerrn-Palomino specifically
includes Qirus in his list of placenames that use the s (Cerrn-Palomino 2008, 211). Cerrn-Palomino also
gives the root of qiru as meaning wood, which might indicate the origin of the placename of Qeros (Qirus) as one
being abundant in wood (as in the Qeros cloud forest, where their main river, the Qeros River, flows).

8
Qeros used interchangeably, even from the same person. I hear Qero more as an adjective,
such as costumbre qero (a custom/tradition of Qeros). I have seen official letterhead paper
used by Qeros directive committees with Nacin Qeros and Centro Poblado de Qeros,
while simultaneously the official stamps used by members of the same directive committees will
say both comunidad de Qeros and comunidad Qero on the same page. Hearing both, I have
come to accept the paradoxical situation where both could be/are correct, but my final decision is
simply based on what I hear most often by the people themselves, which is Qeros (with the
s). 6
Regarding plural names in Quechua, plural usage is contextual and not the same as an
across-the-board s in English or Spanish, for example. The name for mountain deity is Apu, a
word I use abundantly throughout, and I heard the word Apu used for both singular and plural in
Qeros. One often hears claims that the explicit plural Apukuna must be the supposedly correct
form, but such claims are based on the mistaken assumption that plural-marking is compulsory,
as it is in Spanish or English.7 In Quechua, in many contexts kuna is not added, and would not
normally be, unless the speaker particularly wanted to stress the idea of a number of multiple,
individual items.8 The Qeros often named the Apu when referring to just one, such as Apu
Waman Lipa, the largest Apu in Qeros. Therefore I follow this guideline and use Apu for plural
and name the Apu when it is singular. Another example is the Qeros use of the word pinkuyllu
(flute) for both singular and plural. I therefore refer to one pinkuyllu and two pinkuyllu
instead of pinkuyllukuna for the latter (sheep, deer, fish, bread, and so on, provide English
equivalents of collective nouns).
I use the three-vowel (a, i, u) spelling system of Quechua as opposed to the five vowel (a,
e, i, o, u) in song text transcriptions and written quotations.9 This has one notable exception: The

6
A 15681570 visita (fact-finding mission by Spanish colonial authorities) contains numerous mentions of
queros yndios that were brought in to work the important coca crop of the encomienda belonging to the inheritors
of Alonso de Alvarado, in what is present-day Bolivia (see Murra, ed. 1991). The first published article with
description of the Qeros culture was the 1922 article by Luis Ybar Palacios, titled El Ayllu de Qqueros. Both of
these older examples state Qeros with an s.
7
See Cusihuamn 2001, 118119, where he points out that kuna is not compulsory.
8
Information from linguist Paul Heggarty (pers. com., 26 February 2009).
9
There are many discrepancies in Quechua spellings, because the writing of it began after the European
invasion (1532), and it has inevitably been approached from a standpoint dominated by Spanish norms and usage,
often inappropriate to the different sound system of Quechua. Two basic schools of thought prevail regarding the

9
name Qeros, which refers to both the people and the community. I choose this spelling (as
opposed to Qirus, which would be the spelling in the three-vowel system), simply because it
is by far the one most commonly used and, importantly, the one the Qeros use when they write
the name of their community and people. I also use the more common spelling of the festival of
Qoyllur Riti. Finally, I use Quechua instead of Kichwa, Qhichwa, or other spellings, and Inca
instead of Inka, simply because those spellings are more common in both English and Spanish.10
A specific group of comadres and compadres11 with whom I worked guided and
informed many of my deepest insights into into Qeros culture and music. I first introduce them
by their full names, and then continue on a first name basis after that. Usually when I use the
term compadres I am including the women as well, since Spanish employs the masculine form of
the noun when it is all-inclusive.
I provide two systems of musical transcription and notation of most songs. First, I
provide five-line staff notations in order to generally show the melodic and rhythmic traits of all
Qeros tritonic music. I show the original pitches of the melody sung by the woman and played
by the man in the recording, but I then transcribe both parts into the same octave and in a
different key that fits neatly in the five-line staff for ease of analysis of the relationship between
the two parts. These five-line staff transcriptions are prescriptive and not descriptive. There are
innumerable details that would be difficult to portray in the five-line staff system, namely the
continually fluctuating pitches and rhythms that regularly occurs in performance. Also, the vocal
and pinkuyllu flute melodies rarely line up as succinctly as I portray in the prescriptive templates.
Second, in Chapter 5 and Appendix B I provide another style of transcription in order to show
how the Qeros reproduce the relationship of yanantin between the womens vocal melody and
the mens flute melody in all songs. The intention of this second transcription, then, is to visually
show how the pitch and rhythm relationships of the womens and mens melodies are a
reproduction of this one aspect (yanantin) of Qeros cosmological view.

treatment of vowels of written Quechua: the five vowel, which applies to Quechua the Spanish sound-system with
its five vowel distinctions and spellings, and the three vowel, which almost all linguists argue is closer to the native
system of spoken Quechua, which establishes functional distinctions only between three vowel phonemes
(Heggarty, pers. com. 26 February 2009).
10
The Qeros and (and many monolingual Quechua speakers) do not use the term Quechua; rather, they
call their language runasimi ([native] peoples speech).
11
People with whom I have created a ritualistic familial tie.

10
Meeting Qeros Music
I first met some members of the Qeros community in 2002, at Qoyllur Riti, the largest
religious pilgrimage festival in southeast Peru. Qoyllur Riti is attended by thousands of pilgrims
from urban centers like Cusco and mountain communities like Qeros, who express religious
devotion through costumed dance and song to the glaciers and a Christ image on a sacred stone.
Some two hundred or more dance groups attend, and in 2002 my research interests lay in
conducting a comparative study between the meaning and musical processes of Qoyllur Riti for
an urban comparsa (dance group; I had already worked and performed with an urban comparsa
in Qoyllur Riti) and a rural, mountain one. I had heard about the Qeros reputation as the last
indigenous stronghold since 1982, when I first went to Peru, so I hoped the Qeros comparsa
would be the rural one I would work with. I was also informed about the Qeros reputation as a
well-guarded community with difficult access for outside researchers; therefore, to prepare for
this first meeting with them at Qoyllur Riti, I arranged for a translator, offered some appropriate
gifts (coca leaves, alcohol, bread) and proceeded with a formal introduction. When it was agreed
that I would be allowed to go to Qeros the following year and observe preparations and rituals
for Qoyllur Riti, I knew that I needed to offer a gift of ayni. The Qeros dancers and musicians
immediately requested an accordion for their recently-adopted qhapaq qolla dance, a standard
accompanying instrument for this dance, which every other qhapaq qolla comparsa at Qoyllur
Riti had, except Qeros. They would naturally want their own accordion to be like all other
dance groups. As an eager ethnomusicologist I was surprised and pleased that their gift request
of me was a musical instrument, and I was keen to oblige.
The delivery of the accordion at an official community assembly meeting was my first
journey to Qeros, in June 2003. This was immediately followed by my documentation of the
learning process of seventeen-year-old musician Vctor Flores Salas, who grasped the qhapaq
qolla songs on the instrument in just one week, and then accompanied the Qeros community,
dancers, and musicians, on the pilgrimage.12 This one act, giving my word and keeping it, helped
to open the door for my research in Qeros, and it was the beginning of a deep working
relationship with Vctor, followed by many others.

12
The Qeros participation in Qoyllur Riti, and Vctors learning the accordion, can be viewed in the
documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy We Sing), in the sequence titled Qoyllur Riti and
Corpus Christi (Wissler 2007).

11
 I first heard the Qeros emblematic, traditional singing that inspired this study in their
Corpus Christi celebration, one year after that first visit. All day, on June 10, 2004, I videotaped
and watched the colorful dances of wayri chunchu and qhapaq qolla, the two dances they
perform at Qoyllur Riti, and also during Corpus Christi in their own community upon return
from the pilgrimage. I was very familiar with these regional folklore dances and its
accompanying music, since I had fulfilled the roles of mayordoma (sponsor) and musician for a
qhapaq qolla comparsa from Cusco at Qoyllur Riti in 1998, and the dances, music, and
meaning of the festival were the topics of my masters thesis and first video documentary
production (Wissler 1999a and 1999b). The familiarity with these popular regional folklore
dances and music was dramatically different from the Qeros own songs I would hear later that
night, however.
That night in 2004, I was in one of the large family homes in the community center of
Hatun Qeros, and I felt exhilaratingly overwhelmed by the energy around me. The room was so
dark I could hardly see, and it was so packed that dancing bodies were often in ecstatic collision.
On one side of the room was a group of musicians in a corner, singing popular waynos and
playing them on kena flutes. Most Qeros were familiar with these popular wayno dance tunes:
some were tunes from outside festivals that had been incorporated into celebrations in Qeros;
others were picked up by listening to the radio.
On the other side of the room, near the cooking fire and the many large aqha (corn beer)
ceramic pots, women were sitting, and babies and children were sleeping. For respite from the
incredible energy on the dancing side of the room, I went and sat with the women, although I felt
awkward wearing pants and clunky trekking boots, and I could not yet speak Quechua well
enough to hold a conversation. Suddenly a woman started singing; her voice was full and
powerful, and seemed to come from somewhere deep inside her. She held the last tone of phrases
unusually long and pushed all her breath out intentionally and forcefully at the end of a phrase. I
had never before heard such a compelling manner of singing, and I was immediately drawn in.
Then another woman started singing, the same song I ascertained, but not together with the first.
She sang independently. Then another. Soon there was a dense overlapping of the same song, but
no one was singing together. It was not like a canon or round; rather, the singing seemed to be
completely spontaneous and individual. This was going on simultaneously with the singing of
loud, popular waynos, and the thumping of dancing feet on the other side of the room.

12
Profoundly moved and stilled, I thought,What is this? The sound felt ancient to meit seemed
like the singing of people who are very connected to the earth. Enveloped in that thick, wholly
natural sound, I said to myself, I have to know what this is. This was a sound I could make no
logical sense of, yet it touched my senses on a visceral level. I knew then that this would
comprise my doctoral research and eventual dissertation.
Soon after, I returned to the United States to nurture my dying mother, with the intention
of sharing this musical sound with her, via my one single, short recording at the time. I wanted to
say, listen to this unusual, beautiful sound. I wanted to tell her what I was going to do next.
That was the only thing left undone in her dying.

Methodological Experience
My methodology evolved organically, which is why I call this section methodological
experience. I arrived in Qeros with the intention to learn about the people and their music,
knowing that I needed to let them be my teachers. While the process unfolded according to their
rules and my intent, it was often filled with many growing pains. A web of relationships was
nurtured, and after the first year or so, a thread of understanding began to develop that evolved
into a solid core by the end of my third year with the Qeros people.
I have lived and worked in Cusco and the Andes of Peru intermittently since 1982, both
as a mountain trekking guide for U.S.-based travel companies, and as a classical flute instructor
for local musicians at the Leandro Alvia Instituto Superior de Msica in Cusco. More than
twenty years of feeling completely at home in the Andes and working with Andean people has
given me a solid foundation for conducting research in the rugged environment of Qeros. And
yet, in just three years with the Qeros, my depth of comprehension about Andean perceptions
and culture superseded that of the previous twenty, because of my immersion in Qeros
community life and singing with women in every ritual and celebration, versus camping on the
outskirts of an Andean community with a tour group.
I visited Qeros once in 2003, again in 2004, and then with the most intense part of my
research from early 2005 to the end of 2007, when I stayed in Qeros seventeen different times,
each trip averaging two or three weeks. For the first two years I funded my research by guiding
treks in other Andean areas, and in 2007 I was funded by a Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation
Research Abroad grant. I conducted nearly all of my research in the community of Hatun Qeros,

13
one of the eight communities pertaining to the Qeros cultural group. I chose this community for
both its remoteness (two days walk over two mountain passes from the nearest road)13 and
reputation for being the most traditional community of the group. Only for one ritual, Sinalay
(Santos), the ritual for the cows and sheep, did I go to another Qeros community: Hapu
(specifically to the annex of Yanaruma). Therefore, Hatun Qeros serves as representative of all
Qeros culture, even though all eight communities have varying degrees of retention of the
musical styles discussed here.
On every trip I was accompanied by my arriero (wrangler), Mario Turpo, in the role of
guide, cook, and translator, and my gear was carried by his horses. Mario is originally from a
more urbanized community in the nearby Ocongate region, and he now resides in Cusco. While
not from Qeros, he is Andean; and while not indigenous, his mestizo14 background was not an
impediment as can sometimes be the case. He easily interacted with the Qeros as equals (and
later, as true friends), without feelings of superiority that sometimes arise when people from a
mestizo cultural background interact with runa. His literal and, in particular, cultural translation
(what to do, what not to do) was crucial, but as time went on and my Quechua improved and my
relationships flourished, I became independent, able to hold conversations and easily get around
on my own. At most times I felt as if I was the only outsider, even though this was not the case
(see footnote 38 for a list of other entities working in Qeros). This was a situation I enjoyed
greatly because it provided the feeling of complete immersion in Qeros Quechua culture.
For one year (2005) I filmed and recorded the principal rituals and musical genres in
Qeros. During that time foundations were built and experiences, both daily and ritual,
strengthened my relationships with many people. I became comadre (co-mother) time and time
again, accepted as extended family.15 The relationships with my compadres flourished, while,

13
That statement changes continually as the road is approaching nearer all the time. As of spring, 2009,
another new road now makes accessibility to Hatun Qeros over one mountain pass, in a days walk.
14
Mestizo is a charged and difficult term to define. Originally, in colonial Peru the term was based on racial
background, and a mestizo in early post-conquest years was literally the offspring of a Spanish man or Spanish born
in the New World (criollo) with an indigenous woman, so that the blood was mixed. Nowadays the term is more
of a cultural reference. A mestizo is an Andean person (urban or rural) who has incorporated influences such as
formal education, Catholicism, speaks Spanish as well as Quechua, and wears factory clothes (pants, shoes, jackets),
to name a few examples.
15
I became comadre (co-mother) by conducting the first hair-cutting ritual (chukcha rutuy) of a child, and
thereby creating a familial tie with the entire family. This act makes me godmother of the child, and his/her parents
are my compadres (co-parents).

14
simultaneously there was the continual stress of making dealsthe ayni part of my work. I
needed to give appropriate gifts both to the community and individuals, in order to foster good
relations with everyone and have continued permission to film, record, and simply be there.
While these continual deals are a matter of course for the rights of research and recording, and
are ethically correct and necessary, they were often a source of personal distress.
As often happens with researchers in fieldwork, these are a people I have come to love
and respect deeply. I formed rich friendships, acquired many godchildren, and spent many nights
singing with them in ritual. Their loving, laughing way and presence in the moment, and all that
they have taught me about respecting the earth and mutual reciprocity as a way of life, has had a
profound impact on my own life. There were many times in Qeros when I truly felt a part of the
community, enjoying their company, and always feeling grateful at the privilege they were
extending me. Regarding my research experience in Qeros, I point to Benjamin Koens writings
on ontology of oneness:
That is, the field need not be viewed as out there, or some
other, often foreign place where one goes to collect data.
Rather, the field can also be viewed as in here, a boundless,
inclusive circle, any and every place in the world, in and of the
mind and soulbeyond notions of in and out (Koen 2009, 11).

I know I experienced many moments, days, and weeks, when I felt I was in a boundless,
inclusive circle, in and of the mind and soul with my Qeros friends who guided me to places
of deep understanding and even changed some of my own life perceptions, which went way
beyond studying their music.
I conducted much of the intensive and detailed work in order to understand Qeros music
with my closer compadres and comadres. These thirty or so people became my Andean family,
and we shared a level of trust, spontaneity, fun, and just plain being-ness that I never imagined
possible. What they showed me, taught me, and allowed me to witness and participate in
regarding their music and way of life in general was most deeply generous on their part, and
unexpected on mine.
One of my biggest challenges was my internal balancing of the rich and deeply satisfying
exchanges of personal connections combined with the stress of the long sessions of coming to an
agreement about what my next gift should be. Often I felt a back-and-forth inner tension and

15
negotiation between the roles of loved comadre, feeling warmly fully accepted and loved, and
gringa researcher, aware of jealousies I caused by working closely with some and not others. I
had to draw upon perseverance, bravery, and compassion, and eventually I felt that everyone
knew me and I knew them; and even though tensions remained among some, on many levels we
had worked it out.
During 2005 I sat in on all rituals with the Qeros, recorded their singing in and out of
context, and later held work sessions in my apartment in Cusco. Selected compadres and
comadres made the long walk and then bus ride to my home on a pre-arranged date, and we held
many intensive work sessions with my Quechua tutors. For two or three days at a time they lived
in my home, and we transcribed and translated my field recordings. There were endless
discussions that spun off from these translations on related topics or questions I had about the
texts, their music, rituals, and life. I believe the crucial element here is that I worked with the
Qeros in music transcription and translation. Even native Quechua speakers experience
difficulty understanding Qeros singing and deciphering song texts, as I have been told directly
on numerous occasions, because of their unusual breaking and pulling of words.
After one year of recording all rituals and hosting regular meetings in my home in Cusco,
the next year I participated in all their rituals. Starting with Chayampuy in 2006, the first festival
of the year when the years song is chosen, and for all subsequent rituals for the entire year, I
dressed as a Qeros woman, sang their songs, and participated in all rites with them. This
involved drinking, chewing coca, shaking the llama bells over the sacred misa (altar) while
singing at full force, and singing until all hours; in sum, it was full participation. It was when I
participated that I noticed a shift in my interactions and relations with the people, and
understanding of their music. Many people were surprised and impressed that I could actually
sing the correct words, in the correct style, and be with them in ritual. The women opened up,
and became comfortable with me in a way that was not so the previous year, when I was still in a
mans role as single, assertive researcher, wearing pants and working the recording machines.
Suddenly I was clearly a woman who knew the womens role and songs in all the rituals. My
relationship with the community as a whole, but particularly with the women, became more
trusting, casual, light, and joking, and our mutual respect deepened. Through full participation I
gained insights into their music, musical sounds, sensations, and perceptions that were not
accessible to me when only observing and recording. My questions in our continuing work

16
sessions in my home expanded on those from the previous year, as my understanding deepened
and my information base broadened.
In 2007, after three years of making recordings and holding work sessions in my home
(20052007), two years of participation and singing over and over again with my comadres in
ritual (20062007), and conversing and dreaming in Quechua, a crystallization of insights began
to come to me. There was some kind of organic osmosis, as the union of the very subtle
explanations they gave me combined with openness on my part, allowed insights to emerge, and
then be confirmed by my compadres. It is these deeper understandings that I will elaborate on in
this dissertationthe deeper meanings about what correct singing and playing means to them,
how music is a sonic manifestation of their worldview, and the role music plays in the vital
maintenance and re-creation of life-nourishing relationships between humans, animals, and
spiritual powers.
My presentation of Qeros music in this dissertation begins with ethnographic
description, followed by fleshing out pertinent points of that description that I believe lend
insight into Qeros musical production. I follow ethnographies with analyses of musical
examples that include audio recordings and text transcriptions and translations. My analyses are
based on information the Qeros directly shared with me, combined with my own observations
and experience of immersion in Qeros culture. The analyses lead me to summarize the deep
meanings underlying why the Qeros make music the way they do.

17
 CHAPTER 2
MUSICAL OVERVIEW, HISTORY, AND IDENTITY

An Overview of Qeros Music

Through Qeros musical production and choices we see that the Qeros are a multi-
faceted, dynamic, sensitive, and poetic people with strong Andean roots, who also shift, grow,
change, and adapt to and incorporate urban Peruvian culture around them, as has probably been
the case for centuries. The entire palette of their music shows that the Qeros are a complex and
mobile group, and are not an isolated, bound, and static culture, as stereotypes would deem.
The Qeros have a variety of music, some uniquely autochthonous and others shared with
their neighbors and the larger regional areas. Many of the adopted styles serve to connect the
Qeros with their neighbors in the greater Andean region, and with larger urban centers like
Paucartambo, Ocongate, and Cusco (see Map 2.2). Vctor Flores Salas, a young Qeros musician
who is adept at all styles of Qeros music, said they want to learn songs of other Andean
communities because we are all runa (indigenous Andeans) and kuska sonqoyoq kayku (we
are of the same heart). The Qeros are aware of the music that is uniquely their own, and also of
the music that is of the larger Andean community, to which they also belong and identify with.
They keep all of their various musics separate in function and performance, so that the Qeros
strong identity allows them to maintain musical tradition and experiment with musical
modernization simultaneously.
These incorporated styles include the dances and instruments they use in the largest
pilgrimage of the Peruvian Andes, called Qoyllur Riti. In this pilgrimage, the Qeros dance the
traditional dance of wayri chunchu (representative of people from the Amazon jungle)
accompanied by pitus (transverse flutes) and bombos (drums), which are widely used throughout
the region beyond Qeros. In addition, they recently adopted the qhapaq qolla dance
(representative of llama herders from the altiplano, or high plateau),1 which uses the kena
(notched-flute) along with the modern instruments of accordion (2003) and drum set (2005). At
Easter the Qeros sing popular waynos and play them on transverse flutes and drumsthe same
instruments that accompany the wayri chunchu dance. For enjoyment and dancing, some young

1
For information about the origin and contextual, festival uses of dances in the Cusco and Paucartambo
regions, see Cnepa Koch (1998) and Mendoza (2000).

18
men play popular waynos and carnavales on the bandurria (a sixteen-string lute in four courses),
and requinto (a ten-string lute, with four single strings and two courses of three strings). They
teach themselves to play these popular instruments and huaynos and carnavales by listening to
the radio and cassette recordings on battery-operated tape players, and watching music videos on
television in nearby Ocongate or Cusco. So, for example, after a long ritual during the day, the
young men who have learned these instruments will play late at night, and women may sing,
while the youth will dance.
The Qeros also play songs that are emblematically Qeros and are not heard in
neighboring communities. This dissertation focuses exclusively on these emblematic songs and
the musical styles that are found only in Qeros, specifically the Carnaval songs (Pukllay taki)
and animal fertility songs. Here it is necessary to clarify that Carnaval (Pukllay) and animal
fertility rituals are not unique to Qeros. Likewise, similar song texts and topics, musical scales,
and instruments are heard in the music of communities throughout the Peruvian and Bolivian
Andes; however, the specifics of all musical aspects are recognizably Qeros, rendering them
unique to their community. Music in the Andes is analogous to weaving in this regard: Textiles
are intricate, tactile forms of cultural perception, and similarities in pallay (patterns/designs) and
the concepts they represent are expressed from community to community, yet the specificities of
the pallay are unique to each individual community. The subtleties of musical scales,
instruments, and song texts also vary in the same way. In addition to the emblematic Qeros
style, what is also notable is that the Qeros still sing their Pukllay taki and animal fertility songs,
while some of their neighbors, even just one valley over, do not.
Qeros musical rituals are motivated by a combination of seasonal changes: the cycle of
animal husbandry, planting and harvesting, and Catholic influences which they have
incorporated into their own rituals. Filmmaker and musician John Cohen, during his work in
Qeros, was told the following by his long-time Qeros friend, Raymundo Quispe Chura: Its
always like this: we sing this song of the Incas. We compose the song from all things. Every
song comes on its appropriate date. If there is no song, there is no fiesta; and without the
fiesta, there is no song (Cohen and Wissler 2007, 470). Indeed, Qeros songs come on their
appropriate dates, and any fiesta is identified by the specific song that is sung and the
instruments that are played.

19
Nearly all Qeros music-making happens in the context of rituals and celebrations. Qeros
traditional music is communal and participatory; there are no specialists (or everyone is a
specialist), and there is no audience. Music is something the Qeros do for and among
themselves. The only times the Qeros casually make music for personal enjoyment are when
they are herding or weaving, and nowadays singing and playing the newly-adopted waynos and
carnavales (popular song/dance genres) on bandurrias and requintos (popular Andean lutes),
and cassette tape recorders. See Table A, in Appendix A, for an overview of the yearly cycle of
all music played in and by the Qeros.

The Qeros Cultural Group

The Qeros cultural group is comprised of eight communities located approximately one
hundred and twenty miles east of the ancient Incan capital of Cusco, in the province of
Paucartambo.2 The eight recently legally recognized (late 1970s1980s) communities are, from
west to east: Kallacancha, Qachupata, Pucara, Marcachea, Qeros Totorani, Hatun Qeros,
Kiku, and Hapu (see Map 2.2).3 These eight communities have a total population of
approximately four thousand inhabitants.4 They are monolingual Quechua speakers,5 yet certain
demographic groups speak Spanish: The men who travel to Cusco frequently, usually to earn
money; the children who attend schools outside of Qeros; and the inhabitants of three of the
eight communities (Kallacancha, Qachupata, and Pucara) who, in general, have been exposed

2
To be precise, the geographic coordinates are 13 south and 71 east (Instituto Nacional de Cultura 2005,
11).
3
The spellings for these communities vary. The above listing is among the more common.
4
A recent government census (2004) counts 3,786 inhabitants in all eight Qeros communities (Instituto
Nacional de Cultura, 2005, 24). I believe these numbers should be taken not as exact, but as good approximations.
5
Quechua is the most widely-spoken Native American language family today, though many linguists and
scholars argue that Quechua is endangered. The form of Quechua the Qeros speak comes under the Southern
(sureo) branch of the Quechua language family. Linguist Paul Heggarty states, The term 'Southern Quechua' is
used to refer to the various regional forms spoken from the Ayacucho region southwards, through Cuzco, Puno,
Bolivia and in North-West Argentina (QIIc, in the traditional classification of the Quechua family). Whether all of
these regional variations can truly be considered to form just a single language, despite the significant dialectal
variation and somewhat imperfect mutual intelligibility across this area, is a moot point. Still, if one does accept this
view, then Southern Quechua ranks as the most widely spoken indigenous language of the Americas today. The
most recent census data available suggest a figure of 4.825M speakers of Southern Quechua: about 2.4M in Peru,
2.125M in Bolivia and 0.3M in Argentina; but these data are from different years, and already out of date, because
the situation is changing fast (Heggarty, pers. com., 10 February, 2009). For fuller discussion, see Howard (in
prep.), 2009.

20
to urban influences and interactions more so than the other five communities, due to nearby road
access to the district capital of Paucartambo.
The Qeros cultural region is located on the eastern watershed of the southeastern Andes
in the snow-capped Cordillera Vilcanota range, the highest mountain chain in southeastern Peru.6
The region covers nine hundred and fourteen square kilometers, and is located specifically on the
northeastern flanks of the Ayakachi sub-range with peaks of about 17,000-18,000 feet (Instituto
Nacional de Cultura 2005, 11). The crucial geographic characteristic of the Qeros region, and
prime determinant for settlement and affluence, is the inhabited area that spans from 15,500
down to 6,000 feet above sea level; that is, it extends from the snow peaks down to ceja de selva,
eyebrow of the jungle, technically the Amazonian cloud forest. The distance of the drop is
only about twenty-five miles, so that the Qeros could walk from their highest zone to the lowest
in one long day, although they rarely do.
This rapid descent, combined with humidity factors rising from the cloud forest, renders
three ecological zones within proximity of each other, each with its own characteristic
productivity: 1) puna or loma (13,50015,500 feet), for raising llamas and alpacas, and freeze-
drying potatoes (chuu) and meat (charki) that last for months; 2) qheswa (10,50013,500
feet), for cultivation of a variety of potatoes and tubers, and raising of European-introduced
sheep and cows; and 3) yunga (called monte by the Qeros, between 6,0008,500 feet), for
cultivation of corn, squash, peppers, and various types of bamboo and wood (see Map 2.3, which
shows these three zones in the community of Hatun Qeros).7 The cultivation of three productive
zones has historically promoted self-sufficiency.

6
The highest peak in the entire Cordillera Vilcanota range is Apu Ausangate (20,960 feet), a mega Apu
(mountain deity) and highest in the hierarchy of all mountain spirits in southeast Peru. This Apu is well outside the
Qeros region, about a two-day walk to the south, yet it is worth mentioning as the Andeans consider it a major force
on the quality of life in southeast Peru. This Apu is sometimes invoked by Qeros during offering rituals, and is
referred to in song text.
7
Wayqo is a small zone connecting the lower puna and upper qheswa, about 12,300 to 14,000 feet above
sea level, and refers to an area of very steep canyons, rocky escarpments, and gullies with a variety of grasses and
the bromeliad known as achupalla (Tillandsia straminea), which is used as flammable material for cooking, along
with llama dung. Because the other three are the main production zones, these are the ones the Qeros focus on for
their livelihood.
The altitudes on Map 2.3 differ from the ones listed above. The map shows the entire span of the zones,
whereas the numbers listed reflect the altitudes where the Qeros actually have production.

21
Map 2.1: La Nacin Qeros, Nearby Regions and Cities
The red line through La Nacin Qeros is the projected road system
through the Qeros communities.

Map courtesy of ACCA, Asociacin para la Conservacin de la Cuenca Amaznica,

Cusco, Per. www.acca.org.pe
Detail of maps by Sandro Arias (ACCA).

22
 Map 2.2: The Community of Hatun Qeros
The six high altitude annexes belonging to the Qeros community are indicated,
as well as the community center of Hatun Qeros.

Map courtesy of ACCA, Asociacin para la Conservacin de la Cuenca Amaznica,

Cusco, Per. www.acca.org.pe
Detail of maps by Sandro Arias (ACCA).

23
 For most of Qeros history, the people lived and functioned as one large ethnic group
with various ayllu, or hamlets of people in contiguous valleys.8 Hatun Qeros served as the
vector that socially and ritually oriented the ayllu of the entire cultural region. Today, each ayllu
pertains to one of the eight newly-formed communities, so that each community has jurisdiction
over two to eight ayllu each. Nowadays, the Qeros refer to a hamlet by the legal political term
anexo (annex), rather than the Andean term of ayllu. The community of Hatun Qeros is still
considered the heart of the Qeros region, due to the communitys central location in the middle
of the five, and its continued representation of traditional Qeros culture that its relative
remoteness has fostered compared to the other Qeros communities.9

The Community of Hatun Qeros and Daily Life

The people of Hatun Qeros live in six anexos located at about 14,000 feet above sea
level.10 Dispersed over four contiguous river valleys, these anexos have a population of
approximately nine hundred people in one hundred and twenty families (see Map 2.3, Hatun
Qeros).11 A Qeros family traditionally owns a minimum of three homes: a primary home in one
of the anexos of the upper pasture area (puna), a secondary home in the community center where
the rivers meet (qheswa), and a wooden hut in the monte.12
The Qeros existence has been one of transhumance, which is the seasonal movement of
livestock between their upper and middle pasture areas, coordinating the rhythms of agricultural

8
Ayllu is a Quechua concept referring basically to any indigenous group with a common frame of reference
or connection. These connections include, for example, kinship ties, adherence to the same mountain deities, and the
common focuses of cosmology, social structure, and economic organization (see Allen 2002, 75101, for an in-
depth discussion of ayllu and its various interpretations).
9
A paved, inter-oceanic highway is currently under construction, which will connect the coasts of Peru and
Brazil. Map 2.2 shows the roads (in red) that will eventually connect the Qeros communities to this major highway.
As of early 2009, the road has not yet arrived to Hatun Qeros.
10
This information about the community location and layout can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa
Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy We Sing), in the sequence titled About Hatun Qeros (Wissler, 2007).
11
A 2004 census shows the following numbers of families in each of the six anexos of Hatun Qeros, which
secured legal community status in 1983: Qolpa Kuchu 26, Charkapata 31, Hatun Rumiyoq 11, Qocha Moqo 36,
Challmachimpana 17, Chuwa Chuwa 26, totaling 147 (Instituto Nacional de Cultura 2005, 24). However, the
Qeros report to me consistently that there are 120 families total in Hatun Qeros, which is probably more accurate.
12
Some Qeros also have additional homes or shelters in middle pasture and agricultural lands, so that one
family in fact may have up to five homes, with the upper one as primary residence.

24
planting and harvesting in synchronization with these cycles.13 The community of Hatun Qeros
continues to live in this way. The Qeros are therefore highly migratory, but not nomadic. While
they are also agriculturalists, anthropologist Steven Websters research on Hatun Qeros social
organization led him to argue that pastoralism has a preeminent role over agriculture (Webster
1972, 55).14 This is further supported by the fact that the upper home is their permanent
residence and all other homes are seasonal and temporary (that is, their permanent residence is
determined by where the llamas and alpacas live). This point is important to remember during
the discussion of animal fertility rituals (see Chapters 6 and 7).
The ritual and social center of the community is where the four upper river valleys meet
to form the one large Qeros mayu (Qeros River) that descends dramatically into the monte (see
Map 2.3). This community center of Hatun Qeros has some fifty homes made of stone with
ichhu grass roofs.15 These houses are of considerably larger construction than the homes up high
because they usually provide for extended families.
The community center is inhabited only at specific times throughout the year: for the
three annual communal celebrations, Pukllay, Easter, and Corpus Christi; for the monthly
assembly meetings held by the directive committee, or special meetings they may organize;16
during communal potato and corn plantings and harvests; and during community works projects,
such as roofings and bridge repair. It has one government school, built in the 1950s, and some
families will live temporarily in or near Hatun Qeros so their children can more easily attend.
This, however, is not the norm, and the long distances children must walk from the high anexos
down to the school, combined with the frequent turnover of teachers, are prime deterrents for
attendance.17

13
See Webster, 1972 and 1983, and Flores Ochoa, 1979, for more about pastoralism in the Andes.
14
Steven Webster has published extensively on the Qeros system of pastoral transhumance, sociology, and
kinship relations. His doctoral dissertation on Qeros was titled The Social Organization of a Native Andean
Community (1972).
15
Ichhu is a thick, strong grass that is common in the puna of the high Andes (Stipa ichhu).
16
Every month Qeros holds assembly meetings with the directive committee (president, vice president,
and secretary) and all male heads of households. The directive committee is an institution instigated during President
Velascos regime in 1970 as an effort to give local communities a voice with which to participate in regional affairs.
17
The school is a primary one only, with one government teacher for all six grades. Attendance is poor due
to many factors, such as the schools distance from the residential annexes, and the requirement for children to help
out with the high altitude herding. The children who do attend generally complete the first two grades, and only a

25
 Qeros primary homes in the puna are also made of stone and ichhu. They are single
rooms with dirt floors, and a hearth and clay cooking stove at one end, and sitting/sleeping space
at the other. Next to the cooking area is a thurki (large storage receptacle) for storing piles of
dried llama and alpaca dung, which, along with dried achupalla (bromeliads), are the principal
fuels for cooking.18 The home may have some large baskets and shelves for storage, and all
people sit on pelts or blankets on the dirt floor. Next door to the home is a smaller version of the
same stone/ichhu construction, which is used as principal storage for potatoes (fresh and dried),
corn, and any extra food, clothing, tools, and ritual items reserved for special use.
In general, the women and children are the herders (though men help occasionally), and
the men are the agriculturalists. The womens role of raising children, cooking meals, and
weaving clothes are all activities that take place near the primary home up high, so it is natural
that the women and children are the herders for the llamas and alpacas that depend on the high
grasses just above the homes. At seasonal times during year, the animals are moved down for
herding in lower grasses (transhumance), at which time the woman will simply move with the
herd, along with the children, to a lower home. Similarly, it is natural that the men work the
fields, which often requires long walks away from the home, because they are less tied to staying
close to home. They may leave early in the morning and return home only after dark, or even a
day or two later, having completed agricultural work or the obligation of community faena (work
projects, such as bridge building, roofing, and planting/harvesting communal crops, or working
on a project funded by a non-government, non-profit organization).
The men descend to the monte in December to plant corn, in March to weed it, and then
with the whole family in July for the harvest. This once-a-year descent for the corn harvest in
July is a significant break from the work routines in the upper potato and herding zones. Even
though the harvesting of corn, wood, and bamboo is labor intensive, and the people often
experience disappointment in discovering that the spectacled bears and parrots that live there

few will go through to complete the final grade. Recently, two new primary schools have been built: Munay Tika in
the anexo of Charkapata, run by a private non-government organization Puma Peru (founded 2000), and a second
government school in the anexo of Chuwa Chuwa (founded 2008). Currently another school is under construction in
the annex of Qocha Moqo. Of these, Munay Tika has the largest attendance (around sixty students, versus around
twenty or so in the other two). Part of the reason is that it services two anexos: Charkapata and Qolpa Kucho, and is
located right near the former.
18
Tillandsia straminea

26
have devoured part of the corn crop, the monte is an area so completely different in climate and
feel that many welcome the change.
This routine of vertical movement between pastoral and agricultural areas is broken up
throughout the year by family and communal festivals and rituals. In addition, the men, and
occasionally the women, make regular trips into urban areas, such as Ocongate, Paucartambo,
and the large city of Cusco (see Map 2.2), for shopping, selling textiles and ritual offerings to the
mountain deities and Mother Earth to city people and tourists, or visiting children who may be
attending school there. This continual interaction with urban life impacts their own lives, of
course, as they become increasingly more tied to the capitalist economy and urban amenities.
This is reflected in the musical choices of the younger generations, many of whom feel penqay
(shame) towards traditional Qeros songs, and are now learning popular Andean musical styles
and instruments.

Figure 2.1. The anexo of Challmachimpana Figure 2.2. The community center of Hatun Qeros
in the rainy season (14,200 feet). 19 (11,000 feet). The Qeros mayu (river) is in the
distance, on its descent to the cloud forests to the north.

19
All photographs taken by the author.

27
 Figure 2.3. A woman herds her llamas and Figure 2.4. The man in the foreground plows with a
alpacas in the anexo of Challmachimpana in the chakitaqlla (foot plow); the man in the back plants
dry season. potatoes.

Vertical Ecology20 and Historical Background

Qeros song texts and motivations for musical production are inextricably linked to their
land, and the continuance of ecological sustainability has nurtured the retention of their music.
The close proximity of three ecological zones (i.e., vertical ecology) has traditionally provided
the sustenance the Qeros require, which suggests that neither trade nor outside colonization for
survival has been necessary throughout history. Many of the Andean groups that made use of
vertical ecology in pre-Columbian Peru worked more extensive areas than the one the Qeros
live in today, with days walks between zones. This meant they necessarily traded for goods
from other zones, or were forced to send colonies to far-flung areas for production, which
resulted in more interaction with and exposure to other cultural enclaves. Interaction and
exposure with other groups seems to have been less common with the Qeros.
David Cahill explains that soon after the Spanish conquest (1532), the vast economic
network of vertical ecologies was eradicated fairly quickly, as he states:
This system, so ingenious in conception and practical in execution,
was effectively destroyed within a few decades of conquest, by
dislocation, civil war, depopulation and the ethnographic
obtuseness of the new Spanish rulers and administrators. It
survived in a few areas, randomly and by chance (Cahill 1994,
330).

20
Ethnohistorian John Murra provided groundbreaking research on the usage and exploitation of Andean
and coastal ecosystems, which he termed vertical ecology (See Murra, 1972 and 1980).

28
He then adds in a footnote, which highlights the unusualness of the Qeros continuance of this
vertical-use lifestyle today, There is a faint echo of it today in the Qero community of the
Paucartambo province of southern Peru (ibid.).
While the Qeros seem to have lived and worked the vertical zones of their region
autonomously for centuries, they may have had interaction and relations with the Amazonian
people downstream on the same Qeros River, much further north and deeper into the rainforest.
I mention this possible pre-historic connection between the Andes and the Amazon in light of
Qeros music. The Qeros musical style is notably different from that of their contiguous
Andean neighbors, and this could be suggestive of Amazonian influence. Both John Cohen, who
has documented Qeros songs in recordings, articles, and films since 1957, and Anthony Seeger,
who has researched the music of the Suy in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil, have suggested
that the highland Qeros musical style, specifically the wide overlap of singing and playing, and
the dense, seemingly chaotic texture this creates (the subject of Chapter 5), may have some
connection to or possible influence from Amazonian musical styles that also employ a wide
overlap of singing.21 There is one community of Wachiperi (Amazonian group) descent, also
called Qeros, which is located along the same Qeros river valley that links the high Andes to
the low Amazon jungle, so that at one time both groups may have been connected, either by
trade interaction, or ethnicity, or both.22
Today the Qeros descent for the corn harvest takes them only to the upper Amazonian
cloud forest region (about 6,000 feet), and lower access is technically impossible due to
excessive vegetation and no trails. Perhaps at one time this route was open between the upper
and lower Qeros river regions, which might also explain their resource for the essential coca

21
Seeger, pers. com. October 2005. John Cohen, in his film Carnival in Qeros (1990), posits the following
consideration in writing on the screen just after the Carnival sequence: The musical heterophony of the Carnival
resembles the sound of celebrations in the jungle. This musical structure exemplifies a connection between the
Andes and the Amazon.
22
It is not unusual for more than one community that is located on the same river to have the name of that
river as community name. The Amazonian Qeros community is located on the Qeros river between the Amarakaeri
Reserve and Manu National Park (see Map 2.2), and it has only fifty-six inhabitants (personal communication with
the ACCA office [Asociacin para la Conservacin de la Cuenca Amaznica], March 2008). A Wachiperi myth tells
about a segment of their population that was forced to move to the highlands due to a plague, suggesting a lowland-
highland connection.

31
leaves, which, as I understand from both researchers and my Qeros friends, they never
cultivated themselves.23
Even though the idea of connection between higher Andean and lower Amazonian groups
is speculation and beyond the scope of this dissertation, the issue is worthy of consideration and
further investigation given that the Qeros musical style is discrete, and even so deemed by their
neighbors. In discussions with the Qeros on this topic, however, no oral history has arisen that
accounts for their descent to the lowland Qeros area, or acknowledgment that they are in some
way related to Amazonian people.
While there is no historical record of the Qeros in pre-Columbian times, as a sweeping
generalization it seems correct to say that the Qeros suffered less post-conquest acculturation
than many other Andean groups. This undoubtedly influenced the path of their musical
development over the past five centuries. Thomas Turino states, Interchange between members
of the urban-Western and rural-indigenous societies in Peru has affected the evolution of Andean
musical practices in fundamental ways since the colonial era (Turino 1991b, 121). Spanish
colonialization and continued dominance by people of Spanish descent has been the hegemonic
urban-Western influence since the beginning of conquest, and has contributed to the mestizaje,
or assimilation, of indigenous musics in the Andes.24 Qeros music retained much of its local
integrity partly as a result of the peoples post-conquest history.
No evidence exists to suggest that the Qeros people suffered relocation into planned,
colonial Spanish settlements or reduccines (reductions) for purposes of acculturation and
control as experienced by a large portion of the indigenous population, thereby significantly
diminishing the trauma of colonial oppression and dissolution of Qeros culture and ethnicity.
Because the Qeros territory is comprised of steep, closed valleys with difficult access and cold
climate, it was not attractive to the Spanish encomienda (feudal, colonial lands owned by
conquistadors, 15321821) and hacienda (privately-owned large areas of land, 1821ca.1970s)

23
While trade seemed not to be a requirement for survival, according to anthropologist Steven Webster, the
two most important external necessities not produced in Qeros were salt and coca. Webster reports salt and coca as
longstanding trade items, since far into pre-contact times (Webster 1972, 42).
24
The process of mestizaje, just like the word mestizo, is complex and not a simple one to define. Suffice to
say, it generally refers to a hybridicity, so that indigenous musical styles are assimilated into European-influenced
musical traits, and the evolving musical styles often become traditional unto themselves. (See De la Cadena 2000,
for a full discussion of the processes of mestizaje in the Cusco region.)

32
systems that exploited people and resources for large-scale agricultural production, typically in
open, temperate valleys. Even though the Qeros land was were owned by both encomenderos
(colonial landowners)25 and hacendados (post-colonial, Republican-era landowners),26 the
people were not exploited to the degree of many other groups that eventually lost control of their
own resources, and were therefore forced to enter into mass production and the urban mestizo
economic system. In this regard, Steven Webster calls the Qeros a tribal rather than peasant
society, in that they maintained their ethnic and cultural authenticity and were not subjugated by
a larger system that in essence converted the locals into peasants working for large-yield systems
(Webster 1972, 3).
Peruvian novelist, poet, and supporter of indigenous culture, Jos Maria Arguedas, with
Ruth Stephen, explain that the settlements in the higher regions of the Vilcanota (where Qeros is
located) had not been reduced to a state of servitude like the majority of the populations in both
the hot and temperate valleys of Cuzco, and like the Indians of the farming and cattle-grazing
regions of the plateau (Arguedas and Stephen 1957, 179). This applies to the Qeros territory,
where the hacienda system was only nominally superimposed for most of the landowners time
there, from the nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries. Even though the last hacendado in charge
of the area of Hatun Qeros up until the early 1960s, Luis Ybar Ordoez, is known to have been
particularly abusive,27 the majority of his production requirement was in the middle altitude zone
(qheswa). The Qeros were therefore able to maintain control over the higher puna and lower
monte areas. In this regard, it is necessary to remember that the Qeros are primarily a pastoralist
society, with their llamas and alpacas that reside in the high puna as the chief focus in the larger
scheme of their vertical land management. While a Qeros family typically has three homes, its

25
Efran Morote Best, folklorist on Cusco Universitys 1955 academic expedition into Qeros,
writes about a document in which the vacant lands of Qeros were deeded to Sr. Gabriel Ruiz de la Pea
on September 18, 1617, who was succeeded by many generations of mestizo landowners (Morote Best
1958b, 299, my translation). 1617 was a considerably later date than many other land-allotments to colonial
owners, nearly a century after colonization, when many desirable areas had already been distributed
amongst the conquistadors decades before, and exploitation was well underway.

26
The wealthy Ybar family owned lands in the Paucartambo valley region in an extensive hacienda that
also included the Qeros cultural region. Luis Ybar Palacio wrote a fascinating and descriptive article about Qeros
geography, ritual offices and festivals, the first published article about Qeros culture (Ybar Palacio 1922).
27
The Qeros elder Vicente Apasa Huamn was the last person alive to remember life under the hacendado
Luis Ybar Ordoez, and Vicentes testimony can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief
and Joy We Sing), in the sequence titled Qeros Songs (Wissler, 2007).

33
main residence is necessarily the higher one, since the llamas and alpacas require daily herding
and care. In this way, the Qeros primary mode of existence (pastoralism) was upheld, and so,
therefore, were the animal fertility rituals with their accompanying songs. These rituals and
songs have been, and still are, integral symbolic actions that buttressed this crucial mode of life
sustenance.
Catholic ceremonies and symbols were introduced during the colonial and hacienda
periods, many of which are now part of the Qeros own celebrations. Examples of these are their
communal festivals based on the Catholic liturgical calendar (Pukllay, Easter, and Corpus
Christi) and the cargo system of offices that preside over them.28 The resulting mix of ritual
symbolism expresses itself in a uniquely Qeros way. This is demonstrated at Easter when they
carefully place their special clothing worn at Pukllay weeks before on a wooden arku (arch), and
raise it high in the air in offering to the Apu. Simultaneously they parade crosses and dilapidated
statues of saints, which were left by the hacendados, in stately procession under the arch.29 Over
time, the Qeros have also incorporated the musical styles, instruments, and dances of the greater
Andean region for the Catholic celebrations they practice (Easter, Qoyllur Riti, and Corpus
Christi).
In sum, the Qeros enduring autonomous exploitation of an ecologically diverse vertical
valley system has fostered the continued practice of indigenous customs, which includes musical
rituals. This, and the fact that the Qeros suffered less suppression under the colonial and
hacienda systems, no doubt slowed acculturation processes. Even so, they certainly have not
been left alone in isolation. The Qeros, like all Andeans, have historically suffered hegemonic
exclusion and marginalization from the national and social systems of the middle and upper
classes (such as education, health care, and development). While this exclusion often contributes
to the continued practice of indigenous musics, it also simultaneously creates the desire to adopt
outside musical styles in certain contexts in order to be a meaningful part of them. Such is the

28
Cusco anthropologist scar Nez del Prado speculates that instigation of the ritual offices in Qeros of
alcalde, alguaciles, and regidores (authorities in charge of communal celebrations such as Pukllay, Easter, and
Corpus Christi) possibly date back to the laws emerging from the Lima Councils between 15521575 (Nez del
Prado 2005a [1958], 221).
29
This Easter procession can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy
We Sing), in the sequence titled Easter (Wissler, 2007). Also see Abercrombie 1998, 99, for a ceremonial
adorned arku in a festival in the Aymara community of Santa Brbara de Culta, Bolivia.

34
case with the Qeros learning of certain dances, musics, and instruments that are new for them,
for their participation in the large regional pilgrimage of Qoyllur Riti.
Today the Qeros hold the public torch as the most authentically indigenous group in
the Andes of southeastern Peru, which their autochthonous music exemplifies, and this renown
influences their current politics. They have mounted efforts to preserve and promote their ethnic
and cultural identity, as demonstrated by their official formation in 2005 of La Nacin Qeros
(The Qeros Nation).

Identity: La Nacin Qeros; Qeros and/or Inca?

Five of the eight Qeros communities banded together in 2005 and formed La Nacin
Qeros (approximately two thousand in population) for the unification of the Qeros cultural
group (see Map 2.2; the mauve-shaded portion delineates La Nacin Qeros).30 All eight
communities of the group had received their titles as separate communities in the 1970s and
1980s, the same time many Andean communities received legal community status after the
agrarian reforms of the previous decade.31 This creation of separate community status
contributed to the decline of communal reciprocal relations among the original Qeros ayllu
groups and instead encouraged individual community-protection and competition.32 The
formation of La Nacin Qeros is a modern-day response to this social disintegration, in an effort
to revive and encourage communal solidarity.

30
The 2004 census conducted by Perus National Institute of Culture counts 2,197 inhabitants in La Nacin
Qeros (Instituto Nacional de Cultura 2005, 24).
31
Around 1920 the enormous lands of the Ybar hacienda region were partitioned into smaller units,
allotted to Ybars sons and extended family, which fatefully set some of the boundary markers that were used in
determining todays separate Qeros communities. The case of Hatun Qeros is unique in all of Peru, in that they
purchased their land from their landowner in the early 1960s, well before the agrarian reforms of 1969 (interview
with Toms Cevallos, Department of Agriculture, Cusco, Peru, 18 December 2007).
Following are the years in which the Qeros communities received their recognized community status:
Kallacancha in 1978; Hatun Qeros in 1983; Kiku in 1986; Qeros Totorani, Marcachea, and Hapu in 1987; and
Pucara in 1988. Qachupata is the only commnunity not mentioned, for which I could not find a date, however it
seems logical it would be in the time period (Instituto Nacional de Cultura 2005, 512).
32
One example of this is how the Qeros people of present-day Kiku and Hapu customarily planted and
harvested corn together in the monte area of these two contiguous ayllu groups. Today, most of this originally shared
territory in the monte legally pertains to Kiku, and Kiku now charges Hapu a per-person fee for the right to farm
corn on their land. As a result, many Hapu inhabitants no longer cultivate corn (and therefore no longer sing Sara
Taki (The Corn Song).

35
 The establishment of La Nacin Qeros is indicative of the Qeros cognizance of their
special identity/ethnicity, and their wish to preserve it and stay solidified as a group. The
exclusion by the five-member communities (Hapu, Kiku, Hatun Qeros, Qeros Totorani, and
Marcachea) of their Qeros neighbors (Pucara, Qachupata, and Kallacancha), whom they
consider overly acculturated, is a particularly strong statement of this awareness. The five
excluded the other three because they felt they were too misti (mestizo), too urbanized, and no
longer adherent to Qeros customs and the ritual calendar of festivals, herding, and planting.
Indeed, these three communities are the farthest west, with easier road access to the district urban
capital of Paucartambo, and therefore its influences throughout history.
The Qeros receive recognition of their special identity from forces around them such as
Perus National Institute of Cultures (INC) initiation of a collaborative ten-year plan of
etnodesarollo (ethnodevelopment, 20082018), with the intention of implementing development
plans according to the Qeros own desires, values, and goals.33 The INCs declaration (2006) of
the Qeros region as Cultural Patrimony was the first case of its kind in Peru. During his 2005
South America tour, the Dalai Lama held audience with the Qeros as representatives of
authentic, Andean culture. International groups of spiritual tourists undergo training to learn
about and even become initiated into Andean mystical beliefs.34 Streams of foreign and local
filmmakers and researchers have been drawn to Qeros authenticity. In sum, the Qeros have
many platforms and an eager audience from which to assert their identity.

33
During 20052006 the INC and the Paucartambo Municipality hosted regular meetings that were open to
any entity working in Qeros, along with the five Qeros communities directive committees and any Qeros people
who wished to attend. These meetings were open platform discussions, with presentations by organizations and
individuals about their current and future projects in Qeros, followed by immediate feedback from the Qeros, in
order to determine the ten-year plan of ethnodevelopment. For equality, the location of the meetings rotated among
Cusco, Paucartambo, and the five Qeros communities, and presentations were either in Quechua, or immediately
translated into Quechua. Some of the entities that attended were Perus Ministry of Health, and the following NGOs:
PRONAMACHCS (Programa Nacional de Manejo de Cuencas Hidrogrficas y Conservacin de Suelos [water
cleanliness and conservation, reforestation projects]); PERCSA (Proyecto Especial Regional Camelidos
Sudamericanos: llama, alpaca, and vicua herd management projects); ACCA (Asociacin para la Conservacin de
la Cuenca Amaznica: land and cultural conservation projects); and Heifer International Foundation (cameloid and
potato production projects). Among individual attendants were Barbara Richer y Juan Murillo (initiation of
secondary school construction projects and programs in Qeros), and myself as individual researcher. I offered
opinions about issues of tourism management, and proposed the making of a CD-series that would document forty
years of song recordings in Qeros, to include some past recordings by John Cohen.
34
Many foreigners look to the Qeros as the teachers of Andean Native American spiritual tradition, and
they travel to Qeros to work with ritual specialists. They are led by guides also trained in Qeros spiritual tradition,
notably Juan Nez del Prado and Amrico Ybar Zeballos.

36
 Recognition of the Qeros authenticity was first publicized to outsiders by the now-
famous (in Cusco) first academic expedition into Qeros in 1955, led by scar Nuez del Prado,
director of the department of anthropology of the Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad del
Cusco (UNSAAC).35 The editorials published by Demetrio Tpac Yupanqui, expedition
journalist who wrote for Limas daily newspaper and expedition sponsor La Prensa, were the
first sources to promote the Qeros pre-hispanic identity on a national level. Below are sample
editorial title citations:
Un museo viviente del incanato estudian cientficos Peruanos.
A tres das de mula de Paucartambo, en el centro del Cuzco, existe
todava un pedazo prehispnico. (La Prensa, 21 de Agosto 1955)

Living museum from the Inca era being studied by Peruvian

scientists. Three days by mule from Paucartambo, in the middle of
Cuzco (department), still exists a little piece from pre-hispanic
times. (La Prensa, 21 August 1955)

Qero es una ciudad admirable testimonio del Per preincaico

(La Prensa, 22 de Agosto 1955)

Qero is an admirable testimony of a pre-Incan city in Peru.

(La Prensa, 22 August 1955)36

Both editorial titles reference the Qeros as dating back to Incan and pre-Incan times,
highlighting and sensationalizing (e.g., living museum) their status as an ancient and unique
(e.g., a little piece that still exists) culture. The reference to the Inca era could be, and was
interpreted as they are Inca, since the Inca empire (approximately 14361532) spanned the
majority of present-day Peru (including the region of Qeros) and beyond. The Qeros
reputation in connection with Incan times and Incan culture, as the only remaining people from
this epoch, has been reiterated for more than fifty years by outsiders working or visiting Qeros

35
The interdisciplinary team consisted of scar Nez del Prado as expedition head and social
anthropologist; Mario Escobar Moscoso, geographer; Efran Morote Best, folklorist; Josafat Roel Pineda,
ethnomusicologist; Manuel Chvez Balln, archeologist; Luis Barreda Murillo, assistant archeologist; Demetrio
Roca, assistant folklorist; Malcom Burke, Figuregrapher; and Demetrio Tpac Yupanqui, journalist from La Prensa
(Flores Ochoa, Nez del Prado, eds. 2005, 32). Nez del Prado was instrumental in organizing a bank loan for the
Qeros to buy their land from the hacendado in the 1960s, and as such became the founder of applied anthropology
in Cusco. The edited volume Qero, el ltimo ayllu inka (2005), contains articles by members of this expedition, as
well as recent ones, making this a comprehensive source of information that spans fifty years of research in Qeros.
36
Quotations cited in Flores Ochoa, Jorge and Ana Mara Fries 1989, 9.

37
in various contexts. This has no doubt contributed to the Qeros fame and the sensationalized
reputation of the culture, and the commonly-asked question, are they Incas?
So, why is equating Qeros with Inca such a big deal, and what does this have to do
with their music? Perus most famous, internationally-known and revered icon is, and has been,
the Inca. Revival movements such as indigenismo (indigenism)37 popularized and romanticized
the image of an ancient, Inca past through the creation of folklore dances and festivals. While
ultimately unsuccessful, this movement did foster a mystique around the Inca that remains today,
in Peru and worldwide. Nowadays thousands of tourists come to Peru every year to see the lost
city of Machu Picchu, and learn of this ancient past. This Inca image was something that must
surely have had an impact on the readers of La Prensa in 1955 in associating the Qeros with a
glorified Inca past. Equating the Qeros, and the Qeros alone, as Incas, therefore gives them
conspicuous public attention, which, in turn, uniquely spotlights their indigenous traditions,
including music. Their traditions are viewed as windows into an ancient and lost past.
But what do the Qeros themselves say about their relationship with an Inca identity?
They, like many runa in the Andes, consider Inkar, the first mythical Inca who founded the
Incan empire, as their culture hero.38 The myth relays how Inkar and Qollara man and
woman full of wisdom, created by Ruwal, the head of all the Apuwere sent out to found a great
civilization. The Qeros say that Inkar first tried to found the civilization in Qeros, but was
unsuccessful because Qollar tickled him, causing him to slip which resulted in the formation of
the steep valleys and precipices in Qeros. Eventually he established this civilization in the area
of present-day Cusco. The Qeros version of the myth often adds that Inkar later returned to
Qeros, where he then imparted his great wisdom to the people.39 Some Qeros maintain that the

37
Indigenismo was a complex intellectual and political movement in the first part of the twentieth century,
with the intention of elevating the status of the indigenous to create a regional identity in Cusco. For more
information about the indigenismo movement see Mendoza (2000, 5155) and De la Cadena (2000, 2340).
38
The derivation of Inkar is Inca combined with rey from the Spanish king. Some spellings are
Inkarr. Qolla historically refers to the wife of the Incan king.
39
This myth was first heard in Qeros by folklorist Efran Morote Best in 1955, and was retold by scar
Nez del Prado in Nez del Prado (2005a [1958], 2012). John Cohens film The Shape of Survival (1979) opens
with Bernavl Machacca recounting the Inkar myth. There are many versions of this myth; this is just one
summarized version, which captures the gist.

38
Inca inherited political power, while the Qeros inherited knowledge and wisdom, as their
version of the myth relates.40
When I asked some Qeros directly, Are you Incas, do you believe you are Incas? I
heard responses ranging from a definite yes to no, and, we are not exactly Incas, but
family, or, the people say we are Incas. One compadre once said to me in a dark, crowded
home, as we were seated amid singing and talking, Inkar karayku (We were Inkar). I
believe many hold the identity of a connection with Inkar, and an awareness that they are
bearers of an ancient culture and spiritual knowledge because of this.
The Qeros awareness of their uniqueness certainly plays into their perception of their
music and music-making. In various discussions I heard the following comments: We sing Inca
taki (Inca songs), Our customs are very old, from the time of our abuelos
(grandfathers/ancestors), Our songs are natural, Our songs are nico (unique), and They
are heard in Qeros and nowhere else. Most likely their tritonic songs (three-note melodies with
pinkuyllu flute accompaniment), which both the Qeros and their Andean neighbors recognize as
uniquely Qeros, have their roots in this enduring past. The distinctiveness of their music, their
singular perception of it, and the perception of others, place Qeros music in a special position to
inform about an ancient past, and how the path of such a music is dynamic in a vibrantly active
Andean present.
Inca or not, in any case the Qeros have a unique cultural and ethnic identity, which
remains strong and active today. It is evident (and will be made more evident throughout this
dissertation) that the Qeros have a cohesive cosmological view and musical expressions that
reinforce it. They also maintain ethnic integrity to this day, rarely marrying and having children
outside of the Qeros cultural group.41 Anthropologist and photographer Yann le Borgne
maintains that Qeros is one of the only groups between southeastern Peru and Bolivia that

40
See Wilcox 1999, 81.
41
Couples in Qeros rarely marry legally, that is, with a marriage license. The few who do marry legally are
motivated by outside influences, such as needing a marriage license to register their children in non-Qeros schools,
or urban legalities that require a marriage license. In my experience, I heard of only one Qeros woman who married
a man a days walk from Qeros, in Tinki, near Ocongate (see Map 2.2), but this was an exception to the norm. See
Webster 1972, 265353, for an in-depth study of kinship and affinity. See also Nez del Prado 2005a [1958], 211
218.

39
defines itself by its own ethnicity and not just by its geographical location.42 In this regard, I
agree with Steven Webster when he says, the Qero cultural region is an ethnic enclave and
that The Qeros are apparently one of the remnants of an early mosaic of tribal groups likely to
have populated this area before political consolidation (Webster 1972, 9 and 7, respectively).
Linguistic anthropologist Bruce Mannheim sheds light on the state of linguistic and
cultural diversity at the time of the Spanish arrival in Peru, Before the European invasion of
1532, Southern Peru was extraordinarily diverse, both linguistically and culturally; it was a
mosaic in which speakers of distinct and often unrelated languages lived cheek to jowl . . .
(Mannheim 1998, 383384). The Qeros closed and compact valley system would have allowed
them to live cheek to jowl with non-Qeros neighbors (as they do today), and be their own
enclave amid surrounding groups. Similarly, John Rowe, in his classic article Inca Culture at
the Time of the Spanish Conquest states, At the time of the Inca conquest [approximately
1436], the whole Andean area was divided into an almost unbelievable number of small political
units, for many of which we do not have even the names (Rowe 1963, 185). He lists forty-four
highland provinces with the tribes who lived there at the time of the conquest, but his list of
tribes under Paucartambo is scant (ibid., 186192). It seems likely that Qeros should have
been listed there. Just as the Incas were a small ethnic group living in the Cusco valley region
before they expanded their empire in the fifteenth century, the Qeros probably inhabited their
valleys in the Paucartambo region simultaneously.43
Attempts to categorize the Qeros as Inca or Inca-related are perhaps part of a similar
historical process such as the one discussed by Alan Durston, in his book Pastoral Quechua
(2007), which follows the Catholic Churchs linguistic consolidation and codification processes
of the many diverse variations of Quechua as tool of colonization. Putting the Qeros in the

42
Yann le Borgne mentioned this during the presentation of his book, Qero les derniers Incas (2007), at
the first inter-institutional meeting with the La Nacin Qeros, June 22, 2007. This is a black and white
Figuregraphy book with in-depth and thoughtful accompanying text.
43
Luis Barreda Murillo, archeologist on the 1955 academic expedition by Cusco University, was the first to
document Incan archeological remains in Qeros, which consisted of Qhapaq an (paved roads) with their
connecting tambos (checkpoints). The Qhapaq an connected the middle altitudes of Qeros with the monte (cloud
forest), and because there is no evidence of Incan house dwellings, Barreda suggests that the Incas used the Qeros
territory as a connector to the monte, in order to obtain valuable jungle resources (Barreda 2005). The Qeros were
likely well-established in this area when the Incas arrived, as the Inca imperialists commonly built their roads in
populated areas, on top of existing trails, and conscripted the locals with a labor tax to work in their system. The
Qeros could have worked for the Inca while continuing their own way of life, as was typical of Incan passive
control.

40
somewhat romantic Incan light is ultimately irrelevant, and what matters more is the pertinence
and place of the Qeros culture in the larger Andean and Latin American context today.
In conclusion, one can see that the Qeros are a part of the heterogeneous Andean world.
Historical processes have connected them to the Incas, but I believe it is not necessary (nor
possible) to answer definitively whether the Qeros are Incas per se. Significantly, many Qeros
are aware of a connection to an ancient past, as their origin myth tells them; they are proud of
that fact and articulate it. The seeds of this positive self-perception inevitably derive from outside
impact, such as the first academic study by UNSAAC, and studies continuing to the present day.
They know that they are a special people worth study and documentation, and with something
valuable to teach others. The Qeros integrity is intrinsic; their responsibilities of obligatory ayni
within their community and with the powerful spirit forces around them are fundamental to this
integrity, and their musical production is one of many means to uphold it.
This chapter has shown how the Qeros consistent control over their own vertical land
system and resources, which resulted in less exposure to colonial, nationalistic, and mestizo
ideologies, has fostered the continued practice of their autochthonous music. Yet it would be
incorrect to say that vertical ecology and historical circumstance constitute the sole reasons for
retention of musical customs, as if the Qeros are a living museum with a container that
allowed for that retention. To the contrary, Qeros musical practice is dynamic, not static and
museum-like, as demonstrated by the fact that many Carnaval songs they no longer sing have
been replaced by a currently-active body of songs. I see this dynamism every time I participate in
a Qeros animal fertility ritual, when the same song is rendered slightly differently each time,
depending on the individual singer and the text he/she sings, which is often intimately
personalized. The driving force underlying Qeros music-making is based on the continual and
necessary re-creation of their relationship to their world (i.e., to their animals, plants, fellow-
community members, spirit powers), through song. The next chapter defines the basic
cosmological concepts and beliefs that drive Qeros musical production in the continual
maintenance of these fundamental relationships with their community and cosmos.

41
 CHAPTER 3
FOUNDATIONS OF ANDEAN COSMOLOGY:
ANIMU, YANANTIN, AND AYNI

The two structuring principles that motivate the lives of many Andean peoples in Peru are
yanantin and the life-governing concept of ayni, modes of relationship that are propelled by
animu. These basic tenets, which especially constitute the Qeros worldview, are the bases for
the Qeros daily and ritual interactions, and they are integral to musical production. Many
scholars1 have shown how these concepts are the foundation of cultural manifestations such as
social organization and cyclical rituals, and they are manifest physically in weaving designs,
drinking vessels, and khipu (Inca data recording system), to name a few.
This chapter defines animu, yanantin, and ayni as outlined in previous Andean
scholarship, combined with information the Qeros have related about these same concepts, in
order to show in the remainder of the dissertation how these concepts and structuring principles
are manifested in Qeros music. In many cases the Qeros are able to articulate their thoughts on
animu, yanantin, and ayni as they operate in their musical production, for example, yanantin in
mens and womens musical roles (Chapter 4) and pairing of musical instruments (Chapter 5),
and the aspects of animu and ayni in aysariykuy vocal technique (Chapter 8). I argue that these
principles are also operative in contexts where the Qeros do not articulate them as such (see, for
example, Chapter 4, Yanantin in Song Structure, and Chapter 9 Play and Loss: The Yanantin
of Joy and Grief in Musical Production).

Supernatural Vitalization: Animu

Animu is the impelling life force of yanantin and ayni. Every thing and place in the
Andean world has a supernatural vitalization, an animating force or spirit, referred to as animu
(from animo in Spanish). People, animals, natural things, and cultural objects are concrete
manifestations of this energetic and animating force, which is often perceived through the senses,
1
Abercrombie 1998; Allen 1997, 2002, N.d., 2008; Arnold with Juan de Dios Yapita 1998; Bastien 1978:
Bolin 1998; Butler 2006; Cohen ca.1984; Cummins 2002; Flores Ochoa 1977, 1988; Franquemont, et al.1992;
Gelles 1995; Gow 1976; Harris 2000a; Isbell 1972,1978; Mamani Mamani 1990; Olsen 2002; Platt 1986; Rozas
Alvarez 2002 [1979]; Sallnow 1987; Schaedel 1988; Silverman 1994; Stobart 2006; Tomoeda 1996; Urton 2003;
Webster 1972; Zuidema, R.T. 1964, 1982, 1990.

42
such as movement (the animu of wind, water), light (the animu of the sun, lightning, celestial
bodies), and sound (the animu of song). Jos Mara Arguedas eloquently portrays sentient energy
in rivers and landscape in his writing about the Andean world.2 Anthropologist Catherine Allen,
who researched cultural meaning through the lens of coca (sacred leaves) rites in the Quechua
community of Sonqo, located in the province of Paucartambo (like Qeros), writes, every
wrinkle in the earths physiognomyevery hill, knoll, plain, ridge, rock outcrop, or lake
possesses a name and a personality. These places have a selfhood, and are interacting with
the human beings, plants, and animals that live around and upon them (Allen 2002, 26). In sum,
everything is imbued with vital energy, is alive, and possesses personality and agency.3
Ethnohistorian R.T. Zuidema pioneered the research on the complexities of the Inca
Empire (approximately 14361532), showing the metaphysical and impacting power of the
huacas (natural shrines, such as stones and springs) that were situated on the ceque lines
(sightlines radiating out from the Incan capital of Cusco). The huacas were believed to have the
ability to impact the physical and spiritual health of people and all beings, thereby requiring
specific propitiation rituals (Zuidema 1982, 432). Tom Cummins, who researched qeros (Incan
ceremonial vessels), writes about Incan shrines: In the metaphysical sphere, deities (huacas)
were actual ancestors or mythical progenitors, who were fed and given drink in return for the
health, propitious weather, and bountiful crops that they provided (Cummins 2002, 412). An
entire empire was oriented around the powerful animated essence of specific places and
maintenance of good relationship with them through ritual.
The Qeros, like most Andeans, believe in an earth that is infused with energy and is
called Pacha Mama. The places with particularly localized or concentrated powerful energy are
the Apu. The Qeros, in their speech, as well as daily and ritual actions, continually show their
belief that Pacha Mama and the Apu are the immense forces that hold the greatest sway on
quality of life and livelihood. The Qeros have explained to me that the Apu are hierarchical,
such that the physically larger ones, often with snow and glaciers, have more potency over a

2
See Arguedas 2002 [1961].

3
This is also the case with many South American rainforest cultures, and some of the basic tenets that
govern indigenous life in the Andes are also true in the Amazon. While this issue is beyond the scope of this
dissertation, it is worth considering that the division between Andean and Amazonian perception is often unclear,
and is an overlapping boundary with many similarities (See Descola 1996b; Guss 1989; Seeger 2004; Uzendoski
2005; and Viveiros de Castro 1998).

43
greater region than the smaller ones. Their most important (and physically largest) Apu is Apu
Waman Lipa, located between the Qolpa Kuchu and Qocha Moqo Valleys (see Map 3).Yet, it is
the regional Apu, the local protectors that live right nearby the people and hover over their homes
and animals, that have direct and immediate power to inflict good or ill will (see Chapter 4,
subheading The Eve of Phallchay: Vesper Offerings, Apu Setima, and Ritual Objects).
Furthermore, Cusco anthropologist Washington Rozas lvarez explains that Apu have human
characteristics, such as personality and behavior:
The Apu are supernatural beings that live in the entrails of the
mountains, and behave like humans. They have desires and need
for nourishment: drink, intimacy, affection, and respect. They are
angry and can punish. They are the symbol of ideal life, are
virtuous, powerful, perform miracles, and specialize in curing and
herding (Rozas lvarez 2002 [1979], 266, my translation).

Many researchers have become aware of this perception of the power of place and the
existence of animu in all things through the experience of just hanging out. Ethnomusicologist
Henry Stobart, who researched the role of music in social reproduction in the Quechua
community of Kalankira in Potos, Bolivia, came face-to-face with the concept of animu as he
tossed empty broad bean husks on the ground while eating a snack with his host family. They
informed him that he should not do that, otherwise they will weep like abandoned babies. They
must be taken home and put on the fire or in the pot of potato peelings that is cooked up for the
dog (Stobart 2006, 26). Stobart came to understand that the beans, husks and all, are sentient
and worthy of proper treatment and destiny. Likewise, Allen states, I could observe the methods
of hoeing them [potatoes] out and the kinds of teamwork involved. But I could not observe the
Earths resentment of the hoes cutting into her, nor was it obvious to me that the surrounding
hills and ridges watched us with critical eyes (Allen 2002, 22).
I also first came to consider that there were interactive spiritual forces around me when,
one night early on in my research, I was chewing coca leaves and drinking caaso (sugar-cane
alcohol) with a group of compadres in their home, a welcoming for me upon one of my many
returns. My compadre Juan Quispe Calzina sternly berated me, Comadre, you are not making
enough offerings of coca and alcohol to Pacha Mama and the Apu. This is not good, they could
become angry. For Pacha Mama I needed to literally pour some of my drink on the ground
before I myself drank, so that She could also drink; and for the Apu I should have blown on my

44
leaves, sending the energy of the coca in the direction of the Apu. Not only was he indicating that
the earth around me was alive, but that it had a personality, that my actions had repercussions,
and there was a relationship I needed to uphold (see Reciprocity [Ayni] below).
The essence of the animated energy, or animu, the Qeros call samay, which literally
means breath, to breathe, and to rest. The samay in any being (human, animal, or natural
and cultural object) is its breath, the essence of life force, and because life force is dynamic, it is
therefore interactive. Cummins states, Each object is brought into being and exists with all
others, participating phenomenologically in the events of the world (Cummins 2002, 29).
Objects, including the intangible, such as song, are alive and dynamic, interacting with all that is
around them. Because of this, the maintenance of good relationship among all beings, that is, the
entire world, is crucial and is a fulcrum to daily life. The Qeros use of song is one of the
interactive elements in this process of upholding relationships (see Chapters 48).

Complementary Duality: Yanantin

Yanantin is the working union of two contrasting and complementary parts. However, it
is neither a static pair of conflicting or opposite parts, nor duality in the Cartesian sense.4 The
Quechua word yana means partner, loved one, and lover, and the suffix ntin implies
inclusion, when two or more elements belong to the same context, and identified as one. The
result is a collaborative partnership in which the two complementary partners become one, and
duality becomes unity. This dual form, premised on relationship, is expressed in many aspects of
life, such as seasons, landscape, community layout, weaving designs, pairs of ritual objects,
musical performance roles, and song structure. (For this section on yanantin, and throughout the
dissertation, please refer to Table 3.1, Yanantin Examples in the Andean World, and Table 3.2,
Yanantin Examples in the Qeros Community and Music, which are placed at the end of this
section.)
I began to understand the complementary, interactive, and inseparable qualities of the two
parts of yanantin through a poignant discussion about womens and mens musical roles in

4
Cartesian duality is based on the philosophy of seventeenth-century French philosopher, Ren Descartes,
and his writings about mind/body and spiritual/material separation, and the lack of causal relationship between these
entitiesthought which became central to Western metaphysics. In the Qeros worldview there are specific, and
often immediate, causal links between the spiritual and material worlds; in fact, it would be more correct to say they
are inseparable.

45
Qeros with my compadre, Agustn Machacca Flores.5 For some time, Agustn was able to
comment on womens singing (warmi) and mens pinkuyllu flute playing (qhari) as two
complementary parts of yanantin. This then segued into a discussion about the yanantin of the
Apu and Pacha Mama. He explained how the Apu take care of the animals and Pacha Mama
looks after the crops. But suddenly he stopped short and became silent. I saw frustration in his
face, and then he burst out: I cannot talk about them separately. I cannot discuss any of this
separately! Warmintin qharintinpuni! (woman/man inclusively, always!) (pers. com. 22 May
2006). Agustins frustration provided a profound glimpse into his perception of duality, that
indeed yanantin operates as a pair, and the two parts do not and cannot exist separately.
The Qeros, like many Andean people, often refer to the two parts of yanantin in terms of
gender: warmi/qhari, woman/man. Anthropologist Ingrid Bolin, in her documentation of ritual
customs in the community of Chillihuani, in the mountains to the south of Qeros, writes about
yanantin in the context of the most obvious female/male associationmarriage:
Marriage exemplifies the Andean concern for uniting contrasting
elementsmale and femaleand of transforming them into one
unit, warmi-qhari, literally woman and man, thereby creating
equilibrium, harmony, and a new life. Andeans recognize duality
in a variety of oppositions, such as vertical and horizontal, upper
and lower, civilized and uncivilizedthat isin concepts that
have meaning only in relation to each other (Bolin 1998, 1245,
my emphasis).

The Qeros describe the Apu as the male part of Pacha Mama, and vice versa. That is, in
essence they are one unit, and the female/male qualities are contextual, and determined only in
relation to each other. The Apu are tall and phallic, like hills and high places, and have defined,
assertive, and individual personalities. Pacha Mama is lower, rounder, wetter with inundations
like lakes, and nurturing with her caves and springs. A spring gushing out of an erect Apu is the
warmi within the qhari, and a jagged, rough-edged boulder standing tall on Earth is the qhari
within the warmi. Pacha Mama is the interior of the male Apu exterior. Catherine Allen states
Cosmos, community, household, and individual are realized through the fusion of opposites,
like the warmi and qhari, each of which contains the other (Allen 2002, 179, my emphasis).

5
Agustn is one of my primary informants in Qeros. I consider him to speak from an elders perspective.
He is in his late forties, which is the older generation in Qeros. He remembers historical events from his childhood,
musical practices, and many awpa Pukllay taki (older songs the Qeros no longer sing, see Chapter 4) that many
people in their thirties or younger do not know and cannot comment on.

46
This means that most halves of yanantin are neither entirely female nor entirely male. The halves
are not rigid; rather, there is a fluctuation, permeation, flow, and exchange between the two
complementary components. This is also true for the female and male melodic aspects in song
structure (see Chapter 5).
The two halves of yanantin are usually not exactly the same; rather, they are often
similar, or reflections of one another (see Chapter 5, subheading Yanantin in Song Structure and
Paired Pusunis Conch Shell Trumpets). Tom Cummins comments on pairs of Inca qeros cups, in
which each cup was similar to its pair, but one was often made to be slightly unequal:
[This] reuniting is further expressed by the fact that, although they
are made in pairs, there is a slight difference in size, such that one
is Hanan and one Hurin. The individuality of each vessel is
mitigated by their being mirror images of each other. This concept
of mirror image, part of moiety competition and reconciliation, is
called yanantin. Yanantin expresses the concept that each moiety
member sees his/her opposite in a member of the other moiety.
This is what [Tristan] Platt means when he says that the two sides
of the combatants could symbolically be seen as having coitus,
because the combatants recognized each other as being their sexual
and social opposites. Yanantin takes a pictorial form in queros
[sic], because when a toast is offered, the two cups held up to each
other produce a mirror image. Yanantin in fact pertains to all quero
imagery, because all queros were produced in pairs. Ontologically,
an object, such as a quero, that manifests yanantin exists as a pair
and is not sufficient in and of itself. Its telos is as a pair (Cummins
2002, 260, my emphasis).

Cummins thus summarizes the complexity encompassed in the concept of yanantin. Even though
each part of a pair can be recognized as warmi or qhari, symmetry precedes individuality. There
is a tinkuy (meeting) or coitus, when the two interact and reconcile in equilibrium, and,
crucially, the two parts cannot exist separately. Their ultimate end and very existence, that is,
their telos, lies in being paired. This telos is represented in the meaning of the suffix ntin:
inclusiveness into one, and is the reason Agustn could not discuss the warmi and qhari aspects
of musical roles and the spirit powers separately.
Dualistic design in many aspects of Andean life has been the case since pre-Hispanic
times, and many Spanish chroniclers informed about Incan dualistic design, which was the

47
division of space and time into hanan and hurin, upper and lower, respectively.6 The spatial
and social organization of the Incan capital city of Cusco was dual, with the populace divided
into two moieties (hanansaya and hurinsaya). Cusco was physically built around two squares, a
higher, larger square, Awqaypata or Waqaypata (place of war, or place of weeping), and a
lower, smaller one, Kusipata (place of joy/happiness). Likewise, Gary Urton, an expert on
Andean cosmology and myth, argues that Incan society and all things in it are typified to an
extraordinary degree by dual organization (Urton 2003, 44). Urtons research on the khipu, the
ancient data recording system of strings and knots that reached its peak of sophistication during
the Incan empire (with a rudimentary form still in use in Qeros as recently as thirty years ago),
shows the functional basis of the khipu as dual. He argues that the decipherment of these
enigmatic, intricate series of strings and knots is in its binary coding, and that its qualitative and
quantitative information can be revealed in the encoding of paired combinations of material,
color, spins, pendant attachments, knot directionality, number class, and information types
(Urton 2003, 120). Likewise, Michael Sallnow shows the dualistic design in many layers in the
pilgrimage of Qoyllur Riti (Sallnow 1987, 207242). Sallnow states, Dualism is the cultural
mechanism by which the random power of the wild is channeled into the domain of human
society (Ibid, 239).
In Qeros today we see many examples of dual organization (see Tables 3.1 and 3.2). The
community is symmetrically divided into a left side, ichiniku (the two left valleys that include
the anexos of Challmachimpana and Chuwa Chuwa), and a right side, castilla (the two right
valleys with the anexos of Qocha Moqo, Qolpa Kuchu, Charkapata, and Hatun Rumiyoq) (see
Map 3).7 Some song verses mention this division. For example, the verse Ichinikuchay waynay
maqta, which is a common verse in Pukllay taki (Carnaval songs), translates to my young man
from the left side. The ingredients used in offerings are commonly placed in pairs (see Chapter
6, subheading The Eve of Phallchay: Vesper Offerings, Apu Setima, and Ritual Objects). On
ritual misas (Sp. mesa; altars of ceremonial objects placed together on the floors of homes during
rituals), they place two piles of coca leaves, not for chewing, but rather as offerings to the Apu

6
Thomas Zuidema provided seminal research on the political and religious significance of spatial
organization during the Inca Empire (see Zuidema 1964 and 1990).
7
The left and right directions are oriented in relationship from the high puna, that is, as one descends into
the valleys of Qeros, the two ichiniku valleys are on the left and two castilla ones on the right.

48
and Pacha Mama. In ritual, a person drinks aqha (fermented corn beer) from two qeros vessels,
and textiles have symmetrical weaving patterns, dual color design, and left and right-twist yarn.
Dual form is expressed in musical performance roles, instrument pairs, and song structure (the
subject of Chapter 5).
The crucial element about the above-mentioned divisions is that they are interactive with
one another, and not in stasis. Since everything has animu, inevitably the meeting of two parts is
live interaction; the relationship is fluid, dynamic, and active. The halves interact synergetically
so that separation and independent action of one part on its own is nearly impossible to perceive
by living it. This was the frustration vented by Agustn, and the coitus described by Tristan
Platt: the energetic union of sexual opposites. Cusco anthropologist Jorge Flores Ochoa expands
on the dynamic aspect of the two halves, adding that not only are they interactive, but the two
parts join para avanzar, to advance. He adds, The concept is more profound than just
pareja (couple). We dont have a word for it in Spanish (pers. com., 7 April 2007).
Anthropologist Billie Jean Isbell, who researched in the south-central Andean region of
Ayacucho, articulates the synergetic and transformative quality suggested by Flores Ochoa when
she writes:
For example, sexual complementarity is perhaps the most
pervasive concept used to classify cosmological and natural
phenomena. It also symbolizes the process of regeneration.
Phenomena are conceptualized as male and female and interact
with one another in a dialectic fashion to form a new syntheses
[sic], such as new cycles of time and new generations of people,
plants, and animals (Isbell 1978, 11).

Regeneration and interact indicate the synergy encompassed in yanantin; that is, the two
parts reciprocally regenerate in a dialectic fashion, an exchange that results in some kind of
newness and form[s] a new syntheses, as she explains.
The two parts of yanantin function together as one, as seen in the social moieties of the
Incan Imperial Period, which had a two-part division of land and water rights, and royal troops
(Gelles 1995, 713). The Waqaypata and Kusipata plazas of these moieties served two purposes:
the former for preparation of war, the latter for celebratory rituals. In this way, land, water,
troops, and ritual uses of the two plazas maintained an operative balance and served to stabilize
one another, which resulted in an effectively functioning society. Similarly, Urton explains that

49
the binary organization of the khipu is the integral ingredient to its very codification, and that the
variance of the dual combinations resulted in a changed meaning (Urton, 2003). In other words,
the two parts of this binary coding mutually served one another to create meaning. According to
the Qeros, the two most basic offerings to the Apu and Pacha Mama are coca and aqha
(fermented corn beer), and the dual offering of them (e.g., two piles of leaves and two drinking
cups) is necessarily the most balanced form. Likewise, in ritual, the man plays the pinkuyllu flute
in propitious musical offering to the spirits, while the woman sings her offering. The Qeros
believe all offerings to be ineffective if they are not presented in dual form. The two parts of
yanantin are inextricable from one another, and their effectiveness is premised on the interaction
of animu between the two parts that are in search of balance. In all of these examples, without
the two individual parts working with each other, the end result would not be possible: a
functioning society, a varied communication system, and effective offerings (including the
musical ones).
Balance of the two complementary parts, however, does not imply equal status; instead,
there is a subsumptive quality. Claude Lvi-Strauss, father of structuralist anthropology, stressed
that dual societies are not static forms; rather, the two opposites are engaged in cyclical patterns
of conflict/reconciliation, and at one point, one half may have more power or presence (Lvi-
Strauss, 1963, 132166). Contextual relationship creates hierarchical structure between the two
halves. This is easy to see when we consider that during times of war in the Inca Imperial Period
(approx. 14361532), the Waqaypata (square dedicated to war) and the people of its associated
moiety held precedence over the Kusipata (square dedicated to festivities) and its associated
moiety. And vice versa, in times of ritual festivities, the Kusipata and associated moiety
presided. In this way the shift is both spatial (one plaza has precedence over the other) and
temporal (alternating times of war and rituals).
This spatial/temporal hierarchy is also seen in Qeros, regarding their crops and
animals. Pacha Mama, who is in charge of the crops, takes precedence during planting
and harvesting seasons, but the Apu, who are in charge of the animals, have authority
during breeding and birthing times. To recognize this shift in balance, the Qeros perform
offerings to Pacha Mama during the former seasons, and to the Apu in the latter. Time
(season) and space (Pacha Mama/Apu, land/animals) are simultaneously operative, and
both elements shift hierarchy depending on context. Indeed, the term pacha in Quechua

50
means both time and space, so that Pacha Mama is not just a physical place (e.g., earth),
but also the continual cyclical return of events.
Shifts in hierarchy (Lvi-Strauss conflict/resolution) are characterized by transition,
which implies a third component of the duality. This is illustrated in the above example when
Pacha Mama and the Apu are in continual shifting of hierarchy, according to planting/harvesting
or animal breeding. And these shifts do not happen in a clearcut manner; rather there is a
transitional overlap. The implicit nature of yanantin is one of cyclical return of equilibrium,
which is punctuated by times and spaces of movement and transition.
The meeting place of hierarchical transition, which Isbell referred to in how the two parts
interact with one another in a dialectic fashion to form a new syntheses, is often referred to as
the chawpi (center), and/or tinku (meeting place). In Qeros I have heard them state this concept
as warmintin qharintin, (woman/man inclusive), as in the example with Agustn, or orqo
chinantin, male/female inclusive). These statements support Allens summary: In Andean
relativistic thought, nothing and no one is absolutely male or female (2002, 153). This is a third
component, then, of the dual structure: the meeting place and aspect of continual movement and
transition between the two parts. This is the coitus that Cummins refers to, and just like the act
of coitus, there is an energetic coming together when the two aspects meet (Cummins 260).
Chawpi, therefore, are particularly powerful places because they are full of interactive energy
from the two parts. Obvious physical tinku are river confluences, such as the one at Hatun
Qeros, where the two large rivers that border the outside of the left and right halves of the
community meet (see Map 3). The big Qeros River is born at the confluence, and is literally full
of great energy (voluminous water rushing over rocks and eddiesand connects the qheswa zone
with the monte. This tinku, or meeting place of rivers, is the chawpi (center) of the community,
where communal rituals take place. These rituals generate great exchanges of energy, which
includes musical interaction among all Qeros who have come from both sides of the community
and meet in powerful musical ritual.
Tinkuy, historically and today, often refers to the meeting of two opposing groups of
people who meet physically in a tinku (in this case a geographic space where two opposites
meet) for the purpose of ritual battle, ritual dance battle, and ritual dance, with the end goal being
the establishment of equilibrium. (See above for Cummins use of coitus to mean tinkuy.)
Today, ritualized battle is still expressed in various Andean-Catholic festivals (Abercrombie

51
1998, Allen 2002, Bolin 1998, Sallnow 1987). Community members from the Chiriaje plains of
Canas, south of Cusco, meet in two sides and enact a war game of stone-throwing, believed to
enhance the fertility of the soil. This ritual battle symbolizes the interacting energies of the two
factions in search of equilibrium: soil fertility.
Ritual dance battle is also seen in the festival of the Virgin of Carmen, Paucartambo, and
the large pilgrimage of Qoyllur Riti, with the meeting of opposing dance troupes, qhapaq
chunchus and qhapaq qollas, which represent lowland Amazonian people and pastoralist
merchant traders and llama herders from the altiplano (high plateau), respectively. They whip
each other, sometimes throw objects, and compete in dance in order to reestablish the supreme
role of the chunchu as sole mediator to the Virgin of Carmen and the Seor de Qoyllur Riti.
Similarly, the qhapaq qollas dance the Yawar Mayu, or Blood River, when they whip each
other in dance and end with an embrace while kneeling in reverence; this symbolizes a
reestablishment of solidarity after opposition (Wissler 1999a).
In Qeros we see this ritual dance towards the end of the nine-day Carnaval cycle, when
men and women dance in what they literally call tinkuy. Young men and women from two
different anexos meet on the mountain passes of their adjoining valleys (tinku) and dance to loud
cassette music in joyful, yet competitive, courtship. The meeting and dancing is the chawpi
(center), the place of transition, where the youth from two annexes are able to meet and have fun,
which results in the establishment of equilibrium: renewal of social ties and satisfaction.
All of these tinkuy are highly stylized forms of regeneration, when two opposing forces
meet in the chawpi, in dialectic exchange, and the outcome is some kind of reconciliation,
establishment of hierarchical role, revitalization, or advance of courtship ties.
In sum, yanantin is the dynamic interaction of two similar parts that work inextricably
together in synergy, which permeates many aspects of the Qeros daily and ritual life. The
Qeros are consciously aware of it; it is not a hidden structure. They articulate it directly,
sometimes as yanantin, other times as warmi/qhari. They label their community layout, weaving
designs, offerings, and ritual symbols as yanantin. Many aspects of their musical production they
also name as yanantin, such as the warmi/qhari roles in musical performance, and specific
instruments like the female and male conch shells and panpipes, which will be discussed in
Chapter 6 and Chapter 9, respectively). I argue that the melodic relationship between the warmi
(vocal) and qhari (pinkuyllu) parts in Qeros songs uses yanantin as a structuring principle (see

52
Chapter 5, subheading Yanantin in Song Structure and Paired Pusunis Conch Shell Trumpets).
As yanantin is a naturally active form of female-male exchange and equilibrium in many aspects
of their life cycle, as we have seen, why would it not permeate their song structure as well? Ayni,
like yanantin, is another form of exchange that is vital in Qeros life, and also intrinsic to their
music-making.

Table 3.1: Yanantin Examples in the Andean World8

WARMI (female) QHARI (male)

Woman Man
Mother Earth (Pacha Mama) Mountain Deities (Apu)
Left (lloqe) Right (paa)
Alpaca Llama
Moon (killa) Sun (inti)
Night (tuta) Day (punchay)
Silver (qolqe) Gold (qori)
Sadness (llakikuy) Happiness (kusikuy)
Lower (hurin) Upper (hanan)
Interior Exterior
Valley/Lakes Mountain Peaks
Wet season Dry season
Lower moiety (hurinsaya) Upper moiety (hanansaya)
Malevolent female spirit (paya soqa) Malevolent male spirit (machu soqa)

Chawpi or Tinku
Underworld (Uhu Pacha) This World (Kay Pacha) Upper realm (Hanaq Pacha)

8
It should be kept in mind that these examples are not static; that is, the female and male divisions are not
rigid, and the relationship between the two implies movement.

53
Table 3.2. Yanantin Examples in the Qeros Community and Music
Warmi
In Community Structure:
Monte
Ichiniku (two left valleys)
In Weaving:
Lloqsiy inti pallay
(rising sun design)
Opposing chunchu design
(feathers/body extension)
Lloqe (left twist yarn)
Warm colored yarn (reds,
pinks)
In Music:
Voice
Main melody and text
Ends on pitch center do in
aysariykuy
Sing standing on periphery
Silent row of panpipes
Qompo pusunis (conch shell)
Anexo of adjacent valley
Song: Wallata, black
markings;
female partner (mates for life)
Chawpi Qhari
Community center at Tinkuy Puna
(where two rivers meet)
center Castilla (two right valleys)
Inti Haykuy inti pallay
(complete sun) (setting sun design)
Heads meet in center Opposing chunchu design
(feathers/body extension)
In alternation with one another Paa (right twist yarn)
juxtaposed Cool colored yarn (blues,
greens)
Pinkuyllu, Qanchis sipas
Played/sung in continual Complementary melody
overlap
pitches mi and sol Ends on sol in aysariykuy
Dance stomping in center
Sounding row of panpipes
Chacha pusunis
Tinkuy dances on pass Anexo of adjacent valley
Born high (Apu), white markings; male partner
raised low (Mama Qucha)
54
Reciprocity: Ayni
Relationship is key to Andean life and what must be nurtured above all else, and ayni is
the system of reciprocity that ensures good relationship among people with their fellow-
community members, animals, and the powerful spirits. In living with the Qeros, I have come to
see how this operative principle is essential in every relationship they have, and can cause great
offense, and even harm, if not upheld.
Ayni has been operative in Andean communal systems for centuries, and refers to mutual
aid in nearly every aspect of life, such as sharing food and labor, gift-giving, and holding
political and ritual offices as part of a communitys cargo system. This understood web of social
obligations ensures that everyone in the community is taken care of in social, political, and
fundamental ways. While exchanges are not often direct, on some level everyone remembers aid
petitioned or lent. Ayni is an implied and tacit obligation that ensures that what goes around,
comes around.
Symmetrical and asymmetrical relationships exist within this system of mutual aid. An
exchange can be direct and immediately symmetrical, such as I herd for you today, you for me
tomorrow, but more often ayni functions circularly. Through continual giving and cooperating,
the circle comes back around, eventually. For example, I learned very quickly that I was never to
go empty-handed on a visit to someones home; this would be rude, not abiding by the
understood and expected rules of ayni. Instead, I offered coca or desired and unattainable food
items like bread and sugar; in turn, when I was visited in my apartment in Cusco, I was usually
offered an abundance of potatoes. There is no keeping track, but the result is that everyone is a
recipient in such a straight-forward system. This is the way a community ultimately ensures its
livelihood, and song is also one of the forms of reciprocal action.
Ayni is also asymmetrical (sometimes called minka), such as when a person or group
requests the aid of many. In Qeros a common example is one person who requests ayni from
many for building his house, or a festival carguyoq (sponsor) who solicits food, drink, and coca
from fellow community members so that his cargo (festival responsibility) goes well. The former
is private and informal, the latter, communal and formal, yet both are understood to be
obligatory. If not fulfilled, one risks damaging a relationship with a neighbor or the entire
community, as ayni is premised on the welfare of the community over individual desires and
actions.

55
 Faena is a public and communal form of ayni that the men carry out in community work
projects. For example, the president of Qeros notifies the men at a monthly assembly meeting of
upcoming projects like bridge building, trail maintenance, roofing the casa comunal (community
building), or planting and harvesting communal potatoes. Nowadays in Qeros (and most Andean
communities), monetary fines are inflicted if one does not show up for a faena, but more
important than pecuniary risk is the larger one of gaining a reputation as not being a cooperative
contributor, which could ultimately lead to community marginalization.
This system of interactive reciprocity exists not only among humans, but among all vital
energies, as Allen states:
Every category of being, at every level, participates in this cosmic
circulation. Humans maintain interactive reciprocity relationships,
not only with each other but also with their animals, their houses,
their potato fields, the earth, and the sacred places in their
landscape (Allen 1997, 76).

All beings have animu, an animated essence, so the maintenance of respectful relationships with
all entities is essential for a good, functioning life. The most potent relationship to be upheld is
with the supernatural forces, the Apu and Pacha Mama, as they have a powerful and often
immediate influence on quality of life. If this crucial relationship is not maintained and renewed,
the spirits can inflict ill, and in dramatic ways: crops fail, lightning strikes a person or an animal,
a puma attacks a baby llama or alpaca, or bad luck in any form manifests itself in a persons life.
In this case what goes around, comes around can literally have deadly consequences.
Conversely, if the relationship is attended to, the powers can bestow good luck, healthy crops,
and herd procreation. Song is one form of many that the Qeros use in order to uphold good
relationships with these all-powerful spirits.
Ayni is given to the Apu and Pacha Mama both individually and communally, in casual
and formal rituals. An example of casual ritual was my experience while socializing in Juans
home, when Juan berated me for not fulfilling my obligation to offer alcohol and coca to Pacha
Mama and the Apu, respectively. In contrast, the most formalized ritual of ayni for the Apu and
Pacha Mama is a pagu (payment or offering)9 that is made during important seasonal rituals,

9
Hiplito Peralta, the head of Cuscos Bilingual Intercultural Education program (EIB), suggests that the
word pago/u does not come from the Spanish word payment as is commonly believed; rather, it comes from the
Latin term paganus, origin of the word pagan. This term would have been in use during the seventeenth-century
campaign by the Catholic Church known as the Extirpation of Idolatry that set out to abolish all heretical forms of

56
such as planting and animal fertility (see Chapter 6, subheading The Eve of Phallchay: Vesper
Offerings, Apu Setima, and Ritual Objects, for a fuller description of pagu). The head of every
family (usually male), makes an elaborate offering with an abundance of eclectic ingredients that
are painstakingly compiled and then burned for the Apu and Pacha Mama to ingest.
As Rozas explained above, the powers need and desire food and drink, and the elaborate
offerings are their nourishment. In particular, February and August are the two times of the year
when Pacha Mama reawakens, becomes fertile and open, ready to receive seed,10 and the Qeros
tell me that She and the Apu are especially hungry and in need of sustenance during these times.
Juan animatedly described the hunger of the Apu during August, the Andean New Year, when
the driest months are in transition to the rainy growing season. During that time, the spirits are
like an insatiable hole that we must shove offering after offering into, so many that we can
hardly keep up! (pers. com., 15 August 2007). Juan assertively pushed his hands up in one
direction, as if force feeding the Apu with one pago after another.11 He informed me that the Apu
can live on these numerous offerings for the entire year, which is why performing so many of
them during the month of August is so important.12 By feeding the Apu and Pacha Mama,
people are therefore actively involved in their part of ayni, striving to receive benevolence and
welfare in all aspects of their lives.
Qeros family and community rituals are pinnacle moments of circulatory ayni among
all sentient beings, when there is an abundant flow of energies in intentional exchange of ayni
among the supernatural powers, people, animals, and a variety of ritual objects. Sound and song
have vital roles in these circulations of offerings. In these ritual celebrations, the Qeros
musically express yanantin and ayni as natural processes of interaction with their fellow
community members and the animated world around them.

worship, of which an offering to local mountain spirits would have been one (pers. com., 3 November 2008). Some
Quechua words for offering are anqusu and haywa, but by far the more common term used in Qeros and other
communities is pago/u. Another common term for offering in Cusco (not Qeros) is despacho (dispatch).
10
For more discussion of the openness of earth during these two times of the year see Isbell (1972, 1978),
and Allen (1997, 7980).
11
Also see Allen 2002, 150154.
12
Indeed, many Qeros will spend the month of August in Cusco, earning income by making pagos for
people. Many urban (Catholic) Cusqueos believe in the power of the Apu and the necessity of offering a pago in
return for their requests, such as the welfare of a business, home, marriage, and the healing of illness.

57
 The next section of the dissertation, Part II: Communal Celebration in Pukllay,
addresses ayni and yanantin as they are re-created in the largest festival of the year, Pukllay
(Carnaval). In Pukllay, yanantin is active in musical aesthetics, performance roles, and song
structure. Also, through song topics and text, we see how the Qeros pay respectful ayni to the
flowers and birds that are associated with the all-powerful spirits that hold dominion over their
lives. In sum, yanantin and ayni, which are premised on animu, play active roles in Pukllay, and
the social renewal that is the result of this most-awaited celebration.

58
 PART II:
COMMUNAL CELEBRATION IN PUKLLAY (CARNAVAL):
RENEWAL OF SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS

59
 CHAPTER 4
PUKLLAY ETHNOGRAPHY:
SONG TOPICS, AND WOMENS AND MENS MUSICAL ROLES

We remember Pukllay all year long and weave new clothes for it.
Closer to Pukllay we sometimes work for nights with no sleep.
We celebrate the way our grandfathers used to. It makes us very happy.
Dominga Paucar Chura, 2 February 2005.

Introduction to the Nine-day Cycle of Pukllay (Carnaval)

Chapters 4 and 5 function as one unit, about Pukllay, the largest communal festival of the
year. In Chapter 4 I describe various basic elements of Pukllay: the nine-day festival cycle, the
topics in the currently active song corpus, womens and mens musical roles (singer, pinkuyllu
player, respectively), ending with a day-to-day ethnography of the celebration. These
components lay the groundwork for deeper musical and social analyses of Pukllay in Chapter 5.
Many Andean communities, such as Qeros, refer to Carnaval as Pukllay, which literally
translates as to play. Fray Diego Gonzlez Holgun in his 1608 Quechua dictionary defines
pukllay as all genre of fiestas for recreation (Holgun 1989 [1608], 293). Ren Franco Salas,
member of the musical group Wiay Taki from Pisac (Cusco), whose scholarly expertise
focuses on the performance revival of traditional Andean songs and instruments, has described
his understanding of traditional Andean Pukllay as a series of seasonal celebrations of fertility
and courtship which stretched over a period of time during the peak of the rainy season, versus
one specific calendrical event as it is today (pers. com., 25 December 2006). The peak of the
rainy season (January, February, March) is the time of new growth, herd multiplication, and the
first potato harvest of the year (papa maway); as such, it is the time of courtship among the
youth.
The celebration of this courting period is now contained in a nine-day Carnaval
celebration in Qeros that is linked to the pre-Lenten liturgical calendar.1 Allen describes the ease

1
The nine-day cycle of Pukllay is possibly based on the institutionalized Catholic ritual cycle called the
novena, which is nine-days of prayer undertaken for a particular purpose. Many Catholic celebrations in the Andes,
with their feasts, dances and songs, are organized around a novena. For ethnographies of Pukllay in other Andean
communities see Abercrombie 1998, 335337; Allen 2002; 154162; Bolin 1998, 7583; and Stobart 2008, 233
267.

60
with which the celebrations of this courting period were easily linked to the Church calendar:
These pre-Columbian festivals of the late rainy season were easily incorporated into Spanish
Carnaval, a licentious and only marginally religious holiday that required a minimum of
adjustment to Catholic ritual forms (Allen 2002, 155). Even though Pukllay in Qeros is one of
the vast styles of Carnaval that is celebrated in most Latin American and Caribbean countries
also on the same dates, with its colorful costumes and theme of reversal from normal life to
extreme revelry, it has its own unique characteristics, with musical production that is
recognizably Qeros.2
Pukllay is the most extensive and anticipated communal celebration in the annual cycle
of Qeros musical rituals. The festival draws on more prolonged and plentiful ayni exchanges
and social interactions among community members than any other celebration in the year. Ayni,
as expressed on the communal level, is formalized through the colonial-introduced cargo system,
which is the system of political and festival offices that is responsible for the execution of
community politics and celebrations.3 Cargos (responsibilities) are hierarchical, and in Pukllay a
community-selected alcalde (mayor), along with his assistant authorities (about six to twelve
regidores and alwasires), are in charge of the exhaustive organizational logistics for this nine-
day celebration period.4
The nine-day celebration encompasses a series of rituals and celebrations within a
variety of locations and levels of participation, giving it a movable and waxing-and-waning
quality. The people begin with the llama and alpaca fertility ritual of Phallchay celebrated by
individual families in the homes up high (the subject of Chapter 6), which is followed by full-

2
Pukllay in Qeros can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy We
Sing), in the sequence titled Carnival (Wissler, 2007), and in John Cohens film Carnival in Qeros (1990).
3
For sources that describe and explain the cargo system, see Carrasco 1961; Chance and Tylor, 1985; De
la Cadena 2000; Eade and Sallnow, eds., 2000; Flores Lizana 1997; Gow 1976; Mendoza, 2000; and Sallnow 1987.
4
The term alcalde (mayor) is used for two separate offices in Qeros: the festival alcalde for Pukllay (and
for Corpus Christi later in the year), and the political alcalde. The latter office was instigated in 1998 only. Regidor
is a Spanish term meaning alderman, and alwasir comes from Sp. alguacil, a common term for civil-religious
authorities in Andean communities. In this case, the regidores and alwasires are assistants to the festival alcalde,
and number anywhere from about three to six in each role. The regidores have more responsibility than the
alwasires, and each group has its own, internal hierarchy as well.
Oscar Nez del Prado suggests that the introduction of the cargo system in Qeros, with its affiliated
alcaldes, regidores, and alguaciles, probably dates to the period between 1552 and 1575, in association with various
auxiliary doctrines instigated by the Church in the general Paucartambo region (Nez del Prado 2005a [1958],
2212).

61
blown communal participation of Pukllay down in Hatun Qeros; they then return to their homes
up high for the family animal fertility ritual of Mama Tarpay (an extension of Phallchay), and
finally end with Tinkuy, when the young people meet for festive dances on the mountain passes
of adjacent anexos. The music reflects this waxing-and-waning quality of community interaction:
singing and pinkuyllu playing begins within individual families, expands to the anexo level, and
then becomes communal as everyone descends to the community center for communal
celebration. In the last days the singing decreases again to the anexo and family levels. All of
these rituals and celebrations have specific and separate functions, as well as specific
accompanying musics, yet the celebrations are performed in one continual stream. It is the
longest period in the year when the entire community suspends all work for celebration and
ritual. Table 4.2 below shows the full Pukllay cycle.

62
Table 4.2. The Pukllay Cycle

Day Level Festival/Ritual Name Music

Monday Family; annex Phallchay: Pantilla Tika
Lunes Suyu 5 Llama, alpaca fertility ritual; Song for llamas and alpacas.
confirmation of the years song on Women sing,
this day. men play pinkuyllu.
Tuesday Community First day of Pukllay: Song of the Year
Descent to Hatun Qeros; last Chosen Pukllay taki from
minute preparations in Hatun song corpus.
Qeros. Singing this years song in Women sing,
homes (watukuy) all night. men play pinkuyllu.
Wednesday Community Principal day of Pukllay: Song of the Year
Sinis Donning of newly woven clothes;
(Ash Wednesday) ritual singing in main plaza and
watukuy in homes all night.
Thursday Community; Last day of Pukllay: Song of the Year
annex Singing in homes during the day;
Late afternoon ascent to homes in
annexes.
Friday Between adjacent Tinkuy: Popular carnavales and
annexes Youth of annexes from adjacent waynos on cassette tape
valleys meet on connecting pass for with loudspeaker.
dancing.
Saturday Family Phallchay, also called Malta Pantilla Tika
Maytuy and Mama Tarpay Same song as in Phallchay
Llama and alpaca fertility ritual; ritual on Lunes Suyu.
eating phiri.
Sunday Adjacent annexes Tinkuy Popular carnavales and
waynos on cassette.
Monday Adjacent annexes Tinkuy Popular carnavales and
waynos on cassette.
Tuesday Adjacent annexes Tinkuy Popular carnavales and
waynos on cassette.

Kunan Pukllay Taki: Topics of Currently Active Carnaval Songs

The Qeros, like many Andean communities, call their corpus of Carnaval songs
Pukllay taki, which literally translates to Play songs.6 The Qeros have an active corpus of

5
The Monday of Pukllay, which starts the nine-day celebration cycle, is called Lunes Suyu (Monday
Suyu). In Fray Diego Gonzlez Holgun 1608 Quechua dictionary, he defines suyu as partiality (Holgun 1989
[1608], 194). The usage of suyu in pre-Hispanic times usually referred to separate geographic areas, such as
Tawantinsuyu, the four quarters of the Incan Empire. In this case, each of the six anexos is a suyu, and Monday is
the day each anexo celebrates simultaneously, yet independently.
6
The word taki has been used generically to mean song/dance genre since pre-Hispanic times. The
chroniclers Guamn Poma de Ayala (1993 [1615]) and Bernab Cobo (1990 [1653]), among others, wrote about the
use of taki (taqui) under the Incas.

63
seven Pukllay taki, as well as many Pukllay taki from the past that they no longer sing. I refer to
the actively-sung corpus of seven songs as Kunan (current) Pukllay taki, to distinguish them
from the Pukllay taki that are no longer active. Appendix B lists all musical and textual
transcriptions, as well as English translations, of the seven Kunan Pukllay taki.
The cargo authorities and the community choose one song of the Kunan Pukllay taki to
be song of the year, and they sing it for the first time in Pukllay. The decision process occurs in a
three-day performance ritual and celebration called Chayampuy (see Appendix C),7 which is
held in Hatun Qeros (the community center) two weeks before Pukllay, when the authorities
officially receive their Pukllay cargos (authority status and responsibilities) from the consejo
menor (town council). The women (and sometimes men) then sing the chosen song, and the men
play it on pinkuyllu (notched, vertical bamboo flutes) repetitively throughout the three principal
days of Pukllay (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday). It becomes the emblematic song of the year,
sung in daily activities such as herding and weaving. Indeed, a year will often be referred to as
the year of x song.8
Many Qeros refer to the Pukllay taki they no longer sing as awpa taki, past song.
They also call a past variation of a current song awpa x, for example awpa thurpa, or
awpa phallcha. Because of this, I choose to call the Carnaval songs that are fading from
cultural memory awpa Pukllay taki. I say fading from cultural memory because the
younger generation does not know these songs, and only some of the older people remember
them and are able to sing them. Many Qeros have told me that awpa Pukllay taki are not sung
today because the historical text is no longer relevant, and also the younger people claim they are
more sasa (difficult) due to the longer melodic lines. Appendix D lists eight awpa Pukllay taki
that I have been able to record, along with one that John Cohen recorded in 1964.9

7
Chayampuy used to take place in the district capital of Paucartambo before the establishment of the
consejo menor (town council) in Hatun Qeros in 1998. The name comes from chayay (to arrive), and refers to the
arrival of the newly-inaugurated authorities on horseback from Paucartambo, signaling the arrival of Pukllay. This
change in ritual location for Chayampuy has had a significant impact (among others) on song composition, so that
the Qeros no longer compose any new Pukllay taki. This issue is briefly discussed at the close of the dissertation,
Chapter 9: Looking Ahead: Are Qeros Songs Endangered?

8
Rene Franco Salas also informed me that other Andean communities in the Cusco and Paucartambo areas
have this same process of choosing one song among the existing corpus to be the song for Pukllay that year (pers.
com., 25 December 2006).
9
I speculate that the awpa Pukllay taki I have recorded are probably the most recent of the songs that
are no longer sung, that is, the most recent in cultural memory. The lyrics of these older songs provide rich

64
 Pukllay taki are topical, just as topical songs and/or dance themes characterize Carnaval
in many Latin American and Caribbean countries. The topics inform about what is important,
useful, and beautiful to the Qeros, such as sacred or medicinal plants, mystical birds, and the
special weavings and adornments worn at Pukllay. Some of the same topics are also present in
the Pukllay taki of other Andean communities, yet the rendition of the songs, particularly
melodic structure and delivery, and performance texture, is emblematically Qeros (see below,
Musical Aesthetics of Pukllay taki Performance).
Following is a description of the song topics of the seven active Kunan Pukllay taki.
The list roughly reflects the order of popularity, based on how often the song cycles around as
song of the year for Pukllay:

1. Phallcha (this song has many variations)10 is a red gentian (Gentiana luteomarginata)
that grows on and near the high pasture areas where the llamas and alpacas graze, at an
elevation of 15,000 feet, and it blooms in February and March. It is used in infusions for
curing coughs, flu, and toothaches, and is scattered on the llamas and alpacas during fertility
rituals as a metaphor for these animals and their procreation. This flower is associated with
regeneration, young love, and courtship in many regions of the Andes, so that other
communities also have songs about the phallcha flower. Three different versions of Phallcha
were the Pukllay taki in Hatun Qeros in 2004, 2006, and 2009.

2. Thurpa is a small, pink mountain flower (Nototriche mandoniana) in the malvaceae

family. The root is used in infusions for healing colds and coughs, and inflammation. It is
also soaked in water and used for washing hair. The Qeros revere both the phallcha and
thurpa flowers because they live up high, close the Apu, and they are used specifically in

information about Qeros history, and they are fertile material for a study of the Qeros past through the lens of
song. The older versions of the current songs are also material for analysis of song evolution, and perhaps cultural
change, as seen through musical change (see footnote 13, this chapter).
10
The Qeros have told me there are anywhere from three to fourteen different Phallcha variations. I have
heard three distinct variations of the Phallcha song in my time in Qeros, with variation defined by differing
melody, not text. The same Pukllay taki is never repeated as song of the year two years in a row and a few years go
by before a particular song cycles around again; however, one version of Phallcha was Pukllay taki in 2004, and
another in 2006. I believe variations are considered separate songs, so that the 2006 song was not considered a
repeat of the 2004 song.

65
 pagos made for the lowland Apu in the monte, as these Apu enjoy consuming exotic
flowers that do not grow near them. Thurpa was the Pukllay taki in Hatun Qeros in
2005; Audio Examples 5.1 and 5.2, and discussed in Chapter 5.11

3. Walqa Pii refers to the adornments donned during Pukllay. Walqa is the white or rose-
colored bead necklaces worn by the women during Pukllay, and pii are the tiny white
beads sewn into mens chullus or woven caps. Walqa Pii was Pukllay taki in Hatun
Qeros in 2007.

4. Rinrillu, (sometimes pronounced linrillu), is from membrillo in Spanish. Membrillo is a

quince fruit (Cydonia oblonga) the Qeros say is good to eat to improve singing when
ones throat is dry. Luis Ybar Palacio, who published the earliest article on Qeros
(1922), describes young men wearing membrillos tied in bundles on their backs as part of
Pukllay clothing. The fruits aroma was meant to attract nice young women (Ybar
Palacio 1922, 25, my translation). They no longer wear this fruit at Pukllay, but the
alcalde will sometimes provide sacks of it for the authorities to share. Rinrillu was
Pukllay taki in Hatun Qeros in 2008, and also 1963.12

5. Wallata are the wild Andean geese (Chloephaga melanoptera) that live near high
altitude lakes, ponds, and marshes (approximately 12,00014,500 feet).13 They are
considered a link between the Apu and Pacha Mama, because the chicks are born above
the water sources, closer to the Apu, and then shepherded down by the mother to be
raised near Mama Qucha (Mother Lake). Hilrio Machacca Apasa explained that this
bird is considered yanantin because of this link between the two super powers (pers.

11
Thurpa can be heard in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy We Sing), in the
sequence titled Carnival (Wissler, 2007). Thurpa is also sung by the two young herder girls in The Shape of
Survival (Cohen, 1979).
12
See Cohen 1994, track 29, Mountain Music of Peru, labeled Song of Last Years Carnaval (1963).
This is Rinrillu recorded by John Cohen in 1964.
13
John Cohen recorded Wallata in 1964 in the Qeros community of Kiku. These recordings can be
heard on Mountain Music of Peru, Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40020 (1991 [1964]), tracks 1417. Tracks 14 and
16 have been identified by some Qeros friends as awpa Wallata, meaning it is an older version of Wallata
that is longer sung. Tracks 15 and 17 are closer rhythmically and melodically to the version sung today.

66
 com., 28 July 2007). This places wallata in a position of chawpi between the female and
male aspects of the yanantin of these two forces. Hilrio also mentioned another
association of wallata with yanantin: they always fly in pairs (they mate for life), and
they are black and white.
Jorge Flores Ochoa informs that many water birds, like the wallata, are associated
with the interior world of Pacha Mamas caves, lakes, springs, and streams, which are the
mythical birth places of llamas and alpacas (Flores Ochoa 1988, 238). Flores Ochoa
explained that in rituals, the llamas and alpacas become birds, so a metaphoric
association exists between the all-important herds and the wallata that live near the
animals places of origin (pers. com., 7 January 2006). Indeed, the Qeros, like many
Andeans, give the nickname wallata to the llamas and alpacas that have markings like
this bird: white bellies, heads, and back of the neck, contrasted with a black mark on the
back that extends toward the tail.14 These associations with the supernatural world and
yanantin symbolism of high/low, interior/exterior, Apu/Pacha Mama, life pairing, and
black/white, are why the wallata is revered and has its own song in Qeros, and in other
Andean communities.

6. Sirina is a mermaid-like aquatic being who lures people into water with music. This
is the siren of Greek mythological origins, which colonial Spain introduced, and it is
now prevalent in many variations throughout the Andes.15 The Sirina has special,
hypnotic powers, often expressed through music, which are enticing, vexing, and even
harmful to humans.

7. Kiyu is the largest tinamou bird (Tinamotis pentlandii) of the high Andes. It is so-
named because of the sound it makes: kiyu-kiyu. The kiyu bird inhabits high altitude
grassland from about 13,000 to 15,500 feet, and, like the wallata, has multiple

14
See Flores Ochoa 1986, for emic classification of Andean camelids based on markings.
15
A 1615 drawing by Guamn Poma de Ayala shows Sirinas in the ocean, looking up to pingollo
(pinkuyllu) players on a cliff (Guamn Poma de Ayala 1993 [1615], Book I, 237). See Stobart 2008, 236245, and
Turino 1983, 96101, for a discussion of sirens in music in the Bolivian and Peruvian Andes, respectively.

67
 significances. Mario Escobar Moscoso, geographer on the 1955 expedition into Qeros
with Cusco University, relayed a story about the kiyu. A Qeros man told him:

The kiyu bird is like an angel, or a spirit that lived when the earth
was empty, before people. The kiyu flew from Waman Lipa [the
largest Apu in Qeros] to Lake Ananta [a lake near Hapu, one of
the eight Qeros communities]. The kiyu made the grass, trees,
rivers, and animals; it was the Ave creador [Creator Bird]. Man
entered into this world that the kiyu created (pers. com., 16 April
2007).

In this story, the kiyu is creator of life, and the fact that it flies between the Apu (Waman
Lipa) and Mama Qucha (Lake Ananta) makes it a connector between the two, like the
wallata. In contrast, it is also regarded as the messenger of death, and the Qeros interpret
the sighting of a kiyu bird as an announcement that someone will die. Indeed, one line of
song text is: Ripunaypaq carta ruwaq, Creator of the letter for my leaving [death].
One Qeros friend told me that when Manuel Quispe, an altomisayoq (highly trained
ritual specialist) from the anexo of Chuwa Chuwa died in 2005, a kiyu had been spotted
next to his house a few days before. Jorge Flores Ochoa states that the kiyu is like the
chawpi or tinkuy between life and death, since it has associative powers with both (pers.
com., 7 April 2007). Thus it could also be considered as the embodiment of the yanantin
concept of life/death.
Oscar Nez del Prado reported a conversation in Qeros in 1955 about the kiyu:
The genesis of their music and dances, according to him [Qeros informant], were
copied from the kios [sic] bird that served as inspiration for many of their songs and
stories (Nez del Prado 2005a [1958] 206, my translation). Indeed one line of text is,
Qhashwasqayki panpapi, In the pampa where you dance the qhaswa.16
Kiyu is not sung as frequently as before, because some Qeros consider it a
bad luck song due to its association with death. Fewer kiyu sightings now occur in

16
The qhaswa is an indigenous circle dance of courtship with many variations throughout the Andes.
Agustn Machacca Flores informed me qhaswa was danced by the youth of Qeros in Easter up until about twenty
years ago, when cassette tape recordings of popular waynos and dressing in Ocongate style took over (the same as
they do in Tinkuy, the last days of the Pukllay celebration cycle; pers. com., 15 May 2005). Agustn described the
dance as a circle of men and women, with a stylized elbow-interlocking/fighting among the men.

68
 general, which probably contributes to the fact that this song is sung less frequently than
before.17

The form of all Pukllay taki is a simple binary one of verse-refrain, with alternate refrains
sustained in aysariykuy. The poetic text is descriptive, concise, and often metaphoric. All songs
have many verses, which are seemingly infinite to me, and there is no prescribed order in which
to sing them.
The text in all songs shows the tenderness and sensitivity in which any topic is addressed.
The Quechua language commonly employs affectionate, poetic expression, even in daily speech.
The use of diminutives is the norm, in speech and in song, such as the suffixes lla and cha which
convey meanings of affection and tenderness. Lla best translates to "lovely or dear, and cha
is diminutive (like ito/a in Spanish), therefore little. The suffix y (my) is also used
abundantly in song texts, so, in this way, refrains translate to, my lovely dear wallata, or my
lovely little thurpa flower.
Below, in Song Text 4.1, are some sample verses of Thurpa, Pukllay taki in 2005,
which are excerpted from Audio Example 5.1 (Chapter 5). These verses are representative of all
Pukllay taki in content and meaning. The transcriptions, translations, and interpretations of the
verses are based directly on my work with Qeros friends, together with my Quechua tutors.18

Song Text 4.1. Six verses of Thurpa (V = verse; R = refrain)

(Excerpted from Audio Example 5.1, as sung by Juliana Apasa Flores, 12 September 2005).19

1. V: Anantachallay, castilla puka My lovely Ananta, red castilla

R: Panti Thurpachallay My lovely, little pink thurpa flower

17
Kiyu may be headed for the same fate as the awpa Pukllay taki, Pariwa (see Appendix D), which is
about the Andean flamingo. The flamingo is no longer sighted in Qeros, and therefore the song is no longer
relevant.
18
My process of text translation was to first transcribe the text from my field recordings, with the Qeros
who had sung in the recording, together with my Quechua tutor. We then translated this text into Spanish in the
same session, double (triple!) checking the meaning with the Qeros. I then translated the Spanish into English on
my own. The principal Quechua tutor I worked with was Gina Maldonado, with assistance from Ins Callalli, Janett
Vengoa de Ors, and Edith Cevallos.
19
See Appendix B for the full transcription (24 verses).

69
 2. V: Sultirachallaq pallaykusqan Gathered only for the lovely single women
R: Panti Thurpachallay My lovely, little pink thurpa flower

3. V: Asnaq turupi sarukuqpaq So that you will be stomped on in the

Foul-smelling mud.
R: Panti Thurpachallay My lovely, little pink thurpa flower

4. V: Halwachapich uywasqayki I will care for you, perhaps in a little cage

R: Panti Thurpachallay My lovely, little pink thurpa flower

5. V: Kawsaq sunqulla waqaykuchiq You who make the vibrant hearts weep
R: Panti Thurpachallay My lovely, little pink thurpa flower

6. V: Chikchi parallaq saqtaykusqan You who are mistreated by the hail and rain
R: Panti Thurpachallay My lovely, little pink thurpa flower

Verse 1 indicates how people link the song topics with places of their home areas, where
the herders, animals, birds, and flowers are all companions. Specific places are named, in this
case the small ravine of Ananta, and substituted from singer to singer, so that a verse is
personalized depending on the interpreter. The Ananta ravine is compared to the red castilla
worn at Pukllay because of the pink thurpa that blooms abundantly there. The festive Pukllay
clothing (castilla) is remembered and celebrated (see Figure 4.6).
Verse 2 refers to how the thurpa flowers are gathered for the single women (Q. sultira,
from Sp. soltera) to decorate their hats. I have seen older women wear flowers in their hats too,
but this verse is a reference to the youthful, courting nature of Pukllay. Verse 3 describes how
the thurpa will be stepped on as a result of falling from the womens hats. The groups walk from
home to home doing the singing rounds, and the men often do the stomping dance in the wet
mud (therefore on the fallen thurpa), which is foul-smelling because of human urine.20 Verse 4
is a response to Verse 3, when concern is expressed, and the singer wants to care for the thurpa
as if in a little cage (Q. hawla, from Sp. jaula).
Verse 5 is an example of what I call a floating verse, which is a verse that I have heard
sung regularly in any of the Pukllay taki, and it is not unique to a particular song. This particular
verse, you who make the vibrant hearts weep, is an expression of love and deep feeling for any
of the song topics. And Verse 6, like Verse 4, is an expression of care and compassion for the

20
The obligatory drinking leads to necessary heavy urination, which is a regular feature in Pukllay.

70
flowers that are mistreated by the hail and rain.
These verses are indicative of the flavor and style of all Pukllay taki text: they underscore
the excitement and decorative beauty of Pukllay, naming fun details of the festival and
personalizing places. All of these details center around the specific topic in the text, and, in
particular, express compassion and caring for the topic as if it were a living being.

Womens and Mens Festival Roles: Singers and Pinkuyllu players

The women and men have specified musical roles during Pukllay, which are in
complementary relationship to one another. The women are the primary singers in Pukllay and in
all animal fertility rituals. The men sometimes sing too, but their predominant role is to play
pinkuyllu flutes.21
Qeros female vocal style is forceful with an earthy, visceral quality in delivery. John
Cohen writes about the richness of womens singing: At communal gatherings, the maximal
female vocal qualities find fullest expression. Their singing becomes emotional and intense rather
than formal or dutiful (Cohen 1998, 230). Part of the natural, down-to-earth quality is the fact that
the women sing in a comfortable tessitura, close to their normal speaking voice, so that the
younger women sing in a mid-range, and the older in a lower one. Singing in a natural vocal
range contrasts to the high-pitched vocal aesthetic that many Andean communities prefer.
Thomas Turino writes of general Quechua and Aymara singing: Women often sing at the top of
their range, using falsetto (Turino 1998, 215); and Henry Stobart concurs regarding vocal
aesthetic in the Bolivian Andes: For the most part, the musical aesthetic is for strident and high-
pitched womens vocal timbre . . . (Stobart 2006, 38). While strident in the sense that loud
and full-bodied singing is desired in Qeros, they do not use a high falsetto vocal aesthetic for
singing Pukllay taki or animal fertility songs. This aesthetic differentiates Qeros womens
vocal style from that of many places in the greater Ocongate region, where women sing in the
falsetto style.22 People in Ancasi, the adjacent valley to the southeast of Qeros (where they no
longer sing their Pukllay taki), have commented on the uniqueness of the Qeros vocal style.

21
The exception to this is Sinalay, for the cows and sheep, when the men play panpipes (Chapter 7).
22
I recorded some women singing Pukllay taki in Chilca Finaya (5 May 2005) and Qoa Muru (15
February 2007), communities near Ausangate mountain (region of Ocongate, Map 2.1) where the women sang in the
falsetto style.

71
 In discussion with my close compadres, Agustn Machacca Flores and Juliana Apasa
Flores, they both emphasize that the women cannot sing without the mens pinkuyllu playing,
and vice versa: the men cannot play pinkuyllu without the womens singing. The women and
men sing/play simultaneously during many stages of Pukllay, and both parts must be present in
mutual support (see Chapter 5 for expansion on this concept).
The mens primary musical role in Pukllay and in the animal fertility rituals to the llamas
and alpacas is to play the pinkuyllu flutes.23 The Qeros pinkuyllu are end-blown, notched
bamboo flutes with an end-plug in the bottom or distal end, which is usually made of packed and
dried mud, or, nowadays more commonly a wadded piece of plastic (see the plastic plug in the
finished pinkuyllu on the left in Figure 4.4).
Every man in Qeros makes his own pinkuyllu out of bamboo collected from the monte
during the corn harvest in July, or, more commonly, during the rainy planting season in
December. In the wet season the bamboo is greener than during the dry season harvest time and
therefore easier to carve and scrape. Most pinkuyllu are made of a bamboo the Qeros call
toqoro,24 and some smaller ones are made out of another type of bamboo, called soqos.25 In the
mid-twentieth century and before, pinkuyllu were sometimes made of condor bone (see Figure
4.1).26 I have seen only one bone pinkuyllu in Qeros, and the owner, Juan Flores Machacca,
explained, It is at least sixty years old, made by my grandfather (pers. com., 27 July 2006). He
was aware of its antiquity and specialness, since bone pinkuyllu are no longer made in Qeros.

23
Pinkuyllu is a pre-Columbian term, today used throughout the Andes to refer commonly to end-blown
flutes with either a duct or notched mouthpiece. Dale Olsens ethnoarchaeomusicological research of pre-Hispanic
musical instruments in Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Colombia includes duct and notch pinkuyllu (Olsen 2002, 20, 35,
5859). Thomas Turinos research on the music of Huancan, Lake Titicaca region, and Henry Stobarts in
Kalankira, Northern Potos region of Bolivia, show the pinkuyllu of both regions as vertical duct flutes (Turino
1993, 4850; Stobart 2006, 208217). In addition, the pinkuyllu of both areas are systematically tuned in consorts,
which is not the case in Qeros. Pinkuyllu vary in construction (duct/notch; number of finger holes; tuned in groups,
or not, etc.) from region to region, and even among adjacent communities. Holguins 1608 dictionary defines
pincullu as simply all genres of flutes, indicating the non-specificity of the term, which, as we see, still applies
today (Holgun 1989 [1608], 163).
24
Toqoro is Rhipidocladum harmonicum (Csar Vargas 1986, 2, and pers. com., with biologist Jos Luis
Venero, 10 August 2007, Cusco, Peru).
25
Soqos belongs to the same genus as carrizo (Phragmites sp.), which is a common roofing material, (pers.
com., Jos Luis Venero, 10 August 2007). I have not yet been able to identify the species. Both the larger toqoro and
smaller soqos pinkuyllu can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy We Sing),
in the sequence titled Animal Veneration (Wissler, 2007).
26
For a brief description of Qeros bone pinkuyllu, see Ybar Palacios 1922, 13.

72
 Figure 4.1. A condor bone pinkuyllu. Figure 4.2. Man playing a pinkuyllu made of toqoro.
The couple is dressed in Pukllay clothing.

Pinkuyllu randomly range from 15 to 70 centimeters long, depending completely on the

flute maker's choice according to the piece of toqoro or soqos he has selected. They always have
four rectangular finger holes and no thumb hole (see Figure 4.4 and Drawing 1 in Figure 4.5).
Agustn calls the four holes tawa awi, or four eyes. From the distal end of the tube, the
flutist measures with two or three widths of his fingers, and there he carves his first finger hole
(see Figure 4.3). This is followed by measuring an additional three evenly-spaced holes toward
the proximal end, again measuring with two or three finger widths. This measurement of the
finger hole placement results in the creation of the standard scale comprised of the desired three
notes of the Q'eros' pinkuyllu melodies, which complement the womens singing (see Chapter 5,
subheading Yanantin in Song Structure and Paired Pusunis Conch Shell Trumpets). The result is
that each pinkuyllu is tuned to itself, but to no other mans flute; tuning depends entirely on the
length and thickness of the bamboo that is individually selected. In other words, the length and
thickness of the selected bamboo are not altered to make tuned sets of pinkuyllu.
The notch for the mouthpiece is carved last, after the inside area of the tube is cleaned
and scraped of all possible splinters. I have more commonly seen the mouth end to be cut at the
node of the bamboo, so that it is slightly more flared than the distal end (as is the case in Figure
4.4). Interestingly, the flared end of the condor bone was also carved into the notched
mouthpiece (see Figure 4.1).

73
 Figure 4.3. Agustn measures the space between Figure 4.4. A finished pinkuyllu is on the left, and
the two bottom-most finger holes at the distal end. a newly-harvested, unworked piece of toqoro is
on the right.

Just as the Qeros womens singing aesthetic is different from that of their non-Qeros
neighbors, so are the mens pinkuyllu unique in construction and scale from those of their
neighbors, even just one valley over. For example, the notched pinkuyllu of the community of
Ancasi, a half-days walk southeast of Qeros, have five round finger holes and one thumb hole,
and render a pentatonic scale, versus the four square finger holes, no thumb hole, and tritonic
scale of the Qeros pinkuyllu.
Some of my Qeros compadres have told me that some pinkuyllu makers and players are
better than others, which suggests that standards exist. Furthermore, the Qeros communities
have distinct styles of playing that differ from one another. The differences are so subtle and
difficult (for me) to ascertain, but people from Hatun Qeros easily can distinguish between
recordings of pinkuyllu playing in Kiku and Hapu, for example. A desired playing aesthetic of all
Qeros pinkuyllu (as well as other Andean pinkuyllu) is to overblow, so that the timbre is breathy
and rich with overtones. The more breathy overtones that are present, the better the sound and
the more adept the player. A distinctive trait of pinkuyllu playing is that a man will raise his head
in a quick jerk as he simultaneously pushes the air forcefully. The result is that punctuated
pulsations of air accent particular notes strongly.
The contour of the pinkuyllu melody also has its sustained aysariykuy on every other
phrase, just like the womens vocal line. This desired aesthetic of forceful blowing and breathy
timbre with many overtones is directly related to the womens forceful singing style and
aysariykuy (see Chapter 5, subheading Yanantin in Song Structure and Paired Pusunis Conch

74
Shell Trumpets). A player usually uses the index and middle fingers of his left hand for fingering
the top two holes (holes 1 and 2, in Drawing 1 of Figure 4.5, below), and the same two fingers of
the right hand for the bottom two holes (holes 3 and 4, Drawing 1; also see Figure 4.2). The
drawings below indicate a person who is doing the opposite, which also occurs (right hand on
top, left on bottom). Fingerings are non-sequential, and combinations of one, two and three holes
being covered are used in order to render the desired three pitches of the pinkuyllu melody (see
Drawings 2, 3, and 4 in Figure 4.5). The three pitches of the pinkuyllu melody can sometimes be
played with different fingerings amongst players, so that the choice is individual. In addition, a
technique frequently used in transitions from one note to another is to rapidly touch down two or
three fingers, covering and uncovering two or three holes with a sort of sharp hit with the fingers.

Drawing 1. Pinkuyllu with four finger holes. Drawing 2. Pinkuyllu fingering:

Top hand: one finger raised, one down.
Bottom hand: two fingers down.

Drawing 3. Pinkuyllu fingering. Drawing 4. Pinkuyllu fingering.

Top hand: one finger down, one finger raised. Top hand: two fingers down.
Bottom hand: two fingers down Bottom hand: two fingers raised

Figure 4.5. Four drawings by John Cohen from ca. 1984 (courtesy of John Cohen).

75
 The pinkuyllu is first played on the Monday morning (Lunes Suyu) of the nine-day Pukllay
cycle, first at the Phallchay fertility ritual in the morning (Chapter 6) and then by the authorities (the
alcalde, with his regidores and alwasires) as they announce the song of the year. They do it
simply, through the act of singing and playing the pinkuyllu, when the group of regidores and
alwasires separates in order for each authority to visit all family homes in his home anexo. In
this way, on the same morning all Qeros families of all anexos learn of the song of the year
through their representative authorities home visits.

Pukllay Ethnography
My first observation of Pukllay in 2005, when Thurpa was song of the year, forms the
basis of this Pukllay ethnography. The form of the celebration was similar for the following two
years, 2006 and 2007, when I participated with the women as singer, and we sang Phallcha and
Walqa Pii, respectively.
The authoritiesvisiting rounds, called watukuy,27 are the first of many visits on various
levels that occur during the Pukllay cycle. This first set of watukuy to individual family homes in
their respective anexos signaled the official start of Pukllay. The visits took place around
midday, between the morning and afternoon Phallchay rituals (Chapter 6). The lively and usually
very drunk regidores and alwasires announced their arrival at each home with loud blasts on the
pusunis (conch shells), 28 an ancient symbol of authority in the Andes. Upon approaching a
home, the men first sounded their pusunis outside. Then, after bursting inside, they stood near
the familys misa (altar, from Spanish mesa, see Chapter 6, subheading The Eve of Phallchay:
Vesper Offerings, Apu Setima, and Ritual Objects) and blasted them again, followed by singing

27
Watukuy is Quechua for to visit. Many Carnavales elsewhere in the Andes also have a structure that
includes visiting rounds from home to home. For example, in La Paz, Bolivia, martes de challa is when people do
rounds of home visits on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday and pour libations of singani (Bolivian alcoholic
beverage) in the homes and on the Carnaval decorations (pers. com., Vivianne Asturizaga Hurtado, from La Paz, 25
February 2009). Henry Stobart describes home visits of dancing and drinking during Pukllay in Kalankira, Northern
Potos, Bolivia (Stobart 2006, 255). Likewise, Catherine Allen describes paseos from home to home during Pukllay
in Sonqo, Paucartambo region, Peru (Allen 2002, 159).
28
Pusunis or pututu date from pre-Hispanic times and have always been valuable items because they
were/are brought from far away coasts, often as far as northern Ecuador and Colombia. They were used by Inca
authorities and chaski runners (deliverers of messages on the intricate Inca road system), and today they continue to
be a sign of command in Qeros Pukllay celebration. Pututu is the more common term throughout the Andes for the
instrument because of the pu-tu-tu sound they render. The Qeros, however, use the term pusunis, which I have
imagined as a word borrowed from the Spanish bocina (horn or trumpet).

76
the chosen song, alternated with playing it on their pinkuyllu while doing a vigorous stomping
dance in place. In typical Qeros style, each person sang/played/danced independently, yet
simultaneously (see Chapter 5, subheading Musial Aesthetics of Pukllay taki Performance). This
unexpected burst of festive excitement into each home, when the new song choice of the year
resounded jubilantly and loudly, was a clear and dramatic start to the ensuing Pukllay festivities.
Between singing, playing, and stomping, the authorities greeted all people in the home
and drank copious cups of aqha (fermented corn beer), which the hosts served in an ayni
offering. Curiously, some members of the household, or an authority, occasionally sang last
years (2004) song, Phallcha, while others simultaneously sang the newly-selected song,
Thurpa. The concurrent singing of both songs aurally represented the transition from one year
to the next, a kind of chawpi transition in the yanantin of the clear establishment of last years
song and that of the current year. After about twenty minutes or so, the regidores and alwasires
departed for the next home to repeat the greeting, singing, dancing, and drinking.
On that Monday night, the adults of each anexo formed various extended family groups
for all night watukuy from home to home in their respective anexo. In these home visits, the
women sang Thurpa while standing in an arc-shaped line around the men in the center of the
room, who did the stomping dance and played the song on their pinkuyllu. The women and men
sang and played simultaneously and continuously, though not coordinated in close heterophony.
Women often sang in subgroups of duos and trios, meaning that these groups coordinated the
melody in fairly close heterophony within the group, but not with the neighboring subgroup.
Quite commonly a woman sang alone, within the texture of other women singing in small
groups. The mens pinkuyllu playing was completely individual, with every man playing
individually (though simultaneously) and not in subgroups. The result was a dense texture of
widely-overlapping melodic lines (see Chapter 5, subheading Musical Aesthetics of Pukllay taki
Performance). The boisterous singing, dancing, talking, and drinking continued until early dawn,
indicative of the excitement among all members of the anexo in anticipation of communal
Pukllay that would begin the following day.
Tuesday morning entailed sleeping off the effects of the watukuy rounds of the night
before, and in preparation for the descent to the community center, where the rivers of the
castilla and ichiniku valleys meet. By Tuesday afternoon most families of all anexos had made
the descent on foot or horseback. Some of the men, especially the authorities, arrived very drunk,

77
swaying and singing Thurpa on horseback. Necessarily, some people stayed behind in the
anexos to herd the animals, and look after the elderly, ill, and infirm.29
On Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning, large groups of women communally
peeled and boiled vast quantities of potatoes, and men prepared alpaca meat for community
consumption. Both men and women shared the responsibility of watching over the boiling of
wiapu (fermented corn) and the final preparation stages of aqha. Working communally like this
is possible in these homes, which are considerably larger than the homes up high, as they are
made for extended families and used in public events such as Pukllay.30
Tuesday night featured more rounds of watukuy, with the notable difference that the
whole community was involved and not just families in their individual anexos, like the night
before. Each individual watukuy group consisted of both extended family and friends, so that
members from various anexos were included in one group. The average group size was about
twenty or thirty, with roughly equal numbers of men and women. This was a time for extended
families to reunite. For example, a daughter who had moved away from her family home to live
in her husbands family home one valley over was now able to reunite and sing with her parents
and siblings whom she no longer sees on a daily basis. People dropped in and out of groups
spontaneously, so that group size and membership fluctuated constantly.
People begin participating in Pukllay when they reached the status of sipas or wayna, a
young woman or man respectively who is of marrying age.31 They participate through mature
adulthood, even when they have grown children and grandchildren. I noticed the younger

29
Evangelical Christianity, which has made inroads into Qeros as it has in many Andean communities,
also contributes to non-attendance of Pukllay by some people. Some Qeros have converted to evangelical
Christianity, which teaches the belief in one God, and prohibits non-Christian celebrations that include excessive
drinking, such as at Pukllay. This has caused serious division within some Andean communities and has promoted a
loss of tradition. Such is the case in Ancasi, one valley over from Qeros, where the people no longer celebrate
Pukllay or animal fertility rituals, which some have told me is because of their newly-adopted evangelical faith. As
of yet, this movement is still small in Hatun Qeros, but has more of a presence in Hapu, where the people of the
anexo of Yanaruma claim to be the only one of the eight Hapu anexos that still practice Qeros traditions. In Hatun
Qeros, the followers of the evangelical movement known as Maranata have built a small chapel in Chuwa Chuwa,
and occasionally a missionary will visit.
30
Other communal events that occur in the community center are: the celebrations of Chayampuy, Easter
and Corpus Christi, monthly assembly meetings, work faenas, the corn harvest, and communal weddings.
31
Young men and women tend to have a spouse from around age seventeen or so. The young people have a
good deal of choice about whom they partner with, but the decision is only finally approved by the parents and
sealed through an ayni ritual, which includes the mutual sharing and exchange of coca leaves and alcohol in a
formal meeting. I have not seen this ritual, and this account is based on what has been described to me.

78
children and adolescents were always around, usually falling asleep by their mothers sides near
the hearth in a home, where the women attended to the cooking and served aqha to the singing
visitors as part of the ayni obligation of all hosts to the guests. In this way, the children hear and
see all activities and music involved, so that when they reach adulthood they too will be ready to
participate.
As with all musical production in Qeros, everything evolved spontaneously and non-
verbally. That is, people had a feeling when it was time to start the rounds and join in with
whichever group they choose, some starting sooner and others later. Until the early dawn hours
on Wednesday the groups went from home to home, when the women energetically sang, the
men vigorously danced and played pinkuyllu, and all boisterously drank great amounts of aqha.
The musical aesthetic continued to be the dense texture of widely overlapping vocal and
pinkuyllu melodies; however, this was significantly magnified now that both numbers of
performers and inebriation had increased.
The climax of Pukllay was Wednesday afternoon and night, called Sinis by the Qeros
(from mircoles cenizas, Ash Wednesday). This was the first time everyone donned the
special Pukllay clothing, which the women had been weaving for months beforehand. They
wove special lliklla (shawls) for themselves and special ponchos for the men, which were replete
with bright pink and red pallay (weaving patterns), and decorative fringe that are only worn in
Pukllay (see Figures 4.6 and 4.7).32 This new clothing, just like the new song for the year, is
always a marker of renewal and is reserved for the Pukllay celebration alone.
On Sinis, this most-awaited celebratory afternoon and evening of the entire year,
everyone waited for the authorities to summon all people to the center of Hatun Qeros, Inlis
Pampa,33 the large pampa in front of the Church, with loud blasts on the pusunis. Upon hearing
the conch shells, the people, now dressed in full Pukllay clothing, began their approach to Inlis

32
Since Incan and pre-Incan times, cloth and clothing have been the expressive medium of status and
wealth, and used to denote special ritual occasions in the Andes (see Murra 1962).
For an in-depth source on Qeros textiles, designs, and uses, see Cohen and Rowe 2002. Figures of and
information about special Pukllay weavings can be seen on pages 5962, 69, 106, and 1523. Ybar Palacio
describes Qeros Pukllay clothing that is no longer worn, such as that woven from vicua, the use of porcelain and
copper buttons, and elaborate silver shawl pins (Ybar Palacio 1922, 2425). One of the Qeros awpa Pukllay taki
titled Awanakus, names the special pallay used in Pukllay clothing.

33
Inlis is from the Spanish iglesia (church), and pampa refers to the large, open grassy area in front of the
Church built by the hacendado.

79
Pampa. The men wore their new ponchos and store-bought boots with socks, instead of the daily
usuta (ojota sandals). Some were decked out in colorful castilla, the name for a dance sling with
long, shaggy red, pink, and blue tassels, tied over the shoulders and hanging down to about knee-
length (see Figure 4.6).34 Underneath the castilla and their everyday unku (tunics), they wore the
festive huyuna (Spanish jubn, elaborate jackets). The women donned their new llikllas, walqa
(bead necklaces), and colorful knee-high socks and store-bought shoes, instead of the daily
sandals (see Figure 4.3).35 Many men and women wore monteras (flat hats made of felt and
silver thread, which they used to wear daily but now only wear during Pukllay),36 covered with
balloons and hanging ribbons. All were very proud to parade and flaunt their new attire.

Figure 4.6. Four men in Pukllay wear castilla Figure 4.7. Three women in Pukllay dress,
and one wears a poncho (on the right). Four men wearing walqa bead necklaces, new llikllas,
wear monteras, with white, hanging ribbons. socks, and shoes. The two on the outside wear
All wear boots and socks, and carry pinkuyllu. monteras.

In the way everyone arrived Inlis Pampa was an embodiment of the meaning of the word
pukllay (to play). People did not arrive all at once; rather, they used the arrival as a time of
teasing, and flirting, and flaunting their full garb. A sort of game of building excitement ensued
as everyone delayed the entrance into Inlis Pampa: the men ran around, but not into, the pampa,

34
The dance slings are called castilla because they used to be made from a type of Castilian wool (from
Castilla/Spain). This material was produced during colonial times and purchased by the Qeros up until about forty
years ago. Nowadays the people purchase a synthetic yarn to make these slings (see Cohen 2002, 69).
35
While all other clothing in Pukllay celebrates the traditional, shoes seem to be indicative of an esteemed
mestizo or wealth status, as the wearing of shoes distinguishes mestizos from runa. The new weavings and costumes
are signs of opulence, as are shoes.
36
For photos of monteras in use, see Cohen and Rowe 2002, 24, 76, 80, 86, and 96.

80
laughing, often slipping in the mud, and playing their pinkuyllu flutes; the women chased one
another, giggling and hitting each others legs with ortiga (stinging nettle).
Finally, the men danced joyfully in haphazard lines into the center of the plaza proper,
where they did the stomping dance and played Thurpa on their pinkuyllu. The women filed in
majestically and stood in an arc-shaped line that faced and encircled the men (see Figure 4.8).
They sang from their standing positions while the men continued moving, stomping, laughing,
talking, and playing pinkuyllu in the center. This was the same physical and musical form they
had assumed during watukuy inside of peoples homes, both in the anexos up high and now in
the community center. Those community members who did not participate observed from above
and around the pampa (see Figure 4.9), while others served aqha to everyone. Two plastic
pitchers or two older wooden qeros of aqha were always served to and drunk by each person, the
necessary representation of yanantin.
All preparations and festivities in the days before and after were centered on this one day
and night, when people gave singing, playing, drinking, eating, and socializing, their all. After
performance in Inlis Pampa, there was a large communal feast, which was followed by all-night
watukuy. The dark homes were jam-packed with jubilant, and fairly drunk, singers and pinkuyllu
players. These were the most boisterous and exuberant watukuy of all, continuing until dawn on
Thursday. Morning rest followed, and then one last set of community watukuy commenced for a
couple of hours around midday.
By late afternoon most people made their ascent back to the homes up high.37 The nature
of these ascents varied from tired families walking slowly with frequent rest stops, to fast and
often reckless riding on horseback. The horseback riders, particularly the men, were usually still
very drunk from the days and nights of singing and dancing in the community center. They rode
swiftly up the valleys, often singing Thurpa in full voice as their horses galloped along.

37
Lucio Chura Ordoez described a past Pukllay tradition to me, which occurred on Thursday afternoon
before everyone left for the homes up high. Young single women and men (sipas and wayna) would gather and sing
to the festival alcalde in a kind of farewell send-off. The song they sang was Chaskillay Pukllallay (chaski is to
receive, so the song was to be received by the Pukllay alcalde from the young people). For this event, one young
man would cover his clothing entirely in Spanish moss, thus becoming the chaskiy tusuq, the chaskiy dancer, while
the group of youth sang. This song was sung on the Thursday of Pukllay up until about twenty years ago (pers. com.,
2 February 2007). Lucio sang the song for me (which I recorded), which uses the same descending tritonic melodic
contour as the Pukllay taki (see Chapter 5).

81
 Figure 4.8. Position of men and women in Inlis
Pampa during Pukllay. Men do a stomping dance
and play pinkuyllu flutes in the center. Women
sing while facing the men in an arc-shaped line.
This photo shows the dense fog that often rolls
in from the cloud forest below.
Figure 4.9. This photo is taken from the womens
perspective during the singing in Inlis Pampa
on Ash Wednesday. The men are in the center
of the pampa, part of the Church is on the right,
and the people who choose not to participate
watch from above.

From Friday until Tuesday the celebration continued, with four days dedicated to Tinkuy
(Friday, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday), an obvious form of dance structured around the
principle of yanantin, which many Andean communities practice (see Chapter 3, subheading
Complementary Duality: Yanantin).38 The younger people of two adjoining valleys met on the
high passes that connect the two anexos39 and danced to cassette tapes played on car battery-
powered cassette players. The dancers were sipas and wayna, the sipas wearing colorful tassels
on their polleras (skirts) to mark their single status, along with young married couples. They
danced joyfully and energetically to popular waynos and carnavales in serpentine formation
around a mallki, a small tree that had been erected in the middle of the pass specifically for
Tinkuy, and decorated with streamers and balloons. They wore the dress of the larger Ocongate
region, so that through this combination of dress, music, and dances, they were showing their
identification and interconnection with the greater Andean region outside of Qeros. 40 Each of

38
See Allen 2002, 156158, and Bolin 1998, 94100.
39
See Map 2.2 of the four valleys and six anexos of Hatun Qeros. So, for example, Challmachimpana
dances on the passes with Chuwa Chuwa and Qucha Moqo, but not with any of the other three anexos as they are
not adjacent. Qolpa Kuchu meets with Qucha Moqo, but not Challmachimpana, etc.
40
The Tinkuy dances can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy We
Sing), in the sequence titled Qoyllur Riti and Corpus Christi (Wissler, 2007). It can also be seen in John Cohens

82
the four Tinkuy celebrations has its own carguyoq (sponsor), responsible for providing food,
drink, coca, and a cassette player, with battery and cassettes. This is the system of smaller, local
cargos within the larger system of overall festival alcalde with his accompanying regidores and
alwasires.
On the Saturday after Pukllay, the Phallchay ritual recurred, with some variation, so that
the llama and alpaca fertility rituals were interspersed within the Pukllay celebration cycle (see
Chapter 6). The musical aesthetics of both Pukllay and animal fertility rituals were similar, and
they were a prominent, continuous feature in the nine-days of celebration. In the next chapter I
expand upon the musical aesthetics of Pukllay, and show how the melodic relationship between
the womens vocal part and the mens pinkuyllu part is an expression of the structure of
yanantin. I summarize the elements of Pukllay music and musical performance that contribute to
social and cosmic renewal and reproduction.

1989 documentary Mountain Music of Peru. In Cohens film we see the old form of Tinkuy when the Qeros used to
dance on passes with members of neighboring communities. They have not done this for over a decade, because,
many told me, it resulted in too many fights with their neighbors. This style of dancing around a mallki tree (also
called yunsa) is seen in Pukllay celebrations throughout the southern Peruvian Andes.

83
 CHAPTER 5
PUKLLAY MUSICAL ANALYSIS:
MUSICAL AESTHETICS AND YANANTIN IN MUSICAL PRODUCTION

Orqo chinantin
Male together with femalereferring to paired conch shells.
Hlario Machacca Apasa, 4 September 2006

Warmintin qharintinpuni!
Woman/man inclusively, always!referring to everything.
Agustn Machacca Flores, 22 May 2006

In this chapter I explore the details of the musical aesthetics of Pukllay, and use two
audio examples and transcriptions to explain the aesthetics and musical organization of Pukllay
taki performance. The first transcription, on a five-line staff, is one of the Pukllay taki, Thurpa,
(song of 2005). It is followed by another transcription of my own design that shows how the
vocal and pinkuyllu melodies are organized by the structuring principle of yanantin. I argue that
this structuring principle comprises all Carnaval songs. I also explain the yanantin relationship
between the paired conch shells, as detailed to me by the Qeros. I summarize by showing how
the song topics, gender roles, and yanantin in instrument pairs and song structure, all contribute
to social and cosmic regeneration and reproduction.

Musical Aesthetics of Pukllay taki Performance

The first time I heard the singing and playing during all-night watukuy in 2005 I was
challenged to hear any organized musical structure. Only when I sang with the women in Pukllay
the following year in 2006, did I begin to see and hear structure in the performance and a specific
aesthetic within the seeming musical chaos. In the following paragraphs, I excerpt my fieldnotes
from that first participation to introduce Pukllay musical aesthetics from a candid beginners
view, and present my emotional response resulting from the experience, which could lend insight
into the Qeros emotional response during participation in Pukllay.

84
 Fieldnotes, 1 March 2006, Pukllay:
Today I sang for the first time in Pukllay, in Inlis Pampa with the line of women
[Song for 2006 was Phallcha]. It was wonderful to be inside that sound: full,
rich, exhilarating. Sometimes I sang by myself, sometimes I lined up my singing
with my comadre Dominga to my left, just as other women were doing:
sometimes singing individually, sometimes with someone. The men moved
constantly and vigorously: stomping, singing, playing, laughing, shouting. By this
time many were very drunk, and they approached me assertively, talking, joking,
hugging, and pressing their ears up to me as I sang full force, followed by gleeful
exclamations of yachankia! [you do know our songs!]. The women did not do
this. They were still, unmoving, often with hands clasped in front of their polleras
[skirts]. Some of the women giggled openly at my singing, which is always a bit
unnerving. Now I have come to recognize this laughter as a kind of welcome
delight, and perhaps discomfort on their part at the unfamiliarity of a gringa
dressed like them who can actually sing the songs. They seemed to accept my
singing, for which I was amazed and most grateful.

I was served cup after cup of aqha, always two at a time, and my ensuing
inebriation certainly heightened the experience. The continual overlapping of
sounds was invigorating, exhilarating, and even transporting I would sayin a
wonderful way. Singing forcefully from the gut felt like natural and deep
expression. With both the men and women I felt included, as a part of the
community. What last year seemed chaotic and random suddenly made sense to
me this year. The overlapping, individual expression of singing and playing is
their order. I realized this is the Qeros aesthetic. Non-order making the order
individual making the communal.

To explain the musical aesthetics that I described in my fieldnotes, I present Audio

Example 5.1 with an accompanying narrative. The former includes one group singing Thurpa
during Pukllay in Hatun Qeros on Ash Wednesday, February 8, 2005. The latter, my narrative,
is in Western terms (such as discussing pitches in letter names, and intervals of a third, for

85
example). The recording is a compilation (and therefore condensed version) of three consecutive
nighttime watukuy of the same group, spanning about a two-hour period, with each singing
session in the watukuy lasting about thirty minutes. The group consisted of approximately two
dozen people (half women, half men), which was an average size for all groups. I was standing
closer to some women than others, which is heard in the recording. The refrain that is continually
repeated is, Panti thurpachallayMy lovely, little pink thurpa flower.

Audio Example 5.1

Audio Example 5.1, Excerpt 1:

This opens with a woman singing the end of a refrain in aysariykuy
(prolongation). Many women sing strongly, simultaneously yet individually; also,
men are playing pinkuyllu and talking (in the background of the recording). The
pitches of the tritonic descending melody that the women sing are roughly A, F#,
and a quarter-flat D (that is, a pitch somewhere between D and D-flat). The
women join together on a long aysariykuy (0:220:28), after which a brief fade
follows. (It is the pitch of the aysariykuy that I refer to as the pitch center of the
song, so in this case the quarter-flat D is the pitch center.)

Audio Example 5.1, Excerpt 2:

(0:30) Later during the same watukuy, an authority plays a pusunis conch shell
trumpet. The pitch of the pusunis (an approximate D), interestingly, is relatively
close to the songs pitch center, which is not often the case.

Fade out

Audio Example 5.1, Excerpt 3 (same group later the same evening):
(0:50) There is some talking and pinkuyllu playing. The group has just arrived at a
new home and are about to begin fully singing and playing. A woman begins

86
singing in a lower pitch range than the pitch center in the previous visit. The
pitches she sings approximate a descending major triad (F, D, B-flat). Soon after,
we hear a second woman, the same strong singer as in the first watukuy, singing
in a pitch center that is one half-step higher (E-flat/D, G, B-flat) than her pitch
center in the previous visit (D/D-flat, F#, A) (1:06). These two women sing
independently, with different verse texts.

For the next two minutes the two women in the foreground sing independently,
and in the background other women also sing independently and men play
pinkuyllu, which is constant throughout. Next, the mens stomping dance is heard
(1:20). The woman who sings at the lower pitch level matches her text and
melodic line with the other strong singer, but stays within her same pitch range
(2:573:03). After this, the women continue to sing somewhat together, that is,
synchronizing their melodic lines, but with different texts and pitch levels. They
finish together on a long aysariykuy (3:123:16), roughly a wide third or narrow
fourth apart.

Fade out

Audio Example 5.1, Excerpt 4, (same group later the same evening):
(3:17) The strong woman singer sings in the same pitch range as the previous visit
(E-flat/D, G, B-flat). A man sings at the same pitch level, but an octave lower.
Another woman sings about a fifth below (roughly G, B, D), the predominant
womans voice (3:23), so that the aysariykuy of the higher voice is on a E-flat/D,
and that of the lower voice is on a G. Then the mens pinkuyllu playing and
stomping dance is prominent (3:47). The men who sing in the background
throughout continue to sing an approximate octave below the womens voices.
Around 3:50 one pinkuyllu is prominent, playing his aysariykuy on the
approximate pitch of E-flat, similar to the aysariykuy pitch of the prominent group
of womens voices. The woman in the lower pitch range continues to sing about a
fifth below the prominent group of women singers in the foreground (4:27).

87
 The remainder of the recording continues with overlapping womens singing,
mens singing, pinkuyllu playing, and foot stomping.
In these four excerpts we hear the hallmark of Qeros Pukllay taki performance:
the overlapping of many voices and pinkuyllu that simultaneously sing and play the
Thurpa melody, which results in a dense texture of continuous sound. The melodies are
not coordinated in unison or close heterophony; therefore, I prefer to call it wide
overlapping, in order to distinguish this characteristic feature of Qeros musical production
from other styles of Andean music that are played in much closer heterophony. This wide
overlap of simultaneous melodic lines, and its resultant dense texture, suggests a possible
Amazon jungle connection (see Chapter 2, subheading Vertical Ecology and History).
In these excerpts everyone sings and plays in roughly the same tempo. The pitches of the
melodic line as sung by the women, and occasionally the men, are a descending triad. The pitch level
of the descending melody line varies from singer to singer. By pitch level, I refer to what would be
called key in Western terms, with the tonic being the sustained note at the end of every other
phrase. The singers sing in pitch levels that vary approximately between the intervals of a third, fifth,
or octave apart. For example, the strong singer in Excerpt 1 sang her final aysariykuy (prolongation),
on D-flat, while another woman sang hers on B-flat, which is the difference of a third. In Excerpt 4, a
man sings an octave lower than the predominant singer, and another woman sings a fifth lower than
this same singer. A noticeable feature is that the aysariykuy often allows singers to catch up and
temporarily sound together as a drone.
The text nearly always varies from singer to singer during the singing of the verses, and only
sporadically is it coordinated (for example, Excerpt 3, 2:57). The refrain, Panti thurpachallay, is the
only constantly recurring common point of song text amongst all singers.
The pitches of the pinkuyllu are all individual, as each pinkuyllu is individually tuned to
itself. This often makes for a rich and wonderful dissonance, especially if many pinkuyllu are
relatively close in pitch, such as a minor second apart. Interestingly, one prominent pinkuyllu
melody (Excerpt 4, 3:50) is in the same pitch as the strong group of women singers on
aysariykuy, so perhaps the singers took their pitch from the pinkuyllus aysariykuy as their pitch
level from which to sing.
All of the above characteristics point to individuality within a communal aesthetic. Each
person sings or plays when she/he wants, in the pitch level and with the text she/he chooses, yet there

88
are specific communal aspects, such as an agreed-upon tempo and relative pitch levels, or keys,
among the singers. By related pitch levels I mean that the common intervallic differences among
pitch levels of the singers are the intervals the melody is based on: that of a descending major/or
sometimes minor-sounding triad. In this way, the singers either sing in the same key, or an
approximate third or a fifth apart. Therefore, it seems there is some sense of pitch relativity (related
keys) that is comfortable for the singers during communal singing. The microtonal rising in pitch
(from Excerpt 1 to 3) probably indicates heightened emotional intensity over the approximate two-
hour period of the recording.
In sum, Qeros musical production has much individual expression, such as personal choice
regarding timing of singing, text, and pitch level, within the communal boundaries of tempo and
relative pitch levels; common phrase endings on aysariykuy; continual, uninterrupted production of
musical sound in both the voices and the pinkuyllu; and an unspoken agreement about the
approximate length of each singing session during watukuy. The resultant texture and timbre of the
musical production of any given watukuy is kaleidoscopic and ever-changing.

Yanantin in Song Structure and Paired Pusunis Conch Shell Trumpets

When I first heard the Qeros singing Thurpa in the context of Pukllay (Audio Example
5.1), I could not discern if or how the womens singing and mens pinkuyllu playing fit together
in the sense of coordinated or complementary melodies. The men played a melody on the
pinkuyllu completely independently of both one another and of the womens singing, and in this
lack of synchronization of melodic lines (again, in the Western sense), I could not discern the
relationship between the two parts. Only when I recorded individual couples out of the context of
Pukllay could I hear and begin to understand the complementary relationship between the two
melodic lines.
In Audio Example 5.2, I recorded Juliana Apasa Flores and Agustn Machacca Flores
singing and playing Thurpa in my apartment in Cusco (September 12, 2005), that is, out of the
Pukllay context. In this recording, Julianas singing and Agustns pinkuyllu playing of their
melodies is in much closer heterophony than the wide overlapping of individually performed
melodies I heard during watukuy at Pukllay, making it possible to hear clearly the relationship
between the vocal and pinkuyllu melodic lines.

89
 Audio Example 5.2

Musical Transcription 5.1 shows the first verse of Audio Example 5.2, which is the same
for all subsequent verses (the text of the first six verses of Audio Example 5.2 is translated in
Song Text 4.1, and the text of all twenty-four verses of Audio Example 5.2 is translated in
Appendix B). The pinkuyllu part is the top line of notation, and the vocal line is the bottom.
Where only one note appears in the transcription, the two parts share the pitch. While they never
play exactly in unison as this transcription portrays, I do the transcription this way to show my
assessment of the relationship between the two parts.

Musical Transcription 5.1: Thurpa in five-line staff notation.

(Recorded out of context, in Cusco, Peru, 12 September 2005)1

The form and melodic contour of both the vocal and pinkuyllu parts in Thurpa is
representative of the form and melodic contour of all Kunan Pukllay taki and all the awpa
Pukllay taki that I have been able to hear and record (See Appendix B for transcriptions of all

1
All transcriptions first show the original pitches of the recorded example, which are then transposed for
easier reading in the five-line staff.

90
Kunan Pukllay taki). The women sing the principal melody of the songs in ABAB1 form (B1 is
the aysariykuy), which basically outlines a major triad (do, mi, sol of Western solfege). In the
case of Julianas recording and Musical Transcription 5.1, she sings three pitches that
approximate B-flat, D, and F, which make up the tonic major triad in B-flat major. However, her
tonic pitch is slightly flat, so that the rendered pitch is somewhere between B-flat and A,
resulting in a quality that is somewhat minor-sounding. This same ambiguity in major/minor
quality is present in Audio Example 5.1.
Many areas in the Andes use a similar tritonic mode as a melodic base for songs, and
Dale Olsen suggests that mid-twentieth century recordings by Peruvian musicologists suggest
that the so-called tritonic scale (three notes), is more basic than the pentatonic (Olsen 1980,
408). Songs comprised of three pitches are often associated with ancient Andean ritual such as
animal fertility and marcacin (marking). Peruvian ethnomusicologist Ral Romero explains
that the most frequently occurring pitches in Andean tritonic melodies correspond to those of a
major triad, and only occasionally to a minor triad. Romero adds that this tritonic scale is more
commonly found in marcacin del ganado (animal marking ceremony, often with ear tassels)
and Carnaval songs in the southern Andes of Peru (Romero 2002, 4950), which is the case with
the Qeros Pukllay taki, and alpaca and llama songs (Chapters 47). This tuning system appears
in some of the earliest (mid-twentieth century) recordings that Jos Mara Arguedas made in
Peru, as well as Josafat Rol Pinedas recordings in the Apurimac and Huancavelica areas.2 In
1966 and 1967 German-Peruvian musicologist Rodolfo Holzmann organized the collection and
transcription of a variety of field recordings in the central and southern Andes, many of which
have this scale base (Holzmann 1989, 2141 [1968]). A more recent study is Denise Arnold and
Juan de Dios Yapitas collection of animal songs in the community of Qaqachaka in the area of
Potos, Bolivia, which shows this same descending tritonic melodic mode in many of the songs
(Arnold and Yapita 2001).3 Similarly, Barbara Bradbys research on the cattle marking

2
This information is based on recordings C/86/23/132 Antologia de msica de Huancavalica, C/86/23/124
and C/86/23/125 Antologia de msica de Apurimac (Pineda, from 19602), and C/87/24/242 (Arguedas, recordings
from 19601963), housed in the audiovisual archives of the Instituto de Etnomusicologa de la Pontificia
Universidad Catlica del Per (Lima).
3
Song of Good Luck for the female llama, the female alpaca song, and the female llama mating song are
three examples that show a similar descending tritonic melodic pattern, as heard in the Qeros animal fertility songs
Machu Taki (for the male llama) and Pantilla Tika (for the female llamas and alpacas) (Arnold and Yapita,
2001, pages 234, 258 and 272, respectively).

91
ceremonies in San Diego de Ishua, Ayacucho, Peru, also includes tritonic songs based on a major
triad (Bradby 1987). All of the above-mentioned examples use this scale base in the songs of
many Andean regions, spreading far beyond Qeros.
The interesting feature about Qeros tritonic songs is the complementary relationship
between the sung melody and the pinkuyllu melody. Musical Transcription 5.1 shows Julianas
vocal melody beginning on sol, and then moving between sol and mi, eventually working its way
down to do, which is always the pitch center (the tonic) the women sustain during aysariykuy.
The three pitches Agustn plays are G, F, and D, which are the la, sol, and mi pitches in
relationship to Julianas B-flat major triad base. The pinkuyllu melody begins on sol, just like the
vocal melody, then moves between sol and mi with an occasional leap up to la, and always
settles on sol for the aysariykuy. Therefore, the two parts have the shared pitches of sol and mi in
common, and they sound at an interval of a fifth on the aysariykuy with the voice on do and the
pinkuyllu on sol.
When Pukllay taki are performed out of context, as in Audio Example 5.2, the woman
matches her singing pitch to the pinkuyllu pitch in the relationship outlined above, so that her
aysariykuy is the do to his sol. If the man plays a small pinkuyllu, which is in a high pitch range,
the woman usually sings an octave below; however, the integrity of the pitch relationship is
maintained in the way I describe above.4 In context, the women do not often tune their singing
to many individually-tuned pinkuyllu, and instead they tend to sing in their own comfortable
pitch ranges, as heard in Audio Example 5.1. Also heard in Example 5.1 is the possibility that
some of the women were tuning their voices to one particular pinkuyllu (Excerpt 4, 3:50).
Qeros songs differ from the music of many of their neighboring communities in that the
pinkuyllu and vocal melodies are not the same; rather, the two melodies are similar rhythmically,
but differ enough in pitch structure so that they are complementary. By contrast, I have heard
Pukllay taki sung in the community of Chilca Finaya in the Ausangate region to the south of
Qeros, where the pinkuyllu melody plays the same melody in heterophony to the vocal line. The
same is true in Ancasi, just one valley over from Qeros, and in Qoa Muru near Tinki,
Ocongate.

4
There are a few women I have heard sing who do not follow this relationship, but instead sing the
difference of a fifth from the pinkuyllu melody, so that the pitch she sings on aysariykuy is the same as that of the
mans pinkuyllu. This, however, was not as common as the norm of the woman singing a fifth below the pitch of
the pinkuyllu on aysariykuy.

92
 While the melodies in Qeros songs vary from song to song in subtle ways,5 the
complementary relationship between the womens and mens melodies remains the same for all
songs in the Pukllay taki corpus. Rodolfo Holzmann, who provided amazingly accurate
transcriptions of some of John Cohens earlier Qeros song recordings, failed to see this
relationship. Holzmann transcribed Cohens recordings that were recorded out of context, as the
one I provide above, where the relationship is easier to hear. Holzmann states:
Las escalas instrumentales coinciden raras veces con las vocales.
Asimismo, la tcnica meldica instrumental se desarrolla, por lo
general, separadamente de la vocal.
The instrumental scales rarely coincide with the vocal ones. Also,
the instrumental melodic technique develops, in general, separately
from the vocal one (Holzmann 1986 [1968], 1314, my
translation).

Holzmanns conclusion, like mine upon first hearing in Pukllay taki performed in context, was
probably influenced by the fact that the women and men do not sing/play in close heterophony,
so that the relationship between the two parts is not obvious. His meticulous transcription
(Musical Transcription 5.2, below) of Cohens 1964 recording of the Qeros song Wallata6
(Audio Example 5.3) shows that the woman does indeed sing in a major triad (A, C#, E), and the
pinkuyllu also plays the sol (E) and mi (C#) of this A major triad. In addition, the two parts form
an interval of a fifth on the sustained aysariykuy (m. 10 in the vocal part, m. 15 in the pinkuyllu
part). If he had simply shifted the pinkuyllu part forward to begin with the vocal melody, the
relationship between the two, as I outline above, is apparent.

Audio Example 5.3

5
The subtle variance among song melodies is a common trait of Andean music, which is born out of
communal societies where styles are socialized, versus markedly different styles that evolve in more capitalistic and
individualistic societies.
6
Cohens recording of Wallata that Holzmann transcribed is track 14 of 1991 [1964], Mountain Music of
Peru. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40020.

93
Musical Transcription 5.2. Rodolfo Holzmanns transcription of John Cohens 1964 recording of
Wallata. From: Holzmann, Rodolfo. 1986. Qero: Pueblo y Musica. Lima: Patronato Popular y
Provenir, 2389. This transcription pertains to Audio Example 5.3.

94
 While Holzmanns accurate transcription, and mine above, provide informative and
interesting five-line staff notations of Qeros songs, a deeper and more culturally pertinent point
is present and should be considered: that of the Qeros cosmological perspective, which is
imbedded in the structural relationship between the two melodies. Further analysis shows a
relationship of yanantin between the two melodies, that is, complementary female and male
halves that are in symmetry around a center, or chawpi. I argue that the song structure of Qeros
Pukllay taki is best understood in terms of yanantin as a structuring principle.
To show yanantin as structuring principle, refer to Musical Transcription 5.3 of
Thurpa, which I have reworked in a simplified three-line staff with shading that marks the
warmi, qhari, and chawpi relationships between the two parts. Also refer to Table 4, Yanantin
Examples in Qeros Community and Music. The three lines of the staff maintain intervallic
spacing integrity and mark the songs principal pitches: do, mi, and sol. The up stems represent
the pitches of the qhari (pinkuyllu) melodic line, and the down stems are those of the warmi
(voice) melodic line.

Musical Transcription 5.3:7

Thurpa notated to show yanantin relationship in song structure.

7
This transcription and the similar ones in Appendix B were created by Trevor Harvey.

95
 In the verse section (mm. 13), the voice and pinkuyllu melodies meet and overlap on the
pitches sol and mi. Both parts are nearly exactly the same, with the exception of the leap up to la
by the pinkuyllu in the last beat of measure 2. I call this first section (shaded in purple), the
tinkuy or chawpi, as both the mans and womans parts are meeting (tinkuy) in a center (chawpi)
on the same two pitches. These two pitches are more or less in the musical center of all four
pitches of both parts; that is, sol and mi are the center two pitches between la (exclusively a
mans pitch) and do (exclusively a womans pitch).
Catherine Allens statement about the characteristics of yanantin could be used to
describe this chawpi section of the song: Cosmos, community, household and the individual
[and song structure] are realized through the fusion of opposites, like the warmi and qhari, each
of which contains the other [the shared pitches of sol and mi] (Allen 2002, 179, my insertions in
brackets). This chawpi section, where the pitches are shared and exactly overlap, is the fusion of
opposites, when the two parts are temporarily fused into one.
Allen reminds that [Such] a noncontextual listing of binary oppositions unavoidably
presents as static and absolute what are in actuality fluid and context-dependent relationships
(ibid., 179180). The relationship between the two parts, or binary opposition, is fluid, as both
melodies progress and change. The melodies are not static and absolute; rather, the short
rhythmic values and descending movement in the warmi melody (mm. 35) propel both parts
forward towards a common goal: aysariykuy.
In the refrain (mm. 57), the warmi and qhari parts become clearly established as stable
and separate parts. Here, the melodic lines do not have the same forward movement as in the
chawpi; rather, the pitches are sustained (do in the warmi and sol in the qhari), like the two
halves of yanantin, which have temporarily settled in equilibrium. Even in musical terms,
stability is established: the interval of a perfect fifth is one of the most comfortable and
commonly-occurring intervals of sound in both the natural and musical world. The goal of
aysariykuy for the Qeros, however, is much more than comfortable singing. It has deep
cosmological significance regarding the management and direction of samay, or breath and life
essence through song, which influences well-being (see Chapter 8, subheading Aysariykuy: So
that the Songs Arrive). In this sense, the arrival at aysariykuy, then, is full of intention, in which
both parts, warmi and qhari, work together in equilibrium towards a common goal: the
management and direction of life essence through breath.

96
 The forward melodic motion of both parts in the chawpi, toward the common goal of
aysariykuy, is the dynamic synergy of the two parts joining para avanzar, to advance, in the
words of Jorge Flores Ochoa (pers. com., 7 April, 2007). This advancement is how Phenomena
are conceptualized as male and female and interact with one another in a dialectic fashion to
form a new syntheses [sic], such as new cycles of time and new generations of people, plants,
and animals (Isbell 1978, 11). The dialectic interaction takes place between the shared pitches
of sol and mi in the chawpi section, where both parts are juxtaposed and moving toward
synthesis and reconciliation, which is the stabilization of both parts in the sustained tones and
common intention of aysariykuy. The dialectic can be viewed on a larger scale as well: because
performance is non-stop singing and playing during the all-night sessions of watukuy, the
dialectic is a continuous and interdependent interaction as the song continually starts anew. The
management of samay is continually being shaped and re-shaped (see Chapter 8, subheading
Aysariykuy: So that the Songs Arrive). The music is not static but is an ever-moving and
changing cycle of yanantin.
We can also consider the possible significance of the woman ending low and the man
ending high as another establishment of warmi and qhari. The ending pitches create a low/high
relationship. The lower pitch of do may have warmi associations, like Pacha Mama, valleys, and
the interior world of uhu pacha, and similarly the higher pitch of sol may have subliminal qhari
associations, like the Apu, mountains, and the superior world of hanan pachaq (refer to Table
3.1).
Many aspects of Qeros and Andean life express the yanantin dialectic as described
above. By extension, the dialectic is manifest subliminally in the song structure as well.
Recognizing the various expressions of this structure in other, larger aspects of Qeros (and
Andean) life helps to see its persistence in the smaller aspects, such as song structure. An
obvious form of symmetry with a center in Qeros is the layout of the community structure: the
community center of Hatun Qeros is both halfway between the puna and monte, and the left
(ichiniku/warmi) and right (castilla/qhari) valleys of the community. It serves as center in
practical location (harvest and herding activities) as well as function (political meetings,
community rituals), and it is therefore the place of maintenance and continual re-construction of
new syntheses for community well-being.

97
 Many scholars in Andean studies have noted symmetrical organization around a center in
various aspects of Andean life (Platt 1986; Sallnow 1987; Schaedel 1988; Silverman-Proust
1988; Franquemont, et al. 1992; Gelles 1995). Olivia Harriss work in Potos, Bolivia with the
Aymara Laymi people, shows the dual design of land management patterns and weaving designs
as having equidistance from a center, with the position of the center as contextually defined by
what is on either side (Harris 2000). Harris summarizes: The aesthetic principles underlying the
organisation of space in these textiles offer a striking similarity to the pattern of access to land
and different ecological resources among Northern Potos ayllus, one which finds echoes in some
pre-Spanish political structures of the Aymara region (ibid., 104).
Similarly, Barbara Bradby proposes that the sequence of days in festivals in San Diego de
Ishua, Ayacucho, Peru achieves symmetry around a center, drawing analogies between the
center-oriented vertical land management and structure of the festival cycle (Bradby 1987, 201
2). Bradby points out that songs in a tritonic scale are used in the peak days (center days) of a
nine-day festival cycle. She posits: The tritonic emerges as a scale that is definitely associated
with ancient Andean ritual, but as one that is used to interrupt the formal proceedings with their
predominant pentatonic sounds, and to recuperate local music in the gaps at central points of the
fiestas (ibid., 214).
Likewise, we see this same symmetrical organization around a center in Qeros weavings,
as seen in Figures 5.1 and 5.2, which show typical Qeros weaving patterns in a womans lliklla
(shawl). Figure 5.1 shows combinations of rising (lluqsiy) and setting (haykuy) suns (inti). The
diamond shapes are whole suns that are divided in half to show the rising and setting aspects.
The half with the darker rays (black and maroon), symbolizes the setting sun (haykuy inti), which
is warmi, as night is female. Likewise, the half with the lighter extending rays (pink and orange),
represents the rising sun (lluqsiy inti), and is qhari, as day is male. Yet the complete diamond
shape in the center of each half is the chawpi section where female and male meet and together
form one unit: the entire sun. In this way, female and male elements are represented visually in a
central overlap (warmi conjoined with qhari; elements of day in night [dusk], and night in day
[dawn]). The symmetrical, well-defined rising and setting aspects extend on either side of the
central overlap.

98
 Figure 5.1. Yanantin is woven in the Figure 5.2. Yanantin is woven in the opposing
inti lluqsiy-haykuy design in a weaving. chunchu design. The red chunchu on the left is
warmi, and the blue on the right is qhari.

Likewise, Figure 5.2 shows the emblematic Qeros chunchu design that represents
Amazonian inhabitants. The heads of two chunchu meet in the center, and their plumage/body8
extends out in opposite directions from this center, resulting in a mirror image.9 Again, the
warmi and qhari halves mirror the chunchu design in the center, with symmetrical, well-defined
extensions on either side of the center. 10 This visual representation, then, has its complement in
musical representation. There is a chawpi where both warmi and qhari connect and interact: the
diamond sun and conjoined heads of the chunchu in the weaving patterns/the pitches of sol and
mi in the songs. Similarly, there is symmetrical, well-defined warmi/qhari halves that emerge in
equidistance from that center: the sun rays of the inti and plumage of the chunchu extend from a
shared center, just like the pitches of sol and do are sustained on aysariykuy.11
While the medium of weaving is conducive to the creation of halves that are equal, it is
also common for halves to be unequal, which I believe is the case with the two melodies. Tom
Cummins states in his studies of pairs of qeros: Although they are made in pairs, there is a

8
I have heard this described as both feathers and the body.
9
Gail Silverman concludes from her research on the chunchu pallay that this figure represents Incar from
the Qeros origin myth (Silverman 1994, 113137).
10
For comprehensive sources on Qeros weaving designs, see Cohen and Rowe 2002, and Silverman 1994.
11
In addition, there is yanantin within yanantin in the chunchu weaving. Besides each individual chunchu
containing its female and male half, the blue-colored chunchu is qhari in relationship to the red warmi one. While
usually the cooler colors (blues, greens) are associated with qhari and the warmer (reds, pinks) with warmi, this can
change according to context. When red and pink are together, pink becomes qhari to the red warmi. This
information was told to me by two adolescent girl weavers, and later confirmed by their mother.

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slight difference in size, such that one is Hanan and one Hurin. The individuality of each vessel
is mitigated by their being mirror images of each other. This concept of mirror image, part of
moiety competition and reconciliation, is called yanantin (Cummins 2002, 260). The vocal and
pinkuyllu melodies mirror one another because they have similar melodic lines and the same
rhythm. However, I consider the womans melody to be the principal one (hanan) because she
sings the text of the song and the tritonic scale of her melody is the one most ubiquitously found
in other Andean regions, giving it an organizational structure common to much Andean music in
general. Thus, if warmi has the main melody (hanan), with pinkuyllu accompaniment (hurin), the
individuality of both parts is mitigated by their being mirror images of each other. The
individuality of both parts is also mitigated when they join and create a balance in the
sustained aysariykuy, which are both a musical balance (the sustained fifth) and a cosmological
one (when samay is infused into both parts).
Similarly, the pusunis the Qeros authorities use during Pukllay are also unequal halves
of yanantin, as they are organized in pairs of unequal conch shells. Hilrio Machacca Apasa first
told me about the warmi/qhari aspect of paired pusunis, where the warmi conch is called qompo
(round, spherical smooth), and the qhari is called chacha (undulated, with crests) (pers. com., 4
September 2006). The qompo pusunis has physical characteristics that are more female, such as
a round, shiny, and smooth surface. Similarly, the chacha is more male, and is said to be
waqrachayoq,with horns, because the many protruding bumps on the shell are reminiscent
of bulls or rams horns or the cocks crest. The qompo (warmi) voice is described as au
(thin), while the chacha (qhari) pusunis is described as rakhu (thick), as well as kallpasapa
kunkayoq (with a strong, vigorous voice). Any alcalde, along with his team of regidores and
alwasires, will want qompo/chacha pusunis as components of his cargo, for balance. Hilrio
summarized the combination of both pusunis as orqo chinantin (male together with the
female), which is akin to Agustns insistence of warmintin qharintinpuni!, woman/man
inclusively, always! (pers. com., 22 May 2006) (see Chapter 3, subheading Complementary
Duality: Yanantin).
Another interpretation of Qeros song structure is to consider that a song, in its yanantin
whole, has four pitches. To illustrate, I often refer the holistic aspect of yanantin in Qeros song
as 3 + 3 = 4. That is to say, combining the tritonic warmi melody with the tritonic qhari melody,
considering that both parts share two pitches, yields a total of four pitches in the yanantin whole.

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This is the meaning of the ntin suffix: together as one. This does not contradict or discount the
idea that I believe the women sing the principal melody that is based on the common Andean
scale of a descending major triad, while the men play the complementary support. In this way,
like the pusunis, the female and male parts are unequal, but together make up the two necessary,
complementary halves that comprise the yanantin whole. Cummins statement summarizes this
philosophy: Ontologically, an object, such as a quero that manifests yanantin, exists as a pair
and is not sufficient in and of itself. Its telos is as a pair (Cummins 2002, 260, my emphasis).
The telos of Pukllay taki song production is both parts together as a pair, with their differing
yet complementary and inseparable yanantin aspects.
By way of anecdote, I also illustrate the varying perceptions one can have regarding
Qeros songs, even after significant immersion in Qeros culture and hearing the music
repetitively in context. I devised the idea of 3 + 3 = 4 as the result of a conversation I held with
John Cohen on our one and only trip to Qeros together in August, 2005. We had numerous
discussions about the Qeros melodies and our understandings of them. He would talk about the
Qeros four-note tunes, and in response I said that both the vocal and pinkuyllu melodies had
three pitches each, which I then sang and played for him in demonstration. He paused, smiled,
and said that he had been hearing the songs in their perceived gestalt (pers. com., 16 August
2005). With the perspectives outlined in this chapter, both points of view are valid.
My hypothesis that yanantin is imbedded in the structure of Qeros Pukllay taki shows
the Qeros perception and worldview as it subliminally expresses itself in musical structure.
This idea is akin to anthropologist David Gusss work with the Yekuana of Venezuela, when he
states, In a society such as the Yekuanas, it was possible to see the entire culture refracted
through a single object or deed (Guss 1989, 4). He saw the Yekuana worldview as it was
replicated in their basket-weaving designs, just as I see yanantin represented in song structure.
Likewise, Catherine Allen comments on the pervasiveness of dual structure in Andean society:
These oppositions bear witness to a pervasive Andean tendency to think and behave in terms of
dialectical oppositions ingrained as habitus at the level of mundane and semiautomatic
activities like farming, cooking, and coca-chewingto which I add music-making (Allen 2002,
179).
Allen is referring to habitus as defined by Pierre Bourdieu, who explains the assimilation
of structure through daily participation, silent observation, and interactions with relatives

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which leads to the em-bodying of the structures of the world (Bourdieu 1977, 89). Indeed, one
of my lengthier discussions about yanantin was with an eleven-year-old girl, who was able to
articulate chawpi, warmi, and qhari in her own weaving, which she had learned through
participation, observation, and interaction with family.12
While the young girl, and many others in Qeros, articulate yanantin in weaving designs,
the musical roles of women and men in Pukllay, paired pusunis, and the spatial organization of
their community, to name a few of many examples, the Qeros do not name yanantin in song
structure. Indeed, they do not talk about music in any of the technical musical terms that I have
employed, such as tritonic melody, melodic contour, form, and rhythm. Yet it makes sense that
because complementary duality is internalized and expressed in so many aspects of their lives,
yanantin in song structure is simply an example of cultural insistence, refraction, and habitus.

Social and Cosmic Reproduction Elements in Pukllay

The many musical aspects of Pukllay contribute on some level to the renewal of social
ties, the reinforcement of womens and mens social roles, and the reproduction of the Qeros
cosmological worldview. Renewal and reproduction are the predominant themes during Pukllay.
Nature exhibits regeneration in the blooming of flowers, and birthing of llamas and alpacas. A
few young people who have come of age (sipas and waynayoung women and men of
partnering age) who did not sing or play at the previous years Pukllay return, add youthful
freshness to the community attendance. The fact that the previous years song gives way to a
newly chosen one on the first day of the Pukllay cycle is the sonic symbol of renewal.
The singing of any new song is a recycling and reaffirmation of what is important and
beautiful to the Qeros, as people articulate affection for the topic, communally and poetically,
through song. The repeated verses are both personalized expression (for example, personal
choice of verses that are sung at any time, in a variety of pitch levels, often with individual
places named in the text), within the act of simultaneous, communal singing, so that singing and

12
Ed and Christine Franquemont and Billie Jean Isbell propose that there is a dynamic relationship between
weaving and cognitive structure, that is, in the act of weaving, the structure and understanding of yanantin comes to
the fore (Franquemont, et al., 1992, 49). In this article, the Franquemonts and Isbell drew on Michel de Certeaus
philosophy of acquisition of knowledge. De Certeau states, This genesis [of knowledge] implies an
interiorization of structures and an exteriorization of achievements--what Bourdieu calls habitus (de Certeau 1984,
57).

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playing recharges both the individual and the community. The text personifies the topic,
addressing it as a living, interactive, and feeling entity. The text is therefore a sung expression of
the Qeros belief in animu, and as such is the reproduction of a basic cosmological tenet through
singing.
Various stages of the festival structure restate and reaffirm social ties, on both small and
large community levels. The nine-day celebration expands and contracts among various group
associations, beginning with the family level when individual families re-create bonds within the
family, and with their animals and spirit world (Phallchay animal fertility ritual, topic of Chapter
6). The celebration then expands to the local area level, when the regidores and alwasires visit
every home in their anexo and announce the chosen song through singing. And finally, it
expands to the full-blown community level in Hatun Qeros, when the whole community sings
and plays simultaneously. In this way, through the musical action of watukuy, the Qeros re-
connect with and re-establish bonds with people on the small scale intimate family level, on the
local anexo level, and the large-scale communal level.
People are able to join whichever group they like on the communal level, thereby
reconnecting with people they have perhaps not seen in a while. The actual physical movement
of the visiting rounds is a recycling and re-energizing of social bonds, as groups often bump
into one another (aurally and physically) in the dark night going from home to home. In
addition, Pukllay is the only celebration when family members who have moved out of Qeros
(to Cusco, Paucartambo, or Ocongate, for example) return to participate, so that the entire
community, including the migrants, is reunited. This recementing of bonds no doubt impacts the
cohesive quality of many activities that involve interactions on any one of those levels
(individual, family, anexo, communal), such as herding, agricultural planting, weeding and
harvesting, child-rearing, work faenas, and community decisions and actions.
The Pukllay cycle reestablishes, hierarchical structures and reinforces reciprocal
obligations within the community. The authorities who have received their cargos at Chayampuy
two weeks prior to Pukllay, enforce these new roles first in their watukuy visits in the anexos,
which are then restated in communal celebration. The act of blowing the pusunis is a continual
sonic reminder of their status. Every home fulfills its ayni obligations to the authorities, when
people necessarily provide aqha and coca to the regidores and alwasires during the watukuy
visits in the anexos. Similarly, when the festival moves to Hatun Qeros, the community together

103
fulfills obligations both to the authorities and to one another through gift and labor contributions.
Gifts are in-kind, such as meat, potatoes, coca, and alcohol; shared labor includes making aqha,
preparing food, and serving and cleaning during community feasts. In this way, the people
demonstrate and reinforce mutual reciprocity in a highly concentrated and intense way during
Pukllay, recementing the web of community ayni obligations in general, which then continues
throughout the remainder of the year in a less concentrated, more daily and, importantly,
functional form.
The expression of specific musical roles during watukuy reaffirms womens and mens
gender and social roles in the community. Their physical formation during watukuy shows the
separate, yet complementary, relationship they have to one another in the operation of
community affairs: the women are together in one arc-line around the edge of the room, and the
men are together, in the center of the room. Both groups are clearly separate, yet together. The
roles in the community are delineated as such: the women are the herders and caretakers of the
home and children; the men are the agriculturalists, and they run community politics and
maintenance projects. Both have separate yet interconnected roles that contribute to overall
Qeros livelihood.
The womens and mens physical traveling both within the community and to areas
outside of Qeros is also embodied during watukuy. In musical performance, the women stand
still and composed in their arc-line; they do not dance at all, and they only move in order to talk
or receive an offering of food or aqha. Their composure reflects how they stay close to their
home areas in daily life. Even though the women walk as they herd the animals, they herd only
in the nearby pasture areas, and normally they do not travel long distances except during the corn
harvest; even then they are still within Qeros territory. Women sometimes travel to areas outside
of Qeros, but not as often as the men, and never alone. The men, by contrast, are in constant
movement during watukuy as they do a vigorous and continual stomping dance while playing the
pinkuyllu, moving their bodies to and fro. They also change positions amongst themselves in
their center space in the room. This mirrors how they continually move up and down the vertical
area of Qeros, even in one day, from the highest potato fields in the puna to the low cornfields
in the monte, tending to the crops, or attending a community meeting or work faena. The men
travel regularly to areas outside Qeros, such as the nearby markets of Tinki, Ocongate, and
Paucartambo, or the large urban city of Cusco.

104
 In addition, the general disposition of individuality and assertiveness on the part of the
women and men is reproduced musically. The women are less individualistic than the men in
their music-making. While text choice and timing of individual singing reflect individuality, the
womens song performance embodies many unifying characteristics: the women are poised in
one singing line; subgroups often sing together and sustain aysariykuy together before starting
the song anew; the pitch centers they sing in are the same or related; and tempo is uniform.
During any given watukuy, the women are either singing, silently resting, or consuming food or
drink that the host of the home has served. In community life the women also express less public
individuality than the men. They are not as vocal as the men when both are present in group
activities. The women do not attend community assembly meetings, and therefore have little to
no say in community decisions.
By contrast, the men express individual assertiveness musically, in that they tune and
play their pinkuyllu completely separately and independently, yet simultaneously. In addition,
during any given watukuy the men exuberantly talk, yell, or even fight; that is to say, they are
more extroverted and individually expressive than the women. In community life, the men run
the monthly assembly meetings where they express (often heatedly) individual thoughts and
feelings that lead to decisions for community politics and work projects.
In sum, women and men re-create the fundamental characteristics of their respective
genders and their social relationships within the community through distinct musical roles in
singing and playing, physical positions and movement, and even melodic tuning. As in Agustns
words, warmintin qharintinpuni!, woman/man inclusively, always!, the warmi and qhari
aspects of musical production must always be present; the women sing, the men play the
pinkuyllu, and the very structure of the song, with its imbedded yanantin that is repeated for days
and nights on end. This results in a continual recycling and reiteration of the yanantin
relationship between the women and men. In this way, musical production in Pukllay is a type of
aural chawpi, where the sonic energies of the warmi and qhari aspects continually overlap, such
that when Pukllay is over, the celebration has reaffirmed the established relationship between the
two and reinforced equilibrium.
Gary Urton, borrowing the theoretical stance of cultural insistence as put forth in Robert
and Marcia Aschers work on the khipu before him, says . . . a civilization defines its essential
character through the pervasive and repetitious rehearsal or reproduction of its core values and

105
ways of doing and organizing things (Urton 2003, 44). Musical production (singing, pinkuyllu
playing, and the physicality of both) in Pukllay is the repetitious rehearsal or reproduction of
the Qeros core cosmological perception and worldview of yanantin, from the minute level of
melodic relationship, to the balance and necessity of simultaneous womens singing and mens
pinkuyllu playing. On a larger level, when they meet, sing, and play, the communitys chawpi
reflects the unification of the two sides of Qeros physical and social yanantin: ichiniku (left
valleys) and castilla (right valleys).
Probably the most important aspect to consider about Qeros musical production in
Pukllay is the overall gestalt in the sense of a configuration, pattern, or organized field having
specific properties that cannot be derived from the summation of its component parts, a unified
whole (Websters Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary1996, 802). Steven Feld states that the
sound of the Kaluli peoples gisalo performance has a specific gestalt when performed in a
longhouse packed with people and filled with sound (Feld 1982, 179). The same is true of the
overall gestalt of Qeros Pukllay taki performance, in that it takes on a specific feel and sound
aesthetic when large groups of drunken people sing in a crowded, dark atmosphere. Analyses,
descriptions, dissections, and understandings of individual parts render just that; they are the
component parts. But the unified whole, and the effects of that unified whole, are the purpose
of Pukllay. The overall synthesis of these combined parts of social and cosmic reproduction and,
particularly, the experience of it, hold meaning for the people. Comparing the word yanantin
with gestalt is not far-fetched, because, as we have seen, the individual parts never stand or
operate on their own. The overall gestalt and effectiveness of Pukllay can be gauged by how the
people feel, and what remains with them afterward (which I believe I experienced in my
participation, as expressed in my fieldnotes excerpt).
In my three times at Pukllay (once as observer, twice as singing participant), I have felt the
Qeros release to be extreme. Certainly all have fun, as the definition of the word pukllay (to
play) implies. The two times I stood with the women and sang, the exuberance of the men
always amazed me. While stomping, they bump into each other inadvertently, often hug, yell,
tease, and sometimes even fight verbally and push each other. They allow themselves to be fully
drunk, some completely soaked in aqha that has spilled down the front of their ponchos. In this
maximal inebriation they fully play and sing all through the night, for nights on end. This full
drunkenness is a desired state for social cohesion and transformation (see more on ceremonial

106
drinking in Chapter 6, subheading Phallchay Ethnography and Introduction to Grief-Singing). I
have been told numerous times that we sing better when we are drunk, and I interpret this
better to be partially based on the amount of release and abandon with which they sing and the
aesthetic that creates, versus any kind of musical technique. In a word, the aesthetic is the feeling
behind it.
While the women do not dance and move like the men do, I believe the women fully
release their emotions through their singing. The full-bodied style of singing and full expulsion
of air during aysariykuy are both physical and emotional discharges. When I walked with the
women between homes during watukuy, I experienced them to be ecstatic, with extroverted
teasing, giggling, and pushing. This running, giggling, drinking, and full singing is a welcomed
and necessary break from their daily life of cooking, and regularly-occurring hardships, such as
herding in inclement weather, death of animals, and illness of their children. My own experience
participating in Pukllay I believe lends insight into the experience Qeros may have: The wide
overlapping of sounds was invigorating, exhilarating, and even transporting I would sayin a
wonderful way (fieldnotes excerpt, 1 March 2006).
In anthropologist Victor Turners model, this liminal festival space allows for a range of
emotions to be expressed, from anger and fighting, to talking and crying, and joyful embrace.
This extreme communal sharing during incessant music-making contributes to feelings of
communitas, or the creation of a sense of equality, comradeship, and love, all of which serve to
reenergize the community (Turner 1969, 102108). In this regard, I remember my compadres,
Dominga Paucar Chura and Martin Machacca Flores of Qocha Moqo, describing their
experience of Pukllay: We remember it all year long and weave new clothes for it. Closer to
Pukllay we sometimes work for nights with no sleep. We celebrate the way our grandfathers
used to. It makes us very happy" (pers. com., 2 February, 2005). The Qeros esteem Pukllay as
the festival of the year, and the memory and residual effects of it are long-lasting.
If Pukllay is the annual celebration that contributes to the reconnection and reenergizing
of social ties among the people in the entire community, then Phallchay, on the opening day of
Pukllay, serves to renew connections between people and their animals. Part III, Chapters 6 and
7, focus on the two pivotal animal fertility rituals of the year, Phallchay and Machu Fistay
respectively. These chapters explore social and cosmic reproduction in Qeros music-making

107
beyond that of the human realm, to include renewal of relationship among people, their animals,
and the spirit powers that determine the quality of all aspects of life.

108
 PART III
ANIMAL FERTILITY RITUALS:
RENEWAL OF VITAL RELATIONSHIP AMONG
PEOPLE, ANIMALS, AND SPIRIT POWERS

109
 CHAPTER 6
PHALLCHAY: FEMALE LLAMAS AND ALPACAS

Why do you make offerings for the Apu?

So that the llamas and alpacas have a good life.
And if you dont?
The fox and puma will eat them. Also so they will have plenty of offspring.
So that the Apu is happy and not angry.
Raymundo Quispe Chura, 18 August 2005. 1

Introduction to Llama and Alpaca Animal Fertility Rituals

The vital importance of the domesticated livestock for the Qeros, particularly llamas and
alpacas, cannot be underestimated. Healthy, plentiful herds directly determine the quality of life
of the people. The principal family rituals in Qeros are therefore the ones dedicated to the health
and increase of the animals, which is also true in many traditional Andean communities.2
Animal fertility rituals in Qeros have one common goal: the balance and renewal of ayni
relationships with the Spirit Powers, so that the powers will reciprocate with strong herds. These
rituals are the place where the peoples music-making takes on a specific and directed intention,
and the songs are believed to have affecting impact. Song is one of the many agents the Qeros
use to implore and reach the spirit powers; song text expresses the significance and meaning of
the animals for the people and is full of metaphor about the animals, procreation, family lineage,
and the spirit powers; and, finally, songs serve as connectors among the people, the animals, and
the supernatural powers (this is elaborated on in Chapter 8, after the fertility ritual ethnographies
of Chapters 6 and 7).
Chapters 6 and 7 are complementary to one another; the former is about Phallchay, the
animal fertility ritual for the female llamas and alpacas, and the latter about Machu Fistay, the
ritual for the male llamas. This chapter details the importance of llamas and alpacas to Qeros

1
Raymundo is a friend of John Cohens, and can be seen in Cohens photographs since 1956. In Hidden
Threads of Peru (2002) we see Raymundo as a little boy on page 20, and a young man on page 34. In 2005 I was
witness to a touching reunion between both older men, who have now known each other for over fifty years.
2
For descriptions of animal fertility rituals in other parts of the Peruvian, Bolivian, and Chilean Andes, see
Abercrombie 1998; Allen 2002; Arnold and de Dios Yapita 1998 and 2001; Bastien 1978; Bolin 1998; Dransart
1997; Flores Ochoa 1977, 1979, and 1988; Gow 1976; Isbell 1978; Mamani 1990; Stobart 2006; Tomoeda 1996;
and Webster 1972.

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daily life, which is followed by an ethnography of Phallchay 2005, to include explanations of the
offerings and symbols associated with animal fertility rituals. This ethnography also includes a
description of my first witnessing of the expression of grief and loss through singing the fertility
song in ritual (which I call grief-singing). The ethnography here (and in Chapter 7) serves as
description to lay the ground elements for further analysis and explanation of grief-singing in
Chapter 8, and its associations with social renewal in Chapter 9. The chapter ends with two
versions of Pantilla Tika (Lovely Pink Flower), the Phallchay fertility song; the first
presents and explains commonly-sung verses, and the second version is a presentation of grief-
singing in the same song.
Phallchay and Machu Fistay occur during the two axes of the Andean yearly cycle, the
peak of the rainy and dry seasons, when Pacha Mama is the most open (Isbell 1978, 155). These
times of year are the most powerful, and even dangerous, when vapor escapes from the inner
earth to cause disease and death as Isbell points out (ibid., 202). This is consistent with
information that the chronicler Guamn Poma de Ayala provides, ca. 1615 (ibid., 206). My
Qeros compadre, Juan Quispe Calcina, told me this is the time when Pacha Mama reawakens,
and she and the Apu are the hungriest and need to be fed offering after offering (pers. com., 15
August 2007).
Many Qeros have told me that the rainy season is the female time of year, due to the
constant rain and abundance of water all around. Francisco Quispe Machacca informed me it is
the time of fertility, when the mother alpacas are having many children (pers. com., 23 August
2008). Francisco said the season of the dry winds (August) is qhari; however, Juans brother
Luis described the rainy season as the male time of year because it is full of storms and rain, and
the dry season as the female time of year because it is calmer and easier to withstand.3 Luis
expanded on this idea to say that the ritual for the female animals (Phallchay), therefore, takes
place during the qhari time of year; the ritual for the male animals (Machu Fistay) occurs during
the warmi time of year. In this way there are warmi elements within the qhari, and vice versa,
which is good for fertility and procreation. In Luis words, he said this combination of warmi and

3
Luis Quispe Calcina told me a story about a condor and a fox in order to illustrate his point about
female/male aspects of the seasons. The condor and fox were in debate and competition about who could better
withstand the rain. On the morning following an all-night storm, the fox (warmi element) was found nearly dead,
and the condor (qhari element) was still strong. He clarified that this male strength is associated with storms,
lightning, and thunder (pers. com., 23 August 2008).

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qhari together is maytuy kananpaq, so there will be mating (ibid.). In Luis explanation,
both fertility rituals are a kind of mixing and representation of chawpi where female and male
ritual and seasonal elements are present. Catherine Allen, in her research in Sonqo, Paucartambo,
informs that the wet season is warmi, by listing female saints that are celebrated during this
season as an expression of the female element, and conversely the male saints are celebrated
during the dry, male season (Allen 2002, 153). Luis statement appears to contradict with
Franciscos (a common scenario I often encountered in my research), but I believe the important
point is, as Allen states, in Andean relativistic thought, nothing and no one is absolutely male or
female (ibid.). The overall concept of importance and relevancy is that these two seasons are
pivotal axes and powerful times of energetic movement; they are times of the year when the
spirit powers are aroused, vulnerable, and the most hungry, and need to be propitiated and fed
abundantly for protection and continuation of the herds.
The Qeros way of life has traditionally been one of transhumance, with lifestyle and
rhythms of the agricultural cycles synchronized around the seasonal movement of livestock.
The Qeros musical repertoire therefore contains songs for every domestic animal type
(female/male llamas, alpacas, sheep, and cows).4 Interestingly, there are no planting or
harvesting songs in Qeros, like there are in many other Andean communities, with the exception
of Sara Taki, Corn Song, for the corn harvest. In conversations with some Qeros, they told
me they do not remember ever having any planting or harvesting songs, other than this one. Thus
the Qeros repertoire concentrates on what is of primary importance to themthe domestic
livestock which has been the case in Qeros, and for many Andean pastoralists, for centuries.

Daily Herding: The Importance of Llamas and Alpacas

John Murras ethnohistorical research has revealed the economic, political, ceremonial,
and practical importance of llamas (Lama glama) and alpacas (Lama pacos) under the Inca state
and in post-conquest times (fifteenth to sixteenth centuries; Murra 1965).5 In Incan times, as in
Qeros today, being herdless was economically devastating. For the Incas, cloth made from

4
Other sources that address individual songs for animal types are Arnold and de Dios Yapita 1998 and
2001; Bauman 1981; and Mamani 1990.
5
For a summary of the economic importance of llamas and alpacas throughout Inca, colonial, republican
and modern history in the Bolivian Andes, see Arnold and de Dios Yapita 2001, 1422.

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animal fiber was essential for exchange in a society without money, which functioned on
institutionalized and obligatory reciprocity.6 Like the Incas, the Qeros had also depended on
their animals as a system of exchange, trading their animals and animal products. In the past few
decades, however, ties to the cash economy began to usurp exchange.
Today, the Qeros raise both individual family herds and annex herds (a herd owned
communally by individual anexos),7 and the sale of llamas, alpacas, their pelts, fiber, and
weavings made from dyed fiber is a basic source of cash income for them. A significant example
in Qeros history of the importance of marketability of these animals was the income procured
from the sale of llamas and alpacas; they then used these proceeds to pay off a government loan.
This act ensured the Qeros as legal owners of their territory in 1965.8
The list of products gleaned from llamas and alpacas for daily livelihood is extensive.
Llamas have traditionally been the beasts of burden in the Andes due to their ability to negotiate
steep passes, difficult terrain, and narrow slippery trails, stepping with their delicate cloven
hooves in places Spanish horses could not go. Throughout the history of Andean trade the
animals carried lowland products long distances from the jungle and coast, up to the high puna,
and vice versa. Today the Qeros depend on their llamas for descent into the monte on slippery,
muddy trails and then to carry the annual corn harvest back up to their highland homes.
Charki (salted fresh or dried llama or alpaca meat), and particularly qhunqe (unsalted
alpaca meat) provide protein staples in Qeros.9 The people have traditionally spun, dyed, and
converted alpaca fiber into essential clothing. Up until the last few decades, they have used
alpaca fiber to make clothing, some of which is slowly being replaced by purchased factory
clothes. The main pieces that are woven out of alpaca or alpaca/sheep mix today are the lliklla
(shawl), pollera (skirt), unku (tunic), and poncho. Formerly, llama leather was used for sandal-
making, which today has been replaced by market-purchased rubber sandals.

6
Animal fiber was also used to make the principal recording and communication systems that kept the
empire running: the khipu, a series of knotted cords used for record-keeping, along with toqapu, woven patterns in
clothing that may have been another recording system. Record-keeping on khipu was used in Qeros as recently as
mid-twentieth century, mostly as a system of accounting for the hacendado (see Nez del Prado 2005c [ca.1958]).
7
See Murra 1965, for history about various categories of hierarchical herds under the Inca state.
8
Personal communication with Toms Cevallos Valencia, anthropologist and representative of
Comunidades campesinas y nativas (C.C.N.), Department of Agriculture, Cusco, Peru, 18 December 2007.
9
Because of this products success, the word charki has survived and entered into English as jerky.

113
 In the past, the Qeros used llama leather for door and roof-beam binding, and they used
tallow from llama tissue for lamps until the recent introduction of kerosene. Today, they still use
hides for bedding and as floor covers for sitting. Llama fat is used in ritual offerings, and llama,
alpaca, and vicua fetuses are prized ingredients in offerings. From animals bones they make
weaving picks and farming implements; llama and alpaca dung is an indispensable fertilizer and
a combustible fuel for cooking. 10
Some Qeros have told me of their belief in the common Andean myth that tells how the
Apu give birth to the llamas and alpacas through water sources, such as springs, lakes, and rivers.
Others have said, That is what our abuelos (grandfathers/ancestors) believed in the past,
indicating a change in adherence to this myth. Jorge Flores Ochoa has collected various versions
of this same myth in the southern Andes (Flores Ochoa 1988), telling the power of water sources
that give birth to the animals, so that the animals are connectors (chawpi) between the interior
feminine world of Pacha Mama and the exterior world of the Apu. This is why the wallata and
other water birds are associated with the llamas and alpacas (see Chapter 4, subheading Kunan
Pukllay Taki: Topics of Currently Active Carnival Songs), and in rituals, the llamas and alpacas
become birds (Flores Ochoa, pers. com., 7 January 2006). Marcelino Qapa Huamn told me that
if a person sees domestic animals like llamas, alpacas, sheep, and cows walking out of rivers and
lakes, that person is very lucky, and this luck will make the herds multiply (pers. com., 15
August 2006).
Flores Ochoa also writes about the Andean perception that wild animals are to the Apu as
domesticated animals are to man: [wild animals are] considered the property of the Apu, the
local and regional deities (Flores Ochoa 1986, 138). He continues, Thus the puma, deer, and
fox may be wild animals, but they act as the cats, llamas, and dogs of the gods, for whom they
carry out the same roles as domestic animals do for men (ibid.). Oscar Nez del Prado
experienced this in Qeros in 1955, when he reported, The Apu have their cattle which are the
vicua, deer, and condors (Nez del Prado 2005b [ca. 1958], 86, my translation). John Cohen
was also informed of this relationship (of the wild animals belonging to the Apu) while talking to
his old Qeros friend, Raymundo Quispe Chura, who mentioned the condor, deer, vicua, and
kiyu as the animals belonging to the Apu (pers. com., 16 February 2009). This belief in wild

10
Arnold and de Dios Yapita state, It is unlikely that agriculture would have developed in the Andes
without llama herds to supply the dung required as fertilizer (Arnold and de Dios Yapita, 2001, 17).

114
animals as domesticates of the Apu shows why the Apu must be placated in animal fertility ritual:
if, for example, a puma or fox has killed a baby llama, then ultimately the Apu has killed it, as
the puma and fox represent and belong to the Apu.
Because of all of the above, llamas and alpacas still hold important practical and
mythological roles in the lives of the Qeros today, as they have for many generations of Andean
peoples. The daily routine of the Qeroshow and where they live, work, and interact
intertwines intimately and intricately with their llamas and alpacas. The amount of time one
spends with her/his herd on a daily basis inevitably leads to feelings of strong attachment and
fondness for their herds.
The average Qeros family herd totals somewhere between fifty to one-hundred llamas
and alpacas, and the women herd both animal types together. Women are the principal herders.
On a typical day, the wife wakes first, just before dawn, and rekindles the embers of llama and
alpaca dung in the previous nights fire. On the clay stove she cooks the first meal of the day for
her family, which is usually a thick potato soup, or just boiled potatoes. Somewhere around 7:00-
8:00 a.m. she leaves the home, taking the younger children and babies with her herding to the
grasses at the top end of the valleys high above their homes.11 It is common to see a young
mother walking behind the large llama and alpaca herd with her children, as she carries a baby in
a cloth bundle tied on her back, shouting and whistling to the animals to keep them moving up
the valley. Simultaneously, the father leaves to do tasks such as planting, harvesting, tending to
potato crops, or going to a faena in areas lower down. He may also leave for a nearby urban area
for a few days, or even weeks. As the children mature and gain independence as young as seven
or eight years old, they may tend the animals on their own, freeing their mother for weaving and
caring for infants. The women and children spend all day, every day, with their animals in the
high, craggy and cliffy areas where the better grasses are, come cold rain, snow, or searing sun.
They often fill the hours weaving and occasionally singing.
After a full day herding, the women and children return at sundown, the herds of several
families dotting the landscape in slow descent. The men make their way back up valley from
their work below, often arriving home after dark. The women start up the embers again to make

11
The llamas, and particularly the alpacas live off types of dwarf rush (waylla) that grow in dense cushions
close to the ground. These rushes (Distichia muscoides and Plantago rigida) provide essential vitamins, and they
keep the incisors small for efficient mastication. These particular plants grow in abundance in Qeros, a reason for
settlement in these high, moist valleys (Webster 1983, 120).

115
the evening meal for the family; the next day the cycle begins again. Occasionally men help out
in the herding, but not as a regular routine.
The people, particularly the women, inevitably develop close relationships with their
animals as a result of spending all day, every day, with them. The children grow up with these
herds, and experience the births, deaths, increases, and decreases of them. Not only do they know
their own animals intimately, but they also recognize their neighbors animals as well,
recognizing the same women, children, and herds of one anexo that come and go every day in
the high pastures of their corresponding valley. One occasion impressed me for this keen
recognition the Qeros have of other families animals. In getting a late start down the trail to the
monte for the corn harvest, the small group I was walking with nearly collided with the
continuous trains of families and llamas that were making their way back up to Hatun Qeros, the
llamas laden with corn. We had no room to walk on the narrow trail for fear of upsetting the
ascending llamas, so we were forced to wait for about two hours in a small depression in the
greenery below the trail, where we simply just watched the hundreds of llamas go by.12 The
owners of a group of llamas always pulled up the rear, so that the twenty or so strong male
llamas with their cargos of corn came into view first. I was amazed to discover that the Qeros
compadres I was waiting with in the greenery below the trail were able to name the owners of all
herds merely by recognizing their animals, since the owners only came into sight at the end. A
new lead llama would approach, and someone in our group would excitedly announce, Oh, here
comes Isidros family, Now Santos is coming, and so forth. This skill comes from the many
days, weeks, and years of interacting in the pastures and on the trails with many families and
their animals.
Flores Ochoa relates a story about peoples close connection to animals in the opening of
his article on classification of South American camelids, which is worth quoting at length:
In conversation with a herder from the Andean altiplano, I asked if he would be
able to recognize any one of his alpacas and llamas wherever he saw them. He
said he would, and when I pressed him as to his method, he asked, Can you
recognize your children when you see them, even far from home? I said, yes,
but I havent got three hundred children. So what? he said. The alpacas are

12
Each family takes an average of twenty llamas down to the monte for carrying the corn harvest.
Approximately fifty families make the descent and shuttle their corn up in two three runs over a week-long period.
Therefore, on a given day there may easily be a few hundred llamas shuttling up and down the trail. The Qeros have
this precisely timed so that they arrive at Qirispampa, the open meadow below, for the groups of ascending and
descending llamas to pass each other, as there is no room to pass on the trail.

116
 like children to us, we recognize them everywhere. We know them, and we love
them from the day theyre born (Flores Ochoa 1986, 137).13

The peoples extensive, intimate, day-in, day-out long-term relationships with their
animals, along with their dependence on them, results in their cherishing the animals as kin. The
familial relationship, and accompanying feelings, is expressed abundantly in the text of the
animal fertility songs. The affection the people have also causes great sadness when one animal
is killed or dies unexpectedly, which they sometimes express through song.
The continual vertical movement and steady stream of pastoral and agricultural work of
the Qeros daily lives grounds them in a flow of relationships among their fellow community
members, their animals, and the mountain spirits of the land. The Qeros integrity and pride,
combined with gentleness of character and respect for living beings, I believe results from
generation after generation that has lived on the land in awareness of, respect for, and interaction
with a world around them that is infused with spirit, and the peoples need to constantly nurture
good relationships within that world. This nurturing is formalized and amplified in the rainy
season ritual of Phallchay, which occurs on the first day in the nine-day cycle of Pukllay.

The Eve of Phallchay: Vesper Offerings, Apu Sitima, and Ritual Objects
I celebrated my first Phallchay, February 2005, in the home of Isaac Flores Machacca, in
the annex of Challmachimpana. Isaac is Vctors father, the young, talented musician who was
chosen to learn the accordion I gifted to the community for the pilgrimage to Qoyllur Riti in
2003 (see Chapter 1, subheading Meeting Qeros Music).
This ethnography is based on that Phallchay, when I witnessed the most profound
introduction (unbeknownst to me at the time) of the Qeros way of expressing grief and anxiety
through song. This caught me completely off-guard since I had neither witnessed nor read about
this form of expression, and the impact of this first Phallchay experience showed me the many
important layers to the fertility ritual, in which music plays a significant and pervasive role.
The Phallchay rituals began when Isaac spent all of Sunday night, the night before the
main day, making ritual offerings for the Apu and Pacha Mama. The propitiative offerings are

13
The Andean people have devised extensive nomenclature in order to efficiently classify individual
animals in a large herd, often based on color and markings. See Flores Ochoa 1986 for a source on the emic
classification and naming of llamas and alpacas.

117
made of specific ingredients intended for these super powers to ingest, particularly the local Apu
that protects the herds.
In Qeros, the mountain deities that most immediately impact the welfare of their animals
are called the Apu Sitima.14 Every type of domestic livestock (llamas, alpacas, sheep, and cows)
has its own Sitima in the immediate valley region.15 These protective mountain spirits, which are
identified through the reading of coca leaves, are in charge of the health and safety of a particular
livestock type, and are distinguished from other Apu in the area for this role. The Apu Sitima
literally tower above the animals in the valley where they graze. An animal type has the same
Apu Sitima year after year, and in some cases may have more than one.
Around midnight that night, the family invited me to sit with them near the misa,16 the
special altar with carefully placed ritual objects, which is situated on the floor just in front of the
sitting area. One flame from a kerosene-soaked wick perched in the bottom of a can lit the home
dimly.17 Isaac sat centrally behind the misa, which was comprised of carefully placed objects:
inqaychu (small statues of llamas and alpacas), khuya (natural stones in the shape of animals),18
waylla champa (a large chunk of sod), two piles of coca leaves on small woven cloths, two
small glass bottles with alcohol, two ears of corn, one red and one yellow, two wooden qero, and
many clay vessels in the shape of llamas and alpacas for drinking aqha. The coupling of coca
leaf piles, bottles, red corn for Pacha Mama and yellow for the Apu, and qero vessels are
standard offerings for the Apu, given in traditional yanantin form. The coupling of low/high is

14
Different Qeros friends explained the concept of the Apu Sitima to me on various occasions, but
Marcelino and Jacinto Qapa Huamn elucidated much of the detail for me (pers. com., 1516 November 2006,
Cusco, Peru).
15
Others have written about livestock protector mountain deities in other Andean communities (see Allen
1997, Isbell 1978, Mamani 1990), yet it is curious that in Qeros they use the Spanish term Stima (seventh,
changed to Sitima in Quechua) specifically for this protector deity. Thus far I have not been able to find out the
connection or reason for this use of the name Sitima.
16
Misa is an adopted Spanish term, possibly a conglomerate of mesa (offering table) and misa (mass,
denoting a sacred ceremony).
17
In former times llama fat was the combustible used, with a phua leaf (Senecio canescens) wick.
Nowadays the Qeros purchase kerosene and wax wicks.
18
The Qeros store the stones for the llamas, alpacas, cows, and sheep in separate bundles that are all stored
in one large bundle that the Qeros call Mama qepi, Mother load or bundle. Thus the animal stones are not
mixed, but the Mama qepi holds them all. They keep the Mama qepi in the small stone storehouse every family has
next to the main home, and bring out the appropriate stones for their particular fertility ritual.

118
believed to bring more potency to the misa, as the inclusion of corn from the low monte placed
alongside the stones from the high mountains demonstrates.
The inqaychu and khuya possess a strong caring power,19 and because the stones are
believed to store the fertility and vitality of the herds, they are holders of fecundity with the
power to effect herd multiplication (Allen 1997, 79).20 The fertilizing power of the inqaychu can
be as strong as that of the Apu, but it can diminish throughout the year. The power of the
inqaychu is replenished during these rituals. The inqaychu and khuya graze on the chunk of
waylla sod for revitalizing sustenance; this is the special grass the animals feed on in the high
pastures.
For the Qeros, the stones represent the animals, which Isaac acknowledged by pouring
tinka (libations) of aqha and placing coca directly on them in their honor, just as he did the
following day to his actual animals (see Figure 6.2). This intake of alcoholic libations, coca, and
grass is revitalizing for the power stones, and leads to desired herd regeneration. However, Isaac
explained that these offerings of drink, coca, and food are ultimately for the Apu, and in
particular the Apu Sitima, the animals protectors.21 Thus the stone animals serve as emissaries,
and the offerings go by way of them to their ultimate goal, which is the Apu. The Apu, then,
cares for the animals, which in turn provide for the humans. This is the system of circulatory
ayni amongst symbolic objects on the misa, the animals they represent, the people, and the
supernatural powers.22
I sat with the family around this highly-charged misa, and we began the evening with the
ceremonial chewing of coca, the traditional commencement of any auspicious event. Coca is
believed to be imbued with spiritual powers, is a social adhesive, and addresses a physical need.
Coca is considered to possess wisdom and is therefore used as an oracle in future divination or
for healing illness. The chewing of it provides fortification against altitude and cold, promotes

19
Khuyay means love, tenderness, compassion, clemency.
20
See Flores Ochoa 1977 for more information on inqaychu and khuya.
21
Abercrombie discusses the schema in the Aymara community of Kulta, Bolivia, as an offering to a god
made through an exchange between persons (Abercrombie 1998, 350), which is the same process that Isaac
informs of: offering to the symbolic objects and animals is offering to the Apu.
22
See Allen 1997, 76, for more on the circulation of ayni.

119
good digestion, and adds nutritive properties.23 We all exchanged kintua combination of three
intact leaves carefully selected from a communal pile, one placed exactly on top of the other and
offered with the top side of the leaves facing the receiver. To show our mutual affection we
looked directly in each others eyes and said hallpaysunchis comadre, compadre! Lets chew,
comadre, compadre! In these brief and purposeful exchanges we demonstrated respect for one
another.
Coca is also a potent source of communication between humans and spirits, which is why
it is the most essential ingredient in any offering, as I saw later when Isaac placed many kintu in
the offering pile. Before Isaac began the making of the main offerings to be ingested by the Apu,
we made our own small offerings to the Apu with our coca kintu by holding them up high and
blowing on them, often with a barely audible and intoned whew sound of breath. The breath is
intentionally blown in the upwards direction of the Apu. Isaac explained to me that this phukuy
(ritual blowing) connects the coca to the Apu through breath. A persons own vitality, or samay,
sends the animu of the coca along to that of the Apu. In this way, the life force of both the person
and the coca is sent out in conjoined, intentional offering for the Apu to receive, and it is a way
for the people, the sacred coca, and the Apu to interconnect.
After this casual exchange of leaves among people and phukuy offerings to the Apu, Isaac
then began preparing his first of four ritual offerings. The offerings are called pagu24 a kind of
payment to the powerful spirits in exchange for protection of their animals. Vctor, as oldest
son, was Isaacs assistant in preparing the offerings.25 Isaac diligently placed many ingredients,
one on top of the other in careful placement, in piles, or sprinkles, depending on the ingredient,
and all on top of paper spread on an uncua (special offering cloth). After the prime ingredient of
multiple, neatly-arranged coca kintu piles had been placed, other offerings were added, varying

23
See Allen 2002, for importance and various contextual uses of coca in Andean society, and page 190 for
nutritive and metabolic effects of chewing coca.
24
This word is commonly believed to be a derivative of the Spanish word pago, payment. See footnote 9,
Chapter 3.
25
The most common route of knowledge transmission for the making of offerings is from father to son,
though occasionally a daughter will learn. The knowledge of making offerings is initially imparted by the
altomisayoq and kuraq akulleq, the few highly-trained ritual specialists who have the ability to communicate
directly with the Apu and Pacha Mama. The specialists are told directly by these powerful spirits which ingredients
please them, how and how much should be placed in offerings, so that the spirits can receive and ingest them
properly.

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from confetti, sugar, incense, seeds, and vicua fat for Pacha Mama; garbanzos, peanuts, and
llama fat for the Apu; and vicua fetuses, sweets, tiny colored balls, medicinal herbs, corn
kernels, even shells from the ocean for both, to name a few. Each ingredient has its own
particular significance; for example, fat is energy, the seeds are for Pacha Mama to plant, and
the sugar is for her to eat as she particularly likes sweets; all are deemed to please the spirits.26
Isaac spent over an hour meticulously making each pagu, like a delicate piece of art, one after
another, until dawn. He was quiet and composed, as if in prayer. Making enough offerings to
satisfy the Apu was essential, along with the correct manner, the proper ingredients, and
affection. No music-making took place; rather, all energy was riveted on the pagus. Yet, casual
conversation and laughter among family members during the long night was quite acceptable,
even common, and not considered irreverent.

Figure 6.1. Isaac Flores Machacca selecting coca leaves

(akllay) for k'intu in the offering.

All animal fertility rituals must begin in this way, with a series of offerings. One common
type of offering during this evening is for protecting the animals against phiru, harmful and
malignant forces. The main phiru that concern the Qeros is qopayay, a black diarrhea that
depletes an animals nutrition, and bad spirit possession (phiru wayra/mal viento/malevolent
wind).27 In a subsequent animal fertility ritual I witnessed one phiru offering for a particular

26
See Allen 2002, 135137 for a description of an offering in Sonqo, Paucartambo region, Peru.

121
person who had recently died, so that his alma (soul) would not wander and cause illness or
death to the animals.28 If a (dead) persons soul wanders from its burial spot, it risks becoming a
mal viento or mal espiritu (bad wind/spirit) that can enter an animal or human, and cause harm,
illness, and even death. The people should bury these particular offerings in the puhu awi or eye
of the spring, which is the birthplace of the animals.29
One consistency I noted in all pagus was the expression of yanantin in the offering
structure, yet the pagus contained subtle personalized differences, such as the the inclusion of
specific ingredients and the placement of offerings themselves; each maker adds his unique
variation. For example, to ensure yanantin balance, Raymundo placed two-leaf kintu on the
lloqe (left) side of the offering for Pacha Mama, and three-leaf kintu on the paa (right) side
for the Apu. The red offerings, such as carnations and red wine were offered to Pacha Mama,
because red is the most common color associated with warmi (darkness, earth), and Pacha
Mama, as demonstrated by the dominance of red in all womens skirts, shawls, and sweaters.
White carnations and white alcohol were offered to the Apu, as white is associated with qhari
(light, sky) and the snow-capped peaks.30
Two particular items caught my attention: qulqi (silver, female) and quri (gold, male)
pinkuyllu. These were tiny silver and gold paper rods that represent the Qeros pinkuyllu, which

27
Jacinto and Marcelino Huamn Qapa detailed the phiru pagu for me (1516 November 2006). They
believe that their animals used to be healthier and stronger with just the protection of pagus. Nowadays, chemical
injections have been introduced and are used for external parasites. They explained that a pagu covers a range of
illnesses and general health in a manner superior to modern chemical medicines.
28
Two types of pagus are performed for a wandering soul. In one, the alma is coerced inside the offering
and then buried near the feet of the interred body, so that it will stay with the body and not wander. If that is not
successful, another pagu is made facing east, so that the soul will go to hanaq pacha (the upper world) where the
sun comes out. It is best if a woman makes and buries the phiru offering, because the souls are more humble with
women (pers. com., Jacinto and Marcelino Huamn Qapa, 1516 November 2006).
29
A phiru pagu can also help clean fears; during fright a (live) persons soul is most vulnerable and a mal
espiritu can enter.
30
I also noticed warmi ingredients in the qhari (Apu, right) side of the offering, and vice versa, qhari
ingredients in the warmi (Pacha Mama, left) side. An example of this was Raymundos separation of the three-leaf
kintu intended for the Apu into two columns, the left column for Ruwal (the mega-Apu of the Incar myth) and the
right for Qhaqya. Ruwal was offered pink flower petals (warmi) and Qhaqya white (qhari). In this case Ruwal, a
mega-Apu that would normally be considered hanan, is now hurin (subordinate) to Qhaqya who has immediate
effect on the herds; thus, this is the contextual focus of the offerings.

122
the men play during Phallchay, Pukllay, and Machu Fistay.31 Raymundo placed these tiny flutes
on the Apu (right) side of the offering, specifically for Qhaqya, the Thunder Deity, who is in
charge of rain, snow, thunder, lightning, and hail.32 Raymundo explained, We give him
[Qhaqya] pinkuyllu to play, so that he is happy and his storms will not do damage (pers. com.,
18 August 2005). Raymundos nephew, Juan, added that the small flutes were wahanankupaq,
for calling the Apu to bring good health to their animals (pers. com., ibid.). Still another
version was that of Jacinto Huamn Qapa, who said that the Apu Sitima ask the altomisayoq (the
ritual specialists who communicate directly with the Apu), Where are my pinkuyllu and qanchis
sipas (panpipes) so that I can play? The altomisayoq communicates this expressed desire to the
people, so that they know to put these tiny flutes in the offerings. The pinkuyllu are for the Apu
Sitima to play and be happy (kusikunankupaq). In addition, the Apu Sitima uses the flutes to call
in the good health of the animals (wahanankupaq) and to scare off the animals predators, like
foxes and puma (pers. com., Jacinto Huamn Qapa, 15 November 2006).
The tiny pinkuyllu in pagus appear to be multi-purposeful: for the Thunder Deity to play
to keep him happy; for the people to invoke the Apu; and for the Apu Sitima to play to be happy,
as well as protect the animals from disease and predators. In this way the little pinkuyllu
offerings serve for the overall welfare of their animals.
When Isaac completed the making of an offering, he folded the entire pagu with all of the
specially-placed ingredients inside of the weaving it was made upon. He then lifted the offering
bundle to his mouth and blew energetically on it up towards the Apu. He did this phukuy while
invoking the Apu at the same time, Hampuy, hampuy! Come quickly! He called each Apu by
name in intense rapid-fire delivery, the local ones as well as the larger ones in the greater region,
adding words of supplication for the welfare of the herds. Isaacs intention was just like the
blowing on the coca kintu earlier in the evening: to send the animu of the offering to connect
with that of the Apu, through samay, so that the Apu could reciprocate.
I watched three of the four offerings Isaac made, and then decided to rest. When I rose in
the early dawn hours on Monday, I saw Isaac walking toward Apu Impernasqa (the main

31
When similar offerings are made during Sinalay (cow and sheep ritual), the same tiny silver and gold
paper flutes are placed in the offerings, but in this context they are called qanchis sipas (the panpipes played for the
cows and sheep) instead of pinkuyllu.
32
Qhaqya (also called Illapa in some areas) is a thunder-lightning spirit feared and revered throughout the
southeast Andes. See Bolin, 1998, 4453.

123
protector Apu of Challmachimpana), carrying the four offerings he had stayed up all night
making. Isaac disappeared in the wet morning fog toward the foot of this giant Apu, off alone to
burn the pagu, as is the custom. The burning releases the energy of the offering so that the Apu
can consume it via the smoke, and Pacha Mama can ingest the ashes. Satisfied and no longer
hungry, the spirits would then be able to protect Isaacs herds. With these thoughts and
propitiative intentions, the people approach the ritual of Phallchay on Monday morning.

Phallchay Ethnography and Introduction to Grief-Singing

Monday morning (6 February 2005) evolved into a sequence of rituals, one after the
other, sometimes with juxtaposing aspects of Phallchay and the start of Pukllay. Around 9:00
a.m. or so, all of the men of Challmachimpana met in a mullucancha, a stone corral used for
ritual purposes, where they had gathered the llamas and alpacas that are communally-owned by
the anexo.33 Upon entering the corral I received numerous warm greeting hugs and was invited to
chew coca and drink with the men. I had somehow earned this right by being the androgynous
researcher, a woman who sang with the women, but also assertively asked questions, recorded
music and video-taped, and learned to play the pinkuyllu, all of which were mens domains.34
Because of this, I was often allowed in many all-male events where my comadres neither would
nor could go.
Most men sat in a single row against one wall of the mullucancha, with their misa
carefully situated in front of them on the ground where they had placed some of the same ritual
objects (khuya, inqaychu, coca offerings) that I had seen at Isaacs the night before. With much
jubilant commotion they shared coca, talked, laughed, played Pantilla Tika on their pinkuyllu

33
Each anexo has its own herd of llamas and alpacas, as well as communally-farmed potato fields. They
use these communal animals and potatoes in events that involve all families of the anexo, such as a feast or work
projects. Jorge Flores Ochoa explains that mullucancha means, the cancha (enclosure) of the sacred shell (mullu)
offering (pers. com., 5 March 2005). Mullu is a purple-red shell from the sea that was a highly-valued offering
during Inca times. While the Qeros do not use this shell, the name has remained to refer to the corral where rituals
are performed. Every Qeros family has two types of corrals: the common one where the animals often sleep at
night, and the mullucancha, used only for ritual.
34
The men perform any activity that requires modern mechanical assistance. For example, the men operate
the cassette players and radios used in the homes. In Cusco many men use cellular phones and even take
photographs on them. A few have learned to video-tape as well, with the help from non-Qeros Peruvians or
foreigners who have facilitated the use of cameras. Many have e-mail accounts for use in Cusco and other urban
centers.

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flutes, and drank aqha, caaso (sugar-cane alcohol), and trago (pure alcohol) all at once. I too
was offered large qero (wooden tumblers) of aqha and small shots of caaso.
At this point the communal ritual drinking had begun in earnest, and it would continue
for the next nine-days of juxtaposed celebrations: Phallchay, followed by Pukllay, and ending
with Tinkuy. Ceremonial drinking and the sharing of alcohol (aqha) among humans, animals,
and spirit powers has been an essential element of ritual and celebration in the Andes since pre-
conquest times. For example, the Incas would extend aqha libations to their mummified
ancestors, and still today the Qeros have their male llamas drink aqha during the male llama
fertility ritual (see Chapter 7, subheading Machu Fistay Ethnography).35 In ritual, drinking takes
on a sacramental quality, and is a way for people to express their communal obligations of ayni
to one another, to their animals, and the deities. Anthropologist Barbara Butler comments that
alcohol, like coca leaves, carries a special capacity to mediate between humans and spirits,
containing and activating the life force (Butler 2006, 83). I saw this mediation continually in
operation during Qeros rituals: the way they shared drink with one another; with the khuya and
inqaychu on the misa and the herded animals in the form of tinka poured over them; and with
the mountain spirits and mother earth by flicking alcohol in the air or on the ground to them in
offering.
After an hour or so of drinking, chewing, playing pinkuyllu, and socializing, they
completed this reunion in the mullucancha by tying streamers around some of the llamas and
alpacas necks. They threw libations of aqha on the animals and scattered handfuls of small red
phallcha flowers on them as they simultaneously proceeded slowly out of the corral to wander
freely. Like Isaac had explained the night before when he flicked tiny libations on the symbolic
objects on the misa, these libations on the animals were ultimately intended for the Apu Sitima.
The scattering of the phallcha flowers over the animals was the metaphoric realization of the

35
In addition, the Incas used aqha to mobilize communal labor, and made the production of aqha a central
component of their administrative structure. In Qeros, drinking is still used as a work motivator in community
faenas. For sources on ritual drinking in the Andes, see Abercrombie 1998, Allen 2002, Butler 2006, and Cummins
2002.
Some Qeros complain that drinking distilled alcohol (caaso and trago) has changed the nature of their
rituals, when they used to drink only aqha and therefore not get as drunk. I believe the addition of caaso and trago
is a result of fewer families growing corn today than in the past, combined with the fact that cheap alcohol is
available in nearby urban areas, so the Qeros are now able to buy alcohol due to their greater mobility and closer
attachment to the cash economy. Barbara Butler, in her book Holy Intoxication to Drunken Dissipation (2006)
addresses the issue of drinking among the Quichua in Otavalo, Ecuador, in which the intent has changed from that of
traditional, ritual use to excess in a way that the community considers detrimental.

125
animals as flowers, and the peoples hope that the llamas and alpacas will multiply and be
plentiful, just like the flowers.
After herding the animals out of the mullucancha, the men dispersed to their respective
homes. Soon all families gathered their herds individually near their homes to perform a similar
Phallchay ritual. Some families started later than others, but throughout the morning I could look
around to all the stone homes dotting the green grass of the Challmachimpana valley and see
gathered herds and families near almost every home. The people of each home had erected
wooden poles with white flags on the ends, which I was told is simply costumbre (tradition).
Flores Ochoa explains that white signifies purification, and a way of cleaning any impurities, bad
moments, or untoward occurrences; this is consistent with the rituals primary focus of well-
being of the animals (pers. com., 19 March 2008).36 Agustn told me he, and many others, prefer
the llamas and alpacas they call yuraq luntu,37 which are the all-white animals, because there are
more dying (and therefore selling) possibilities with the neutral-colored white fiber. He also
added that more important than fleece color is that the herds are abundant (pers. com., 13
September 2005).
Even though they gather the entire herd of llamas and alpacas, many Qeros have told me
that Phallchay is for the females, and others specified it is for the female llamas. I have also been
told it is for all alpacas, particularly the females. Indeed, two other names I have heard for this
ritual are Chusllu Phallchay and Paqucha Phallchay (Phallchay for all alpacas). In addition, many
will say it is for the entire herd. I believe that all statements must be true, and are just different
interpretations. In sum, considering that the Qeros gather the entire herd, Phallchay seems to be
for all llamas and alpacas. The ritual stresses the female element; however, females (animals and
women) are associated with the fertility and flowering of the herd (Flores Ochoa 1988, 240), as

36
Flores Ochoa relayed other uses of white in Andean ceremonies, such as placing white cloths in the
corners of the mullucancha during animal rituals, or women dancing and singing with one. I did not see this in
Qeros, yet it shows that this custom of using white cloth is not unique to Qeros.
Henry Stobart discusses various meanings of the usage of white flags in Carnival in the Bolivian Andes
(Stobart 2006, 254, 256, 2656). Among the possible significances are representation of the soul of the dead which
is made to dance (almata tusuchun), (Ibid, 253), and that white flags have been related to a pact with the spirit
world and bringing peace and abundant harvests (from Oblitas Poblete, Enrique. 1978 [1960]. Cultura Callaway.
La Paz: Ediciones Populares Camarlinghi, 214, in Stobart 2006, 265). In any case, all explanations point to a
connection with the spirit world in some way, which is the essence of Phallchay, in as much as offerings and songs
invoke the Apu and Pacha Mama.
37
Yuraq is white, and luntu is a common pronunciation of runtu, which literally is egg, but refers to the
male animals testicles.

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the song text indicates (see Pantilla Tika subsection below). Emphasis on the female element
during this ritual, which focuses on fertility and procreation, is congruent with the widespread
Andean myth that the llamas and alpacas are born out of the female aspect of the Apu (the
springs and caves, i.e., the interior world of Pacha Mama) (ibid., 238).38 For this reason, the
women, the main caretakers of the herds, are the principal singers throughout this, and all other,
fertility rituals.
I first heard Pantilla Tika with Isaac and his family that Monday morning. Rosita,
Isaacs adolescent daughter, gathered the herd around the home, and the family came out to stand
formally in front of the animals to begin the ritual, as did other families; however, the ritual for
Isaacs family that year took place in an atmosphere of crisis and tragedy. Vctor, then only
nineteen years old, had just buried his young wife who had died only one week before. Vctor
believed his wife died of mal viento, which indicates the power of these spirits, and the Qeros
urgent need to pay numerous offerings to the Apu for protection against them. His little son,
Yover, was taken to live with Vctors mother-in-law one valley over, as men do not raise
children on their own. Thus Vctor was suddenly bereft of both wife and child.
Incredibly, Vctors sister, Juana, was also widowed only three weeks prior to her
brothers loss. I was dumbstruck by such dramatic bereavement the two siblings experienced
simultaneously. The sudden death of two young adults spoke forcefully of the harsh, subsistence
life in Qeros, where illness and death are a more frequent part of daily life than I am accustomed
to; deaths that the urban world with modern health care probably could have prevented. Not only
was theirs a loss of heart and family, but also a severe economic loss as well, as every family
member is needed to tend to the home, the fields, the animals, and other children. In addition,
Juana had given birth to a third child only days after her husband died, a baby boy who entered
the world in already bereft circumstances. He too died six months later.
We stood facing the familys gathered herd, Isaac flanked by his bereaved children. I
noticed that they were not wearing the newly-woven bright red and pink ponchos and llikllas that
were specifically woven for Phallchay and Pukllay, like other families who were with their herds
in ritual that same morning. Instead, they were dressed in everyday traditional Qeros clothes,
out of respect for their mourning. Isaac was wearing a typical brown poncho, with an everyday

38
See Flores Ochoa 1988, for more discussion of the female element in animal myths and song.

127
black unku underneath, as was Vctor, along with his younger brother Elas, who stood to their
fathers right side. Juana, standing to the left of Isaac, was in her daily skirt and sweater.39
Suddenly, uncontrollably, everyone began to cry. Here they were in one of the most
important and sacred rituals of the year and half of their family was painfully absent. I was
awestruck to see that through intermittent weeping they continued the ritual. Isaac began by
singing the three-note, descending melody of Pantilla Tika on his own, while Vctor played
the complementary three-note melody on his pinkuyllu between wiping tears from his eyes.
Juana eventually began to sing in the strong, assertive voice that I came to recognize and love.40
For the next half hour or so, Isaac and Juana continued their intense and sad singing, and
Vctor continued to play pinkuyllu, while standing attentively before their animals.
Intermittently, they drank alcohol in shared cups and threw libations on the llamas and alpacas.
After much singing, crying, drinking, and tinka, Juana handed each person generous handfuls of
the tiny, red phallcha flowers she and her younger sister Rosita had gathered the day before. We
herded the animals up the hill, scattering handfuls of the little red flowers over them, just as I had
done with the men earlier that morning for the communal herd. As the animals were dispersing,
we all knelt on the ground and bowed down, our foreheads touching Pacha Mama, in reverence
to both the animals and the spirit powers that care for them.
Following this portion of the ritual, with the animals still outside the home, we then
continued the ritual inside their home, where the morning unfolded into a powerful outpouring of
grief through song. They allowed me to videotape, and even though I had asked their permission,
I was nervous about what, to me, might be an invasion of privacy. 41 And yet I saw and felt how
they seemed to be quite comfortable. More than thatI sensed that they seemed to feel honored
by my intense interest. I did not sense any inhibition, or self-consciousness on their part; rather
the spontaneity of their singing and weeping continued to flow. This taping allowed me later to

39
Possibly this formation around the father force in the center, with the daughter (female members of
household) to the left and son (male members) to the right, was purposeful adherence to the laws of yanantin, where
female is left and male is right of center.
40
Normally Isaacs wife, Cirila, would have been present and singing along with Juana, but she was
tending to the younger siblings in community far from Qeros (Mollepata) where Isaac, Cirila, and their youngest
children had recently moved in order to educate the children. The singing of grief in Phallchay can be viewed in the
documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku, in the sequence titled Carnival (Wissler 2007).
41
For a full discussion of the ethics and challenges of taping this sequence, and the use of a small section of
it for a public documentary on Qeros music, see Wissler 2009.

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transcribe and translate the text they sang that morning, which I came to know was full of many
moments of improvised text about their loss and feelings, in the midst of standard verses of
Pantilla Tika (see Song Text 6.3 below).
Then, much to my surprise, amid the familys pained singing of Pantilla Tika, the
pusunis conch shell blasted outside the door of the home. The Challmachimpana Pukllay
regidores and alwasires burst in (see Chapter 4, subheading Pukllay Ethnography) and sang
Thurpa, the years newly-chosen song, and drank copious amounts of aqha that Juana had
offered so generously and obligingly. Thus the intimate singing of Pantilla Tika with the
family suddenly gave way to the boisterous, drunken singing of the authorities for this years
Pukllay taki, Thurpa, along with occasional verses of last years Pukllay taki, Phallcha. In
this way, the animal increase ritual, the arrival of this years Pukllay and the departure of last
years, were all represented aurally in the singing of their respective songs within a very short
time span, and the latter two were often juxtaposed. I noticed that touchingly, one-by-one, the
authorities hugged and tried to comfort Vctor, who was still crying inconsolably. In this way it
seemed that members of his local community now acknowledged and shared his pain.
After the authorities left, the family began preparations for the afternoon Phallchay ritual.
We walked to an area higher up the valley from the homes, where many families mullucancha
were variously placed on either side of the river that flows through the valley. As with the
morning ritual, many families gathered their herds independently yet simultaneously for ritual,
which was very similar to the one I had participated in with the men and the communal herd first
thing in the morning. Isaac spread out the family misa with the ritual objects on the ground. The
family sat down next to it, the men leaning against the wall and the women facing the men with
the misa situated between them. We spent about two hours seated in the corral, chewing coca
and drinking with the animals before us, while Vctor, Isaac, and Elas intermittently played
Pantilla Tika on the pinkuyllu and Juana sang. The singing and playing was spontaneous,
sporadic, and overlapping; that is, Juana did not coordinate her timing of the singing with the
pinkuyllu. It all felt like a very casual hanging out with the herd and the family together.
At one point Vctors wifes aunt arrived. She was very drunk, and her extreme grief
about her nieces death seemed to have transformed into rage. She was sharing her thoughts
aggressively, first addressing Juana, then Isaac, and finally Vctor. In this case, she was not
improvising verses to express her rage (which I later learned after transcribing a majority of this

129
visit that I also taped) like the threesome had improvised verses to express their sadness earlier.
But interspersed between her statements of deploring anger, she regularly sang the refrain of
Pantilla Tika, so that the song was never forgotten . Once again I was stunned to see this use
of the songthat is, how it was continually interwoven with expressions of profound sentiment.
Similar to the morning, the afternoons ritual continued amid great emotion of sadness
and rage, with the song ever-present. The ritual ended when we scattered the phallcha flowers on
the animals as they wandered off, out of the mullucancha and into the green valley. That evening
many families continued to sing Pantilla Tika, seated in the home next to their misa, while
drinking, chewing, and offering tinka to the khuya and inqaychu, Pacha Mama and the Apu.
This was also the night every family did watukuy in their respective anexo, the Eve of Pukllay,
when they sang Thurpa in full anticipation of Pukllay the following day (see Chapter 4,
subheading Pukllay Ethnography). In the early evening the host family sang Pantilla Tika,
while the visitors sang Thurpa, often simultaneously. By late evening, the singing of Pantilla
Tika had subsided, and Thurpa sounded until the dawn hours. In this way, the change in song
signaled the passage of one ritual to the celebration of the next.
The Phallchay ritual took place again on the Saturday after Pukllay, with all of the same
elements as Monday, along with some additional ones. This day is sometimes called Mama
Tarpay, to reach/arrive at the mother [animal]. After gathering the herd in the mullucancha,
reproduction was encouraged in the form of malta maytuy, when the legs of some choice young
female animals (malta) were bound (maytuy) so that the hayachu (stallions) could mount and
mate easily.42 Mating is often human-assisted, in that certain male animals are pushed and
encouraged to mate with certain females.
During malta maytuy, people ate three types of sweet and gooey phiri, pastes made of
corn and wheat flour, and a sort of rice pudding (sara phiri, haku phiri, arroz phiri,
respectively). The eating of the phiri was an enactment of a young llama or alpaca offspring
suckling its mothers teats. People jammed their fingers into the piles of sticky puddings,

42
There is a song for the female alpacas (not Pantilla Tika), which is performed on the qanchis sipas
(panpipes) during a separate ritual of malta maytuy, which is held in November or December, after Todos los
Santos (November 1st). In Hatun Qeros, music is not played during this ritual anymore, and indeed during the one
malta maytuy I saw in December 2005, they did not sing or play any music. I did not hear the female alpaca song
during my time in Qeros at all, and my only knowledge of it is on the recordings by John Cohen (now on the
Smithsonian Folkways recording 40020, 1991[1964], tracks 24 and 25). This song, which the Qeros call Paqucha
Taki, song for the alpaca, is in the same pentatonic style as the songs for the cows and the sheep, also played on the
qanchis sipas.

130
scooped out large globs, and sucked the paste off their fingers. Everyone had a lot of fun eating
this way, making loud suckling sounds to imitate the animals amid much laughter. This
enactment is precisely what they want for the offspring: plenty of healthy sustenance to thrive
on.
Like the previous Monday afternoon, we sat in the mullucancha for a couple of hours,
drinking, chewing coca, eating phiri, and playing/singing Pantilla Tika. Toward the end of the
afternoon, the family selected a female/male pair of young alpacas, and serpentine ribbons were
tied around their necks. This was the representative couple, the symbolic yanantin that will
produce many generations of healthy offspring. The father of the family did tinka libations and
and coca leaf offerings gently on the animals backs, intended for the Apu in effort to secure a
procreative future. Then around sunset everyone once again scattered the phallcha flowers on the
herd as they were ushered out of the mullucancha, and that Saturday night, like the Monday
night before, people continued to sing and play Pantilla Tika, sitting next to the misa in their
own homes.

Figure 6.2. Isaac Flores Machacca throwing libations of

aqha on the herd; white flag in back.

131
Pantilla Tika: Song for Llamas and Alpacas
In this section I present some commonly-sung verses of Pantilla Tika43 to show the
meaning of the song as the Qeros explained it to me, with some added observations and
analyses of my own. This is the first of two discussions of two complementary fertility songs, the
second to the male llamas (Chapter 7, Machu Fistay: Male Llamas). The text of both songs
details the significance of the animals for the people and lends insight into cosmological meaning
and associations, usually through metaphor. This section and chapter closes with some specific
excerpts of Isaac, Vctor, and Juana singing their grief as I heard it during my first Phallchay
participation in 2005. A brief analysis follows, which serves to show the significance of and
reasons for grief-singing in the community in general, as expanded upon in Chapter 8.
The Qeros only sing Pantilla Tika on two days in the annual ritual calendar: the
Monday of Phallchay and the following Saturday of Mama Tarpay. Many Qeros have told me
that they sing the fertility songs for the animals (animalpaq) simply because we love them.
Juliana told me, We sing for the animals for a good life (sumaq sawsaypaq), for good health
(qhaliya kananpaq), because the animals are loved (animalkuna munaspa), and so they will
flower (tikarinanpaq) (pers. com., 2 August 2006). The song text expresses the love and familial
relationship people feel for their llamas and alpacas.
The musical aesthetic of wide, overlapping vocal and pinkuyllu melodies during the
performance of Pantilla Tika in Phallchay is very similar to that of the performance of Pukllay
taki in Pukllay, but on a more intimate scale, since this is a family and not communal event.
Audio Example 6.1 is a short excerpt of Isaac, Vctor, and Juana singing Pantilla Tika inside
their home, which shows this aesthetic of wide overlap and individuality in singing and playing.
Musical Transcription 6.1 shows the first stanza (ABA1) of Audio Example 6.1. I notated this
transcription in its originally sung key or pitch range, but moved the pinkuyllu melody so that it
lines up with the vocal part, to show the pitch relationship between the two parts more easily.

43
Another less common name sometimes used for the song is Chullumpi Taki. Chullumpi is a term that
sometimes refers to the female llamas and alpacas. This term is discussed in Chapter 8, Machu Taki: Song for the
Male Llamas.

132
 Audio Example 6.1

Audio Example 6.1 and Musical Transcription 6.1 show that the melodic contour of both
the vocal and pinkuyllu parts have a similar descending tritonic pattern as in all Pukllay taki. The
pitch relationship between the two parts is also like that of Pukllay taki, with both parts ending
on the interval of a fifth in aysariykuy (see Chapter 5, subheading Yanantin in Song Structure
and Paired Pusunis Conch Shell Trumpets). In this particular example, with Isaac singing and
Vctor playing pinkuyllu, the pinkuyllu part descends to the pitch of E while the vocal part
stays on G, (voice crossing in Western terms); however, interpretations vary and sometimes
the vocal part also descends in parallel motion down to an E, like the pinkuyllu part in this
example. In any case, the main pattern of the vocal and pinkuyllu parts in Pantilla Tika is that
the melody in the former moves between sol and mi in the verses, and then always descends to
do for aysariykuy in the refrain, while the latter moves la, sol, and mi in the verses and then ends
on sol for aysariykuy.
The main musical difference between Pantilla Tika and Pukllay taki is the song form,
which is ABA1 or verse-refrain-verse for the former, as opposed to the ABAB1 verse-refrain
structure of the latter. In the case of Pantilla Tika, aysariykuy is not held on every other
refrain, but on the second verse of the stanza, or ABA1 group.

133
Musical Transcription 6.1: Pantilla Tika notated in a five-line staff.
(Isaac Flores Machacca, Vctor and Juana Flores Salas, recorded 6 February 2005,
Challmachimpana, Qeros)

[A Verse ][B Refrain _ _][A1 Verse __ ]

Verse: Chayllachu manan ukayuyusun How are we not going to drink?

Refrain: Pantilla tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki [falcon]
Verse: Punchayllayniyki, punchayniyki Today is your lovely day, your day

Description of Audio Example 6.1:

The recording begins with Isaac singing alone. The melody is roughly a
descending C Major triad (C, E, G). Vctor soon follows on the pinkuyllu, also in
the same pitch level as Isaacs singing (C Major), but an octave higher. The
pitch relationship of the two parts is like that of Pukllay taki: the voice sings do,
mi, and sol, while the pinkuyllu part plays mi, sol, and la. Vctor soon joins Isaac
in singing. The singing overlaps for awhile, but with different texts, and then,
interestingly, Isaac drops his pitch level about a third (at 0:50), to the major triad
of A, C#, E. Both singers end together on aysariykuy, with their pitch levels a
third apart. Juana begins singing (1:05) in same key that Vctor just sang in (C
Major). Vctor plays the complementary pinkuyllu melody. The pinkuyllu and
vocal parts sustain aysariykuy a fifth apart (the pinkuyllu ends on G, the voice
on C) for three consecutive stanzas (at 1:2022, 1:3842, and 1:5458). At 1:59
Vctor begins singing, and both of them line up their text on the final verse and
sing aysariykuy together. The final verse is wakcha pubrilla runallaqa, The
people, poor and orphaned.

134
 The musical aesthetics in this short excerpt of intimate singing among three people are
similar to those of large group singing in Pukllay: there is a continual overlapping of voice and
pinkuyllu parts that are all sung/played individually yet simultaneously, and in a congruent
tempo. Sometimes people sing in the same pitch level, sometimes not, and occasionally they line
up on aysariykuy and text (see Chapter 5, subheading Musical Aesthetics of Pukllay taki
Performance). In a small group like this is it is much easier to match the pitch level of the voice
to that of the single pinkuyllu (versus numerous pinkuyllu in Pukllay), so that aysariykuy creates
the interval of a fifth.
I begin the discussion of the song text of Pantilla Tika with the refrain, as I believe it
encompasses the essential meaning of the song and of the fertility ritual in general, to which all
verses (and ritual actions) point. The refrain has four common variations, as Song Text 6.1
shows. It is common practice for one singer to use the same refrain, or at the most two, and the
choice is based upon individual preference.

Song Text 6.1: Four Common Variations of the Refrain of Pantilla Tika

Refrain 1. Pantilla tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki [hawk/falcon]

Refrain 2. Pantilla phallchay wamanki My lovely, pink phallcha flower, wamanki

also
Scatter the pink phallcha flower, wamanki

Refrain 3. Pantillachay wamanki My lovely phallcha flower, wamanki

Refrain 4. Tikay wamanki(s),44 wamanki My flower, wamanki, wamanki

Two metaphors comprise the refrain; the first refers to phallcha flower/animals, and the
second refers to raptor birds (hawks/falcons)/Apu. In the first part of the refrain, the words panti
(pink), tika (flower) and phallcha (the red gentian, Gentiana luteomarginata) all refer to the
phallcha flowers, which are scattered on the animals in the Phallchay ritual. I have also heard the
Qeros use the work phallchay in daily speech for the act of throwing the flowers: animal
phallchankupaq (for scattering flowers on the animals), so that another translation of the refrain is

44
The s at the end of wamanki is sometimes employed for ease of pronunciation. I heard this commonly
in sung texts. It has no meaning in this case.

135
scatter the pink phallcha flower, wamanki. The act of scattering the flowers is the physical
representation of what the Qeros want for their herds: many healthy offspring. Thus the flowers are
a metaphor for the animals, particularly the females, which are the progenitors of procreation.
The relationship between the flowers and the animals has everything to do with pacha: space
and time. The place where both the flowers and the animals flourish is up high, on the flanks of
the Apu, which gives the flowers a particularly potent association. The flowers are the offsprings
of the Apu, who cared for and raised them.45 Juliana told me, We love the flowers because they
live together with the animals (pers. com. 15 August 2007). Phallcha bloom only in these heights
during the rainy season, amid the high grasses where the llamas and alpacas graze every day, and not
down in the valleys where the people live. Thus place and season in the life cycle conjoin the
flowers and the animal; they are daily companions on the Apu, taken care of by these powers
when both are in their fertile prime and simultaneously flourishing.
Just like the refrains of the Pukllay taki, the affection for the phallcha flowers is shown
through the various suffixes employed (lla for lovely, cha for dear/little, and y for my) and
various names for the flower itself (pantilla tika, pantilla phallcha, pantillachay, tika
wamanki). In addition, the phallcha flower is associated with its curative properties (infusions for
curing coughs, flu, and toothaches), which are particularly important in a time that focuses on new
birth and health.
The second part of the refrain, wamanki, refers to waman, the common name for large
birds of prey, mainly falcons or hawks, which live in the high Andes. The Qeros call the falcons
in their area waman.46 In other areas of the Andes, waman are associated with the red-backed
hawk (Buteo polyosoma). Thus, the term waman is a generic name for the particular raptor that is
regularly sighted in a specific area and community in the Andes. The important, defining
characteristic of waman is that these impressive birds fly and live up high near the Apu. Waman,

45
Because of the phallchas association with the Apu up high, the Qeros like to use this flower as
ingredients in pagu that are made for the Apu that live in the monte. The mixing of elements from far-reaching zones
is believed to add potency to an offering. Francisco Quispe Flores told me that the lowland Apu enjoy feeding on
flowers from far away places, because it makes them happy (pers. com., 28 July 2007).
46
The falcons in Qeros are the peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) and the aplomado falcon (Falco
femoralis).

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along with the condor, are among the most venerated birds in past and present Andean culture,
and both nest and fly in the mountainous regions of Qeros.47
The Qeros call the falcons wamancha (little falcon) in daily speech, but in singing they
add the suffix ki to waman, which also shows affection, much like cha.48 Lucio explained
that wamanki is a respectful way for people to greet the animals, but he clarified that this type
of greeting is mostly expressed in song and not daily speech (pers. com., 23 April 2007). Waman
are also associated with bringing good luck, as indicated in one of Victors statements:
It will always bring luck wherever you gowhen we meet with
the waman, when you have to go to Cusco or anywhere. If you see
one, it is surely for something good. It is always with luck (ibid.).

Just like the phallcha flowers, the potency and luck associated with waman is because they live
up high, near and with the Apu. Lucio added to Vctors comment, explaining that when a
wamancha is spotted flying and circling around the herd it is a sign that the herd will be well
protected. Lucio said, Cuidaq llamakuna, paqochakunapaq, They are the caretakers of the
llamas and alpacas (ibid.). In this way, the birds are agents for the Apu, as the Apu essentially
controls the quality of care of the animals. In the same conversation with Vctor and Lucio,
Agustn directly stated the sacred quality of these birds: Wamanpuni, sakradu. Wamanpuni
espirituchaqa kashan, riki, The waman is always sacred. The waman is always a little spirit,
right? (ibid.). Waman are the little spirits of the Apu, considered special and distinct from
other birds because they serve as intermediary herders for the Apu. Allen and Garner also express
this idea of agency and intermediary status of birds, Birds serve as intermediaries between
human beings and Sacred Places (Allen and Garner 1997, 103). The kiyu is another example of
a bird with intermediary powers; it carries the message to a living person about her/his death (see

47
Waman, along with the kuntur (condor, Vultur gryphus), mamani, (black-chested buzzard eagle,
Geranoaetus melanoleucus) and puma (cougar, Puma concolor) were all deified birds/animals during the time of the
Inca Empire. These became surnames of noble families and are surnames today, sometimes spelled Huamn,
Condori and Poma (pers. com., Jos Luis Venero Gonzales, 10 March 2008, Cusco, Per). One of the most
magnificent Inca temple sites just outside of Cusco is Saqsaywaman (replete falcon), believed to be named after
the falcons that live in the area. Guamn Poma de Ayala in his 1615 chronicles (Nueva cornica y buen gobierno)
writes accompanying prose to one of his drawings that is shouted by an imprisoned Inca woman who is being
punished by the Spanish: Master Condor! Take me away! Brother Waman! Guide me! She wants these birds to
deliver messages about her plight to her father and mother, indicative of the belief in the supernatural power of these
birds since ancient times (Guamn Poma de Ayala, 1993 [1615], Book III, 1867).
48
Another example of a similar suffix to ki for showing affection, is ku, such as Isiku and Antuku
for the names Isidro and Antonio.

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Chapter 4, subheading Kunan Pukllay Taki: Topics of Currently Active Carnaval Songs).
Referring to waman in song is therefore a reference to the Apu.
In other areas of the Andes, the term waman or wamani directly refers to the Apu, instead
of a type of bird. Billie Jean Isbell, in her work in the Andes of the Ayacucho region, writes
about her understanding of wamani: Owners of all plants and animals, the wamanis are the most
powerful indigenous deities of the Pampas region (Isbell 1977, 84). She adds, The most
propitious time to make payments to the awesome Wamanis [sic] is in February and August,
when Earth Mother is open and receptive (Isbell 1978, 1545). The Wamanis are analogous to
the Apu in Qeros that also need to be fed during these two times of year, which happens most
prolifically in the form of multiple offerings during Phallchay and Machu Fistay. Isbell also
indicates the bird association with the deities when she states, the wamanis transform
themselves into condors and are associated with crosses and chapels (Isbell 1977, 84). Waman,
therefore, is an interchangeable term for both the mountain deities and the birds that are the
intermediaries and agents of them, or the poultry of the Apu, in the words of Flores Ochoa
(Flores Ochoa 1986, 138).
Flores Ochoa, in his emic classification of local nomenclature for llamas and alpacas in
the southern Andes, reports that one of the commonly-used nicknames is waman tika, which he
translates as falcon flower (Flores Ochoa, 1986, 143). In this specific name we see the
bird/Apu analogy (waman) connected with the flower (tika) in a single name: waman tika. Like
this nickname, I suggest that the entire refrain of Pantilla Tika is really one expanded analogic
association: the flowers are the animals that the birds take care of, and the birds in turn are agents
of the Apu. In other words, the flowers, the animals, the birds, and the Apu are all associated
analogies, because they are connected intimately with one another in time, space, and
relationship. Ultimately all are references to the Apu, which is primordial and supreme in the
interconnection among all four elements. The translation of this refrain is not only (literally) My
lovely pink flower, dear falcon, but it could also be interpreted as My lovely animals, dear
Apu, and even, in its most essential form, Apu, Apu, by way of metaphorical association. This
refrain therefore holds the quintessential meaning of the entire ritual and every action in it:
propitiation and offering to the Apu (first and foremost) for a healthy herd.
In Song Text 6.2, I present and analyze some standard stanzas (ABA1) of Pantilla
Tika, to detail the significance of commonly-sung texts. My transcriptions, translations,

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analyses, and conclusions are based directly on discussions of these verses with the Qeros. As
with all songs in Qeros, the number of verses I heard during ritual, and recorded, seems infinite
to me, so I choose to include just a few of the ones I heard most regularly. I choose not to
translate wamanki because the word holds deep significance, as explained above; rather, I write it
in its original Quechua to let the word stand for the meanings discussed above. I have
interspersed the four common refrains throughout.

Song Text 6.2: Six common stanzas (ABA1) of Pantilla Tika

Stanza 1 (this is the first stanza sung by Isaac in Audio Example 6.1)
Verse: Chayllachu manan ukayuyusun How are we not going to drink?
Refrain: Pantilla tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki [falcon]
Verse: Punchayllayniyki, punchayniyki Today is your lovely day, your day

Stanza 2
V: Waman Lipallay rektoy urqu My beloved Apu Waman Lipa, erect mountain
R: Pantilla tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki
V: awchi kuchullay, kutiq panti The phallcha changes color on the skirts of the peak

Stanza 3
V: Sayaykullaya mamallay My dear mother, take pause
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki
V: Hamuy Mamallay qaynaykusun Come, my beloved Mother, lets rest

Stanza 4
V: Wakcha pubrillay runallaqa The people, poor and orphaned
R: Pantilla tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki
V: Imaynayaraq kaykunqa How will it be?

Stanza 5
V: Algodonkamalla chuslluqa Alpaca, of pure cotton
R: Pantilla tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki
V: Arrozchakamallay mamaykuna My mothers, of pure rice

In Stanza 1 the Qeros sing that they will certainly drink in Phallchay (how could we
not?), which is a form of ritual sharing amongst the people, with their animals, and the spirit
powers. The animals are sung to directly on their special day, by singing today is your day.
Stanza 2 addresses place, which is individualized and changes according to the singer.
Apu Waman Lipa is the protector mountain deity of the anexo of Qocha Moqo, and the largest

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Apu in Qeros; therefore, it is on the top of the hierarchy. Rektoy comes from the Spanish recto,
or straight. These powerful places are regularly named in song, as these deities directly impact
the life of the herds and the people. A description follows the naming of Apu Waman Lipa,
because the people are acutely aware of all geographical features in their landscape as a result of
their daily herding and walking lifestyle. In the second verse of Stanza 2, the singer (herder)
describes the landscape, observing how the phallcha flowers have made the mountainside a deep
red as they come into full bloom. Red is also the color of the warmi element: it is the color
associated with Pacha Mama and the color all women wear.
In Stanza 3 the singer asks the female animals to take pause and to rest when they
gather together in the mullucancha on this auspicious day. Mamallay, my dear mother, is an
endearing reference to the female animals. This is a texted example that supports my earlier
description of daily life and how the people develop loving, kinship-like relationships with their
animals as a result of daily interdependence and living (see this chapter, subheading Daily
Herding: The Importance of Llamas and Alpacas).
My dear mother is also a reference to regeneration and lineage, as the female is
associated with birth and offspring. Flores Ochoa writes that song verses about Mother are
directed to the generative mother, as archetype, where feminine intervention is required for
the reproduction and increment of the herd (Flores Ochoa 1988, 248, my translation). Because
the mothers and daughters in Qeros families are the herders, the relationship between the
women and the animals is interdependent, when the human lineage takes care of animal lineage,
and the animals provide the humans with necessary life-sustenance. Thus mother also
references the human mother who cares for the animals, and for her own children.
Stanza 4 is a commentary or query about the precariousness of life, and about how the
people are poor (pubri is from the Spanish pobre). The verses of Stanza 4 are a subtext that
expresses the peoples fears about how they would be poor and orphaned if the animals they so
depend on were not plentiful and healthy, ending with an expression of doubt about the future
should that be the case: How will it be? Based on my participant observation with the Qeros, I
paraphrase and expand the last phrase as follows: How would it be if our animals are not
healthy, if we were to be without our animals, if the Apu will not provide? These basic fears
expressed in song drive the peoples intention in the Phallchay ritual: to propitiate the Apu for
healthy herds.

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 In Stanza 5, the singer comments on the white color of the chusllu, which is another
name for the alpaca. The alpaca is all white, or as the Qeros say algodonkama, completely
cotton, and arrozchakama, completely rice. I speculate that singling out all-white, female
alpacas indicates the aspiration for strong, unmarred offspring from a pure strain. It is not that the
people want all white animals; rather, the metaphor is desiring a herd with strength and unerring
health, with white as the symbolic color of such vitality. This idea is related to the significance of
the white flag that is always erected near the herd during ritual, which Flores Ochoa informs is a
reference to purity.
The song texts underscore the daily observations and principal concerns the Qeros have,
naming some of the very motivations that underpin fertility rituals: the importance of powerful
place (Apu); the ayni of shared drink (with humans, animals, powers); human and animal lineage
(Mother) and fears around the continuation of it (How will it be?); and the desired purity
(all-white) that would help maintain the lineage. The words show the Qeros basic concern for
the continuance of life (social reproduction), which is premised on maintenance of good
relationship with the Apu (cosmic reproduction).
In Isaacs household that morning, the very ritual that is about life and reproduction was
ruptured by the deaths of Juanas and Vctors spouses. The bereaved widow and widower used
the fertility song, which is normally employed for the supplication of life, to express their
profound loss about the death of their spouses. Song Text 6.3 is an excerpt of sung verses with
interspersed dialogue that I heard Isaac, Vctor, and Juana sing and speak that morning.49 This is
a selected, condensed version of a twenty-minute sequence I shot on video tape, which I later
transcribed and translated with Isaac, Vctor, and my tutor Gina Maldonado, in my apartment in
Cusco. Isaac and Vctor generously discussed the meaning of the transcriptions (that is, the
meaning of what they had sung that morning), which is what I base my ensuing analysis on.

49
To view some of this original footage see the sequence titles Carnival in Kusisqa Waqashayku
(Wissler 2007). Vctor specifically requested that his singing about his wifes death be included in the documentary.

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Song Text 6.3. Pantilla Tika, Excerpt of Grief-Singing.
(Isaac Flores Machacca, Vctor and Juana Flores Salas, recorded 6 February 2005,
Challmachimpana, Qeros)

Vctor speaks, remembering his brother-in-law, Juanas husband

Ichaqa nuqapas hoq timpukunaqa sutintay But I, in other times, spoke the bare
imatapas rimani, ni pitapas manchakunichu. truth. I was not afraid of anyone.
Kurakniytapas imatapas caraju, chayaramunkiy To my elder, dammit, you arrive
tumasun. Kaypi ukyashasun nishani. and we will drink. We will drink here,
I am saying.
Juana responds
Ar, hinapuniy, riki Yes, it was always like that, right?

Vctor sings about his brother-in-law

Verse: Mayllataq kunan kaykunchu How is it that you are not here?
Refrain: Pantilla tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki

Juana speaks
Ukyashan, riki, ukyashan, ukyashan, riki. He is drinking. He is drinking.
[speaking about him as if he is still living.]

Vctor sings
V: Imallapaqtaq saqiywan Why did you abandon me?
R: Pantilla Tikay wamanki My lovely pink flower, wamanki

Vctor speaks, remembering a visit from his brother-in-law

Santiagu punchaypi chayaramun, riki. He arrived for the day of Santiago, right?
Noqata kasuwanpuni, nuqatapuni kasuwan. He always listened to me, always listened
Nishutapuni machayuyku, riki to me. We got drunk a lot, right?

Vctor sings
V: Machaq ukyaqlla runallaqa The man who drinks
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki

Juana sings
V: Paucarchallallay runallaqa Paucar, my beloved husband
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki
V: Nuqallataqa saqiyukuwan He left me all alone
[Paucar is Juanas husbands surname]

V: Cuchuqiachay chakillanman At the foot of Chuchuqia [he left me]

R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki
V: Mamallay sayaykushallay My lovely Mother, standing tall

V: Wawallataqa uywaykuni I raise the children

R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki

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Vctor sings
V: Apasachallay warmiqa My dear wife Apasa
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki
V: Nuqallataqa saqiykuwan You have left me alone
[Apasa is Vctors wifes surname]

V: Mamallay sayaykushallay Rest, my little mother

Victor speaks
Yuvercha . . . Little Yuver
[Yuver is Vctors sons name]

Victor sings
V: Yuverchallay puuy My little Yuver, sleep
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the pink flower, wamanki

Juana sings
V: Tiyasqachayki panpapas The floor you used to sit on
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki
[remembering her husband]

Juana sings
V: Wawallataqa uywaykuni I raise my children
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki
V: Uhaq mikhuqta uywayuni Children who need to drink and eat

V: Mamallay thaskirqushanki My lovely Mother, you are walking slowly

R: Pantillachay Wamanki My lovely phallcha flower, wamanki

Isaac sings
V: Ayllu runaytaq inimigo As if there were an enemy in my community
R: Tikay wamankis wamanki My flower, wamanki, wamanki
V: Nuqaqa tiyaykushani I am living

In this session of extended expression of loss, Vctor and Juana juxtaposed set verses
(ones known and sung by many in ritual) and the continual refrain of Pantilla Tika, with their
own improvised and personalized verses. The singing, in turn, was interspersed with dialogue, so
that all expression was a connected flow of singing and speaking intertwined.
At the beginning of Song Text 6.3 Vctor was remembering Jorge Paucar, his brother-in-
law (kurakniy, elder family member). He simultaneously wept and spoke about how Jorge
used to visit, how they used to drink together, and how Vctor felt more confident then. He

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followed his dialogue by singing his feeling of loss about Jorge: How is it that you are not
here?Why have you abandoned me? Juana attempted to console him by saying, he is
drinking. The Qeros (and most Andeans) believe that souls continue to live after the body dies,
so that Jorge must still be drinking. Vctor spoke more about Jorge, and how they drank together
on Santiago (Machu Fistay). Families unite during ritual, so Jorges absence was more acute on
this Phallchay morning.
Vctor then sang a set verse about the man who drinks. This commonly-sung verse
refers to drinking in ritual, yet I have noticed in subsequent analyses of grief-singing that a
person will often follow a spoken thought with a set verse that is related to that thought. I believe
this is the case here. Vctor remembered drinking in ritual with Jorge, so it was natural for him to
choose a verse related to drinking. In cases such as this, the set verses are used improvisatorially;
they are spontaneously selected for their connection to the specific context.
Juana then sang her husbands name, Paucar, and how he left her alone at the foot of the
Apu Chochuqea. This is the protector Apu of the anexo of Chuwa Chuwa, her husbands home,
one valley over from her childhood home of Challmachimpana, where she had naturally moved
in with his family to start their own. Juana was remembering the specific powerful landmark of
her new home, and how she is now alone there. She follows this improvised verse with two set
verses. The first, Lovely Mother, is about the female alpaca or llama who stands tall, indicative
of a healthy animal, and the second, I raise the children, is about that mother raising the young.
This may be a case like Vctors above, when Juanas previous thought (I am left alone) led
into the selection of these verses about the mother who raises children, as she now is a mother on
her own with three young children.
Following Juanas lead in singing her husbands name, Vctor next sang his wifes name,
(Dominga) Apasa, followed by, you have left me alone. Next he sang a set verse about the
female animals: Rest, my mother. Then, having named his wife, he softly spoke his childs
name, Yuvercha, Little Yuver, followed by singing the name and pleading for his little boy
to sleep. Simultaneously, Juana sang about the place on the floor where her husband used to
sit, followed by the set verse I raise my children, and an improvised verse, Children who need
to eat and drink, again expressing concern for her young children. Isaac discussed his opinion of
two possible meanings of verses about children. One meaning, he said, refers to people rearing
their children. Isaac says, When we are drunk we remember our deceased parents and sing this

144
to them (pers. com., 7 July 2007). Another meaning concerns the llamas and alpacas. Isaac
informed that in this case, people are the children to the animals, who carry our food and
supplies, give us meat, and provide us with clothing and cooking fuel (ibid.). The animals are
the mothers that provide for their children, who are the people. So these verses express both the
people as caretakers of their own children, and also the animals as caretakers of the people. The
overarching idea is that all relationships, human and animal, are familial, and that verses about
children address animal/human lineage and the continuance of it. Juana ended with a set verse
about the primogenitor of lineage continuance: the mother alpaca that walks slowly. Lastly,
Isaac sang, As if there were an enemy in my community, I am living. He relayed to me that
this was an expression of intra-family conflicts that had arisen as a result of the deaths (ibid.).
The anchor and point of continual return in their singing was the refrain, the bedrock of
the song, which contains the essence of Phallchay. There was a seamless flow between dialogue
and song, and improvised words seemed to emerge effortlessly and naturally, fitting neatly into
the rhythm of the short verses. Sometimes they sang what they had just been speaking about. It
was as if the song was there, hovering, to be dipped into as wanted or needed, which is what I
also felt with the aunts bereaved singing that afternoon. Music was the constant thread that
allowed Isaac, Juana, and Vctor to unfold shared pain and deep sadness, a processing of grief
through song.50 I asked myself, Is this some kind of magnificent, gut-wrenching anomaly I have
just been privy to, or do other Qeros families do this? This question became seminal to my
research, and in the next three years I came to know that animal fertility rituals were the space
for the vulnerable expression of profound loss.
In the next chapter I describe Machu Fistay, the complementary ritual to Phallchay,
where I also witnessed numerous outpourings of grief and anxiety in the ritual song. Analysis of
the complementary rituals illuminates the reasons for the emergence of loss specifically during
these times, and how this expression of grief contributes to social renewal (Chapters 8 and 9).
Analysis of the fertility songs also led me to understandings of the delivery of songs as cosmic
reproduction (Chapters 8 and 9).
50
Many scholars have published about sung forms of grief amongst indigenous cultures (Feld, 1982 and
1995, Urban, 1988, Briggs 1992,). Unlike these sung forms of grief, however, the Qeros singing of loss in this way
is not a distinct and separate song form, such as the melodic sung-texted weeping genres of the Kaluli of Papua
New Guinea (Feld 1982:86129), or the ritual wailing of Brazilian Amerindians (Urban 1988, 931), dirges, keens,
Mediterranean lament forms, etc. Grief-singing in Qeros is either momentarily or extensively expressed through
spoken conversation and/or improvised song text in existing fertility songs, and sometimes the sung improvisation
of sadness, is not expressed at all during an entire fertility ritual.

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 CHAPTER 7:
MACHU FISTAY: MALE LLAMAS

Nishu importante urqu llama. Chanin importante.

Guanuta, muhuta cargashayku, papata cargashayku, sarata cargashayku.
Cargallapipuniy llama urqu. Chay machayku, takiyku, tusuyku.

The male llama is very important. His importance is unmatched.

He helps us carry fertilizer, seeds, potatoes, and corn.
The male llama is always carrying. This is why we drink, sing, and dance.
Juliana Apasa Flores, 2 August 2006.

This Chapter focuses on the complementary ritual to Phallchay: Machu Fistay. Similar to
Chapter 6, this chapter begins with an ethnography of Machu Fistay, followed by an in-depth
analysis of the aesthetics and text of the ritual song, Machu Taki. The chapter closes by
showing the yanantin relationship between the fertility songs of both rituals. These two chapters
complete Part III on animal fertility rituals, followed by Part IV, which delves deeper into the
role of fertility songs in social and cosmic reproduction, and the role of grief-singing in social
reproduction.

Machu Fistay Ethnography

Singing to llamas in the Andes has its origins in pre-conquest times, as evidenced in the
royal mestizo chronicler Guamn Poma de Ayalas famous drawing (ca. 1615) labeled The Inca
Singing to his Red Llama.1 In the drawing, an Incan ruler sings y-y in imitation of his beloved
llama, which is a sound I have heard regularly when the Qeros herd their llamas.2 The ritual of
singing to the llamas in Qeros is one that has most likely endured since pre-Hispanic times, as it

1
The term royal mestizo comes from colonial rule in Peru when there were established and legal
hierarchical definitions about race that determined issues of privilege such as land distribution and payment of
tribute. The hierarchy was as follows: peninsulares (Spanish from the peninsula or Spain); criollos (born of
Spanish parents in Peru); and royal mestizo (male Spaniard and female indigenous). Indigenous people were on the
bottom of the hierarchy (Mendoza 2000, 13). Needless to say, distinctions in this system became unclear after a few
generations, which resulted in many legal cases of people trying to prove their bloodlines, as well as
institutionalizing prejudice and marginalization.
2
This stylized y-y sound for herding can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From
Grief and Joy We Sing), in the sequence titled Carnival (Wissler 2007). The young girl herder is calling y-y as
she herds the animals for Phallchay, reminiscent of Guamn Poma de Ayalas 1615 drawing.

146
centers on the harvesting of corn that the Qeros have cultivated in the lower of their three
ecological zones for centuries.

Figure 7.1. Inca Sings with his Red Llama.

Drawing by Felipe Guamn Poma de Ayala, ca.1615.
From: Guamn Poma de Ayala, Felipe. 1993 [1615].
Nueva coronica y buen gobierno. Lima, Peru: Fondo de Cultura Econmica, 238.

The Qeros choose their strongest, heartiest male llamas to carry up the corn harvest in
the peak of the dry season, which is followed by celebration. The Qeros tell me they sing for the
male llamas (takikuyku llamapaq) in Machu Fistay: Fiesta of the Macho (male).3 The date of
the harvest is coordinated with Santiago (July 25),4 which is why the celebration is sometimes

3
The y literally translates to, My Fiesta of the Machu, but in general y is added to connote affection
and invocation for the llamas.
4
Nowadays significantly fewer families cultivate corn, whereas in the past the majority did. Only forty-
nine of the one hundred and twenty families in Qeros descended in 2006 (figure given from the secretary of the

147
called Santiago. Other various names are Aqhata Ukyachiy (to make [the llamas] drink corn
beer), Machu Tikachay (to adorn the llamas with flowers/ear tassels), and Machu Phallchay
(to scatter the flowers on the machuin this case phallcha flowers are not thrown; rather, the
phua [Senecio canescens] leaves are; more below). Unlike Phallchay, Machu Fistay does not
have a fixed date when all families celebrate simultaneously; rather, it is up to individual
families, and is usually anytime in the months of August or September.5
The cultivation of corn is an important complement to the high altitude potatoes, and the
making of ceremonial aqha is fundamental to Qeros rituals.6 The people recognize their
dependence on the llamas for carrying this vital secondary crop from the lowlands to their homes
up high, on the precarious and often muddy trails. Juliana stated the basic reasons for celebrating
the llamas simply and succinctly: The male llama is very important. His importance is
unmatched. He helps us carry fertilizer, seeds, potatoes, corn. The male llama is always
carrying. This is why we drink, sing, and dance (pers. com., 2 August 2006).
Machu Fistay takes place on one single day (and usually goes all night), unlike Phallchay,
which is celebrated on two days, the Monday before and the Saturday after Pukllay. My first
Machu Fistay (on 27 August 2005) was also in the anexo of Challmachimpana like Phallchay,
when extended families joined in celebration. A few family members who had moved to the
anexo of Qocha Moqo came over the pass to the Challmachimpana valley to participate,
reuniting with their family. The ritual began in the morning, in the home of Francisco Quispe
Machacca. We sat around the machu misa (altar of the macho), drank aqha that was freshly-
made from the newly-harvested corn, shared coca, and many men played Machu Taki (song
for the macho) on the pinkuyllu, while women sang. In usual Qeros custom, the singing and
playing was simultaneous, yet individual and overlapping.

directive committee at the time, Juan Quispe Calzina (pers. com., 15 September 2006). Today, many buy wiapu
(sprouted corn) that is used for making aqha. As a result of this decline in numbers going for the corn harvest, the
song, Sara Taki (Corn Song), is also in decline. The current young adult generation has heard of the song, but
most cannot sing it. Therefore, I feel it is one song, along with the awpa Pukllay taki, that is slowly disappearing
with the older generations. Indeed, only the older people sang the song for me when I asked for it. This song has
many lovely verses about places, rivers, animals, birds, plants, and activities that are found only in the monte.
5
The corn harvest and Machu Fistay can be viewed in the documentary Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief
and Joy We Sing), in the sequences titled Corn Harvest and Animal Veneration (Wissler 2007).
6
Other important harvests from the monte include corn, squash, tubers, wood, bamboo, and various
medicinal plants. The Qeros make llipta in the monte, a concentrated ash from the burnt resin of certain lowland
plants, which is put in coca during chewing to extract the stimulant.

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 Usually the Qeros make pagus to the Apu the day before Machu Fistay, but not all-night-
long as on the eve of Phallchay, which may be related to the male element of day, instead of
the female element, night. Like Phallchay, they placed the powerful inqaychu and khuya that
represented the male llamas on the machu misa near the waylla champa, where they are meant
to graze on. In addition, significantly on the machu misa were the bells and cargo ropes that the
head llamas of the family used. Every family has one dominant male llama that leads all others,
called tilantiru (from Sp. delantero, front/forward) or capitn (captain). The tilantiru is the
strongest, most assertive male of all, and around his neck are numerous bronze bells decorated
with a colorful fringe. The tilantiru has the most elaborate set of bells and fringe, and the two or
three llamas behind him have some bells as well. The bronze bells continually ring and clang as
he walks, signaling the other llamas to follow him. The bells, fringe and all, are referred to as
rusayu, but only in Machu Fistay and its song text, and not in daily speech.7 Everyday names for
the bells, not used during Machu Fistay, are sinsiru (from cencerro/cowbell/animal bells),
purunsi (from bronce/bronze), and San Pablo, because they are often purchased in the town of
San Pablo, near Sicuani, south of the Cusco region.
I noticed that regularly throughout the morning, people individually poured aqha
libations on the rusayu, and then requested permission formally from Francisco to pick them up.
The common way of asking permission, which I heard regularly for ceremonial acts, such as
chewing coca, tinka, and drinking a cup of aqha that had been offered, was Lisinsaykismanta
(with your permission/license). Francisco told me that requesting license in this way is ultimately
a request for the Apu, and not Francisco per se (pers. com., 27 August 2005). A traditional
response, which Francisco used that morning, was quri misa, qulqi misa, lisinsanmanta (gold
altar, silver altar, with permission). In Franciscos response, the two parts of the altar,
gold/male/Apu and silver/female/Pacha Mama, were granting permission. I was beginning to
understand, after participating in Phallchay earlier in the year, that any ritual action is ultimately
intended for the Apu and Pacha Mama, even though the immediate appearance is that one is
offering the libation to the bells, or coca and aqha to a neighbor.

7
Rusayu sounds close to rosario (rosary). Possibly this name was adopted as representation of using the
string of bells (like a string of beads), which are used in Machu Fistay like prayers that call and invoke a healthy
herd.

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 The person who had been granted permission would then lift up the bells and shake them
a few times, and gently place them back on the misa. I noticed that continual sounding of the
bells seemed to be important throughout the day. The bell-sound began sporadically in this way,
with someone shaking them over the misa, and then built throughout the day in intensity and
frequency of use.
Phua leaves (Senecio canescens) venerate the male llamas (as well as the sheep in
Sinalay). The fuzzy-white, long, and thin phua leaves represent the llamas (and sheeps) ears,
just like the tiny red phallcha flowers are the offspring of llamas and alpacas in Phallchay. One
line of the song text in Machu Taki is Ninrichallanpas, phuuy phuuy, Also his little ears,
like the phua phua. When a llamas ears are tall and straight, it is a sign of strength and good
health; therefore, tall phua-like ears are desired. In this regard, the machu misa is sometimes
called the phua misa. The family regularly flicked tinka of alcohol on the objects on the machu
misa with phua leaves.
Also on the machu misa, which was different from the Phallchay misa, were many pululu
(small carved gourds, each with an opening on the top). The pululu served as both drinking and
divination vessels (see Figure 7.2). The woman of the household regularly served everyone two
pululu of aqha for drinking, and often a person would dip a phua leaf inside the vessel and then
flick some aqha on the misa. In one instance I heard a similar request as the one explained
above, just before the tinka was flicked on the misa: lisinsaykismanta, paaladoman,
lloqeladoman, With your permission, to the right and to the left. This person was asking
permission to offer the tinka to the right (Pacha Mama) and the left (Apu) before offering the
libation. In this manner, the person addressed the two most powerful components of yanantin
that were represented on the machu misa: the Apu and Pacha Mama.

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 Figure 7.2. The machu misa with the llamas bells, ropes, and
fringe, gourd pululu, two qero cups, and phua leaves.
Someone has left his pinkuyllu resting against the qeros.

At one point Francisco lifted a pululu and held it tenderly in both hands while pressing
the open hole up to his mouth. With a bowed head, he spoke his desire for a healthy, strong herd
of male llamas directly into the hole of the gourd, in soft and fast delivery. This was the same
manner of speaking I had heard during Phallchay when Isaac held up the pagu and summoned
the Apu to come, invoking the names of the many Apu in rapid-fire delivery one after the other.
Sometimes Francisco would do phukuy into the gourd. While he was beseeching earnestly into
the mouth of the gourd, his wife, Juliana, reached across and cupped her hands over his, so that
the couple together supplicated the Apu for the health of their herd. Francisco told me later that
he was specifying what he wanted for the year to come, such as white llamas, brown with black
markings., and in particular, a strong tilantiru or capitn. The pululu was often referred to as
awki pululu; awki is a reference to the deities of lesser hierarchy than the Apu, indicating the
emissary status of the pululu to the world of the powerful spirits that were being invoked.
After prolonged supplication into the mouth of the gourd, Francisco did machuta
kachariy, To toss/drop/release the male llama. To my surprise he tossed the gourd across the
room; it hit the back wall with a loud tak sound, ricocheted off, and came rolling back toward
the people seated on the floor. Everyone waited to see how it would come to rest. Francisco
indicated that if the pululu lands with the hole-opening up then it is a good omen for the year to
come; his llamas will be healthy and productive, thus a good chance exists that his expressed
wishes will come true. The opposite is also possible: if the pululu lands with the opening down

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toward the floor, the llamas may be unhealthy, or one may die suddenly from the elements, such
as a puma attack or lightning storm. Francisco told me that people can then try to prevent these
bad things from happening by making more, and specific, pagu to the Apu. Fortunately,
Franciscos toss resulted with the open-end up, which was a good omen that his supplications
would manifest.
The energy and activity increased throughout the morning, as people became more
inebriated, the numbers of people singing, playing pinkuyllu, and ringing bells grew, and volume
intensified. The family continually tossed many pululu, sometimes two or three at a time,
creating much sound, commotion, and excitement as people laughed with anticipation to see how
the gourds would come to rest and what it might mean for them. Some people threw a pululu
many times, so that the same person performed multiple. This is just like the reading of coca
leaves that one person will also toss in a specific manner multiple times for divination about one
particular issue. In this way, machuta kachariy was a continual and communal supplication and
divination about the future of the llama herds.
After about two hours, the ritual reached one of those moments I have come to know as
an organic punctuation, when everyone seems to know that the time has come to move on to the
next phase. All family members helped carry the machu misa, all ritual items, the large
containers of aqha, and their personal belongings out to the mullucancha (ritual corral).

Figure 7.3. A woman receives a coca kintu over the Figure 7.4. A pululu has been tossed into the llama herd
machu misa as the people are seated around the misa and rolls back from the animals towards the people.
in the mullucancha.

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 The people gathered the llamas into the sacred corral, and, much like Phallchay, the men
sat against one wall, with the women facing them and the misa between both. The herd was
behind the women, occupying most of the mullucancha. Similar ritual actions continued, though
even more heightened in energy now that we were among the llama herd. There was the
simultaneous sharing of drink and coca, singing and playing Machu Taki, and tossing pululu
high and far, right out into the herd, with the gourds rolling back downhill towards the misa and
the seated people (see Figures 7.3 and 7.4). Instead of gently shaking the bells over the misa as
they had done in the home, the people now demonstrated urgency as they shook the bells
vigorously over the misa while singing and rotating energetically from side to side in swaying
dance movements. Sometimes individuals, mostly women, would take the rusayu out into the
central area of the mullucancha among the llamas. A woman would hold the bells near the chest
or belly, and zealously shake them while weaving in and out in large circular formations among
the llamas. She shook the bells in a regular rhythm coordinating with her forceful steps, so in
effect she was dancing with the bells. Sometimes she would do a full-body turn in the middle of
the larger circle that she was weaving among the herd. She would sing Machu Taki during the
entire dancing, weaving, and shaking of the bells among the herd,
This was an embodiment of the male element, just as they had embodied the female
element in Mama Tarpay when people ate the phiri paste as if they were young offspring
suckling the mother animals nipple for milk. In Machu Fistay the people became the male
llamas, using the bells to move and sing with the same strong and robust grace they would want
their llamas to have. The ringing of the bells was the powerful tilantiru leading the herd,
continually at work for the people. Besides embodiment, the people (also simultaneously)
seemed to be celebrating their llamas strength, dancing in honor and gratitude to the males that
had just carried the harvest up some 8,000 feet to their homes in the puna.
The following year, after I had learned to sing the Machu Taki, I too participated in
singing and dancing with the lead llamas bells while standing over the machu misa with two
other women. My experience of this embodiment of the male llama, and the loud ringing of the
bells combined with forceful singing, were both powerful and emotional. An excerpted section
from my fieldnotes conveys the sensation I felt, which may lend insight into the power of the
experience for Qeros women:

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 Fieldnotes, 2 September 2006, Machu Fistay:
Many women, and some men but more women, were singing with
the bells over the machu misastanding over and singing with full
force, shaking the bells with extreme force. I noticed a trance-like
quality about the people as they were doing this. There was an
intoxication, and not just drunk, but one of being altered by the
action. All inhibitions were gone; it was full, intense expression. I
too joined in with Dominga and Rosa, singing over the misa while
shaking the bells. I was completely enveloped in the loud clanging
of the bells, the vibration going through my body, the full-bodied
singing, all of which was very powerful and altering. I felt swept
away by the sound and sensation. The sensory overload was
overwhelming, and I felt tears come forth, surface, and eventually
flow.

Juan told me in a subsequent conversation that not only is ringing the bells the sound of
the male llamas at work, but it is also wahananpaq, for calling [the Apu] (pers. com., 15
September 2005). The sounds of the bells, with the ever-present song, were invocations to the
Apu, for the health, strength, and continuance of the herd (see Figure 7.5). In sum, the action of
becoming the male llama, and the associations of the bell-sound with the continuance of his
labor, was an embodied communion with the animals the people depended on. It was also an
enactment of the central concern in this ritual: namely that all llamas, and particularly the males,
reproduce and be strong to continue their work, ultimately for human subsistence.

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 Figure 7.5. Woman dancing with the rusayu (lead llama bell
and fringe). Men play pinkuyllu on both sides, and another
woman sings.

The climax of the series of rituals in the mullucancha was the interaction with the llamas
that began after a few hours of drinking, chewing, playing, singing, doing machuta kachariy, and
dancing with the rusayu. One man holds a male llama while another opens the mouth to serve a
full bottle, and often two, of aqha. The Qeros often add barley flour to the aqha, which Vctor
explained is alimentacin (nutrition). He added, We give them the aqha so that they will be
strong (pers. com., 2 August 2006). Juana told me, The male llamas carry the corn from the
forest below. This is why we drink, from what they have carried, and we have the llamas drink
the corn beer too (ibid.). And Raymundo said, We get the llamas drunk because they carry our
corn and potatoes (ibid.).
The people share their important annual corn harvest in its most ceremonial form (aqha)
with their beloved llamas, which shows their gratitude towards them for carrying up the harvest.
But this sharing is more than just gratitude; it is necessity. It is ayni payment to their llamas
towards which they harbor kinship-like feelings. The ayni is direct and immediate: after the
llamas carried the harvest, the people reciprocated with drink. Ayni is the necessary circulation of
aid and goodwill that is the grease of all community and cosmic interactions, and the failure to
continually reciprocate can have severe consequences, such as marred social relations, the Apu
not reciprocating with a healthy herd, and llamas stubbornly not complying to carry the loads the

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next time around. 8 (This idea of social and cosmic circulation of ayni is expanded upon in
Chapter 8).
Immediately following the force-feeding of aqha to a llama, that particular llama would
have his ear tassels replaced (see Figures 7.6 and 7.7). Last years tattered and sun-faded tassels
were changed for bright, new red or pink ones. The women prepared the tassels by threading
them through large needles, while continuing to sing Machu Taki. They then handed them to
the men, many of whom also sang while they inserted and tied the new tassels in the llamas
ears. The Qeros call this tikachay, to make flower. The tassels are the new flowers, the
markers of renewal, and sign of fertility and procreation like in Phallchay.

Figure 7.6. A man feeding aqha to a llama. Figure 7.7. Men replacing the llamas ear tassels
(tikachay).

This was the climax of the series of ritual actions in the mullucancha, both in regards to
level of activity and sound. Quite often the man who held the llama for drinking aqha or
receiving the tika swayed from side-to-side as he sang, totally enraptured in song, inebriation,
and the moment. Often the aqha from the llamas mouth and blood from his ears spilled onto the
people, down their sweaters and ponchos, and onto the ground. Singing was spontaneous and
effusive. Both men and womens voices broke as they welled-up with sentiment and tears. A
young man occasionally rambunctiously wrestled with a llama, playing with his brother llama

8
See Abercrombie 1998, 373383, Allen 2002, 1403, and Mamani 1990, 34, for a description of similar
animal fertility rituals in Kulta, Bolivia, in Sonqo, Paucartambo region, Peru, and in Aymara communities in Chile,
respectively.

156
while women danced with the ringing bells, in and around the herd, fervently shaking them and
singing in full voice. Everyone was involved, including the children as they re-filled the bottles
of aqha and ran them back and forth to the adults for serving to the llamas. The movement,
sound, and activity were full; co-consumption was replete. It was at this point that I noticed that
many of the women, and some of the men, began to cry. The crying was a part of the whole, and
not separate; it was also done openly and communally.
Weeks later, when I later transcribed some of these tender moments of crying and singing
that I had videotaped, I discovered brief moments of personal articulations of loss and anxiety.
Franciscos wife, Juliana, sang, My dear, youngest llama, which she told me later was a
reference to a baby llama that had died earlier in the year (pers. com., 15 September 2005). Juana
sang the same line I heard her sing at Phallchay earlier in the year, I raise children who need to
eat and drink, while wiping tears from her eyes. The following year, at this same point in the
ritual, Juliana from Qocha Moqo cried and said, When my father was alive, I made him cry so
many times (pers. com., 2 September 2006). She also sang a verse longing for her daughter
Sonia, who had recently moved to Cusco to study in school (ibid.). Another woman sang very
assertively, and through much weeping, I raise my children (ibid.).
In sum, by the close of the ritual in the mullucancha, all singing, pinkuyllu playing, bell
shaking, and talking/shouting were uninhibited and passionate. I felt overwhelmed at the
intensity of emotion as many women were both crying and talking to one another in full voice
and openness of heart and emotion, allowing themselves to be fully vulnerable with one another.
There was an urgency in expression of raw emotion, much like I had experienced on a more
intimate level with Isaac, Vctor, and Juana during Phallchay, except that now, instead of
intimate family grief, the sadness was expressed in numbers. And instead of prolonged focus on
one specific loss (the death of the two spouses), many people sang and spoke one or two phrases
about a particular personal memory, and often the memory was in the more distant past. Yet, the
sentiment was similar: it was one unabashed expression of profound sadness and anxiety that had
again surfaced during animal fertility ritual, and it was the song that was used to express and
sing this sentiment. At this point I began to know that the space of animal fertility rituals
nurtured the emergence of such emotion, and that the ever-present fertility song was the vehicle
for expressing these emotions effectively (topic of Chapter 8).

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 In the late afternoon as the sun was setting, and after all llamas had received their share of
aqha and had their tika replaced, the animals were herded out of the mullucancha. As the llamas
walked off, each person took off her/his hat, hugged one another, and extended well-wishes, such
as May you have a good year, and May your llamas be plentiful, just like they did in
Phallchay. Then everyone danced in a line back into the mullucancha, men first, and the women
following, all shaking the bells. By now it was dark and people gathered their qepiy (the
belongings carried on their back), and tenderly packed up the machu misa, to make their way
back to the family home and continue the celebration all night long.
That night, the family continued the ritual, seated around the machu misa on the floor of
the home. They ate a meal of potatoes and alpaca meat, which was followed by drinking,
singing, and playing pinkuyllu until early dawn. Everyone continued to be fully engaged in the
power of the rituals, and expression was demonstrative and uninhibited. The bells were danced
with in almost trance-like singing, but this time not in and around the llamas; rather, just standing
over the machu misa in the dark home (as I described in my fieldnotes above, from 2 September
2006). Additional enactment took place as some men became herders, singing, whistling,
shouting, and dancing with whips. In a recent conversation with John Cohen, he remembers his
experience of a similar night back in 1974:9
I felt they were duplicating the practice of whipping/prodding the
llamas. In the hut that night it was wonderful to not know who was
the animal, who was the person. I re-live that evening many times.
Also, there was this young guy standing there shaking the ropes
and bells, and giving out syllables . . . not song or words. I felt he
was feeling the llamas spirit (pers. com., 13 March 2009).

Francisco explained that the whipping was often related to horse enactment. Because this is the
celebration of male or qhari elements, they sometimes enact a stallion horse, and sing Cawallo
Taki, Horse Song.10 I neither saw nor heard this whipping in any of the Machu Fistay rituals I
attended, but they described the action as a man riding another person (his horse) while

9
This night that Cohen describes can be viewed in his 1979 documentary, The Shape of Survival.
10
Machu Fistay is roughly concatenated with Santiago, the feast day in honor of the patron saint of horses,
which is why horses are included in this ritual. I recorded the Cawallo Taki, Horse Song, out of context, which
has a noticeably different scale and melodic style from the Machu Taki. The scale is minor pentatonic (do, re, mi,
sol, la), and the melody is more connected and lyric. The difference in song style may be related to the fact that the
horse is a European-introduced animal, and was probably subsequently added to the ritual.

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whipping him. This singing, drinking, and embodiment of the animals and herders continued
until early dawn.

Machu Taki: Song for the Male Llamas

This section presents four audio examples (7.17.4) of Machu Taki, in order to aurally
show the musical aesthetics of ritual performance as I described in the above ethnography, as
well as the change and evolution of performance aesthetics as the ritual progressed, and the
significance of the song texts for the Qeros. The four examples were recorded throughout
various stages of the ritual, so that the progression shows increasing energy and changes in
interpretation of the song throughout the day. The various textual and aural shifts in song
production throughout the day give insight into the role music plays as a vehicle of personal
expression, which leads to both individual and group healing, and therefore transformation and
renewal of social relationship, as well as the reproduction of cosmic beliefs and connections.
These issues of the songs role in social and cosmic reproduction are expanded upon in Chapter
8.
The four audio examples are from two separate Machu Fistay celebrations, yet are clear
examples of the various phases that occur during the day in Machu Fistay: the first two are from
early (7.1) and late (7.2) mornings respectively, and the second two from earlier (7.3) and later
(7.4) in the mullucancha in the afternoon. The text transcriptions, translations, and interpretations
were done with select Qeros compadres and comadres who are in the recordings, along with my
Quechua tutors, in my home in Cusco. In this way, text translations, analyses, and interpretive
summaries are based directly on responses from the Qeros.
Audio example 7.1, Musical Transcription 7.1, and Song Text 7.1 are from Machu Fistay
in Franciscos home as described in the ethnography (27 August 2005). Juana Flores Salas is the
single singer, and two men play pinkuyllu. In this preparatory stage, people are beginning to
drink and chew coca while seated around the machu misa, but the pululu have not yet been
tossed. Below is the five-line staff Musical Transcription 7.1 of Audio Example 7.1, followed by
transcription and translation of this excerpt in Song Text 7.1. The notes with the up stems are the
pinkuyllu melody and the down stems are the vocal melody. Both melodies are notated to line up
exactly in order to show the pitch and rhythmic relationships between the two parts, even though
in performance the two melodic lines rarely coincide.

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 Audio Example 7.1

Musical Transcription 7.1. Machu Taki notated in a five-line staff.

(Singer Juana Flores Salas, 27 August, 2005, Challmachimpana, Qeros).

[A Verse ] [B Refrain ] [A Verse ___ __ ]

Song Text 7.1. Machu Taki, excerpt of morning singing in Machu Fistay.
(Transcription from Audio Example 7.1. Recorded in Challmachimpana, 27 August 2005).

Stanza 1, Juana Flores Salas sings

Verse: Sayasqallayki sankhapi In the promontory of rocks where you stand
Refrain: Taytayllay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
Verse: Surallaykiwan mikhuykunki11 You who eats the humid grass

Stanza 2
V: Awsanqatichay luntuqa My little white snow of Awsanqati
R: Taytayllay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
V: Hali taytallay nisqapas Even saying stop, my dear father . . .

Stanza 3
V: Uyariqllapas tukunki You pretend you do not hear
R: Taytayllay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
V: Kunan punchaytaq punchayniykiqa Today is your day

11
Juanas pronunciation of mikhuykunki is a typical example of the difficulties I, and even my Quechua
tutors, often encountered in transcribing song texs, which is why I found it imperative to do all transcriptions and
translations with the Qeros, and with the specific singer(s) of the recording, whenever possible.

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[Two pinkuyllu play alone here]

Stanza 4, Vctor Flores Salas sings

V: Imapunitaq kayri kaykunqa And this, what surprise will there be . . .
R: Wfala taytallay Victorious dear father!
V: Sayaykunkitaq thakyaykunkitaq Now you are resting, now you are calm

The thin texture of the sparse, solo singing in Audio Example 7.1 indicates the
preparatory stage that leads up to going out to the mullucancha for the main part of the ritual
with the animals. Even though other women were present, Juana sings alone, and only two men
play pinkuyllu. The voice and the pinkuyllu sing/play in classic Qeros overlapping style (see
Chapter 5, subheading Musical Aesthetics of Pukllay Taki Performance), and the melodic lines
of voice/pinkuyllu line up for brief moments only on ayasariykuy.
Musical Transcription 7.1 shows that the vocal melody of Machu Taki, like that of
Pantilla Tika and all Pukllay taki, has a descending, tritonic melody, which is based on a
major triad. Juana sings the pitches of approximately D-flat (nearly a quarter flat), F, and A-
flat. The two men, Vctor and Juan, play pinkuyllu that are nearly in tune with one another,
indicative that both have similar size pinkuyllu, which Juana has tuned her singing to. Such
alignment of pitch relationship is easier in such a situation when numbers are much fewer than,
say, Pukllay, when fifteen women sing to fifteen pinkuyllu that are all tuned individually. The
pitches of the pinkuyllu are F, A-flat, B-flat, so that the pitches of the vocal and pinkuyllu lines
also have the same pitch relationship as that of Pantilla Tika, and all Pukllay taki, which form
the interval of a fifth on aysariykuy. Therefore, the structure and pitch relationship between the
voice/pinkuyllu melodies of the llama/alpaca songs of these two calendric rituals and the corpus
of Carnaval Songs is congruent: all are tritonic melodies aligned in yanantin relationship with
one another.
I discuss the refrain of Machu Taki first, because, like Pantilla Tika, it is the
continual returning point of the song, and contains the essential meaning of the Machu Fistay
celebration. Also like Pantilla Tika, there is more than one possibility of refrain for this song,
and choice of refrain is up to the individual singer. The two most common refrains I heard are
Taytallay Machullay and Wfala Chullumpi. In Audio Example 7.1 Juana sings the refrain,
Taytallay Machullay, which translates to My dear father, my lovely male llama. Taytallay
in Machu Taki is the counterpart to Mamayllay in Pantilla Tika, which references the

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female alpacas and llamas. Machu refers to the male llama, but implies a male that is valiant,
virile, and vigorous.
The meanings of taytay and machu are multifarious, just like the meanings of phallcha
and waman in Pantilla Tika, which have various interpretations and metaphoric associations
(see Chapter 6, subheading Pantilla Tika: Song for Llamas and Alpacas). Taytay is a term for
father, grandfather, and any elder male, yet specifically it connotes much respect and even
reverence. In daily usage, the Qeros word for father is papay, and the word taytay connotes
special occasions involving the veneration of a male force or being, such as male deities, and
even a powerful Apu. In this case referring to the male llamas as taytay/father articulates their
respected and venerated status.
Machu is not only the word for male, but also specifically refers to a male elder who
has much wisdom and experience. Machu also refers to ancient lineage and past ancestors, such
as the awpa Machu of the Inkar origin myth (see Chapter 2, subheading Identity: La Nacin
Qeros, and Qeros and/or Inca?). In this way, while the text is a direct reference to lineage of
male machu llamas, it simultaneously invokes lineage of people. This connection between
lineage of animals and people comes from the kin-like sentiment the people hold for their
animals, which is particularly highlighted during this ritual that focuses on lineage increase. In
sum, the complete refrain Taytallay Machullay holds layers of meaning, from beloved,
llama/father who is young and virile/old and wise, to lineage of llamas/male ancestors, as well as
a divine reference to the supreme male of Apu Taytay.
The second commonly-sung refrain, Wfala Chullumpi (which is heard in Audio Example
7.2), is equally layered with meaning. Wfala is a celebratory superlative that roughly translates
to Long live!, Victorious! or simply Hooray! Chullumpi refers to any type of aquatic bird
in the high Andes with the markings of black on top and white underneath. It is more commonly
a reference to diving birds that live near fresh water lakes, particularly grebes (white-tufted:
Rollandia rolland, and silvery: Podiceps occipitalis).12 Wallata, though not diving birds, are also
in the category of chullumpi because of similar markings and the water association of living near
lakes.13 The black marking on the back of all these water birds resembles a small cargo load,

12
Jose Luis Venero, pers. com., 10 March 2007.
13
Because of this, the term chullumpi is sometimes used in the Pukllay taki Wallata to refer to the
wallata (see Chapter 4, subheading Kunan Pukllay Taki: Topics of Currently Active Carnaval Songs).

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which is one reason chullumpi is nomenclature for cargo-carrying llamas that have similar
markings, both in Qeros and elsewhere in the Andes. Because of this, the male llamas are
referred to as chullumpi in the refrains of Machu Taki, in specific reference to the corn (and
other) cargo that they carry; however, in MachuTaki, the name chullumpi extends to all
llamas, not just the ones with these particular markings. Jorge Flores Ochoa explains that llama
seed animals (stallions) in general are called chullumpi in many Andean communities (Flores
Ochoa 1986, 139).14
Another significant connection between the water birds and the animals is the birds fresh
water dwelling areas, which are the mythological birth places of the llamas and alpacas (Flores
Ochoa 1988, 238). The birds habitat is the chawpi between the Apu and Pacha Mama, which
gives them a special status, as Flores Ochoa explains: Aquatic birds that are called chullumpi
represent the existing relationship between these beings and the lakes and springs, which are the
means of communication that connect this world with the interior (Flores Ochoa 1988, 243).The
animals, then, are associated with the birds not only because of the black and white markings,
but because of the powerful places they reside (birds) and originate from (animals), which
connects both to the supernatural world of the spirit powers.
In addition, some Qeros said that the term chullumpi refers to all (male and female)
llamas. This difference in interpretation is similar to what I encountered in regards to Phallchay,
when I was informed the ritual is for all animals, while others said it is for the female llamas, and
still others said the female alpacas. All interpretations of course are true, and I believe the
underlying gist is that both Phallchay and Machu Fiestay celebrate all animals, but the former
focuses on the female element, and the latter on the male. These focal points reflect the yanantin
relationship between the two rituals; the rituals are a yanantin pair, with Phallchay as warmi and
Machu Fistay as qhari, but both have elements of warmi/qhari in the other, with neither one
completely female or male. The gist of the translation of Wfala Chullumpi, therefore, is
something like Long live the male/female/all llamas!

14
Flores Ochoa cites song text in the llama fertility ritual in Santa Barbara (south of Cusco), in which they
sing to the chullumpillay (Flores Ochoa 1988, 243). Denise Arnold and Juan de Dios Yapita also write extensively
about animal fleece markings and bird feather associations in the animal songs from Qaqachaka, Potos area, Bolivia
(Arnold and de Dios Yapita, 1999 and 2001). Song texts about chullumpi are on pages, 2702 (of the 2001 English
version), and Chapter 9 of their book (2001, 30346) is dedicated to songs about the male llamas.

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 In sum, the refrains of Machu Taki are polysemous, just like the refrains of Pantilla
Tika. The various interpretations and metaphorical associations of the two refrains of Machu
Taki reference any/all of the following: male/female/all llamas, but in particular the stud llama
as seed animal and cargo carrier; current/past lineage of young/virile or wise/old male humans
and llamas; the supreme male deity, Apu; birds with connections to animal birth origins; and
associations of the animals with the supernatural.
The texts Juana sings in Audio Example 7.1 (Song Text 7.1) are common, set verses,
which mostly describe the llama and the persons impressions of him. In Stanza 1 the singer is
the herder describing the male out in the high grasses, which is standing in rock promontories
(sankha), eating the humid grass (suray).
The first verse of Stanza 2 opens with the machu/Apu analogy. The whiteness of the male
llama is compared to the snow of Awsanqati (also Ausangate, Sp.), the largest, most powerful
Apu in the entire southeast region of the Peruvian Andes. The term awsanqati is part of the
Qeros nomenclature for the llamas that are of a particularly clear shade of all-white. Apu
Awsangati is about a two-day walk from Qeros, and its mention in conjunction with the llamas
whiteness places the llama in utmost esteem. Apu Awsanqati is taytay of the highest order, the
most prominent Father in the world of mountain spirits, and holds sway over all other Apu in
the greater southeastern region of Peru, which includes the Apu of Qeros.
The second verse of Stanza 2 and the first verse of Stanza 3 are testaments to the
stubborn character of the lead llama. Together the verses describe that even when the llama is
called to stop, he pretends not to hear.15 This narrative relays what it is like to walk with the
tilantiru as he carries the corn cargo up from the monte. It shows how the people regard the
llama as an individual, with human-like characteristics. That is, he is not just a work animal
that sometimes does not hear, but he has his own willful personality that pretends not to
hear.
The second verse of Stanza 3, Kunan punchaytaq punchayniykiqa, Today is your
day, is a common one in both Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika. It points out that we are
celebrating you today, and, like the previous, the llama is spoken to personally: it is your
special day.

15
Uyariq tukuy is an expression in Quechua that translates to pretending to be deaf (literally, to finish
that which/the one who hears.)

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 In Stanza 4, Vctor sings in the low, qhari voice as he calls it (pers. com., 15 September
2005). This is a vocal style that is often affected by men often in animal fertility ritual, which
John Cohen asserts may be in imitation of the male animals (pers. com., 20 August 2005). The
imitation of animal sound seems probable as this qhari voice is used specifically in animal
fertility ritual; however, this has not been articulated to me as such. Certainly it is a sound
associated with maleness, the central theme of the ritual. Vctor sings of the fun surprises that
might be in store on this day of celebration, now that the llama has now done all of his carrying
and is resting and calm.
I recorded Audio Example 7.2 and Song Text 7.2 in the home of Agustn Machacca
Flores in the anexo of Qocha Moqo on 2 September 2006. Even though Audio Examples 7.1 and
7.2 are from two separate Machu Fistay celebrations (the former in 2005, the latter in 2006), they
were both recorded during the morning preparations in the home just before the family moved to
the mullucancha for the rituals with the llamas. This excerpt shows how energy increases as the
morning progresses, which is partly a result of increased inebriation. Ive been told, and heard
many times, that being drunk is a criterion for good singing; the heightened energy results in
singing that has more life and vitality, so that the song is filled with more samay.
In Audio Example 7.2 we hear spontaneous improvisation on the part of Juliana Apasa
Flores, about a fear that she and many others have regarding the safety of their llamas against
puma attacks. This is the beginning of personalized expressions of anxiety that often leads to
grief-singing by that person, and many others, in the mullucancha later that day, as described in
the above ethnography.

Audio Example 7.2

Song Text 7.2. Machu Taki, excerpt of late morning singing in Machu Fistay.
(Transcription from Audio Example 7.2. Recorded in Qocha Moqo, 2 September 2006.)

Stanza 1
Verse: Viajerowan kumpustaykunki With your fellow travelers, you will get along

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 well
Refrain: Taytayllay chullumpi My dear father, chullumpi
Verse: Pasajerowan kumpustaykunki With your fellow passengers,
you will understand one another
Stanza 2
V: Pacha phuyuwan kushkalla Together, with the clouds [we travel]
R: Wfala chullumpi Victorious chullumpi
V: Taytaychay thaskiykushanki My dear father, you are walking slowly
Juliana Apasa Flores speaks
Aynatapuni. Amaa wachacha kacharisunchu, carajo! Pampa pillunqa, hamushanmi.
Qunqachikuqhina, qunqachikuqhinata.Amaa, kunan punchaymantachu waurunaqr?

It is always like this. Now, young herder, we wont let [the llamas] loose, dammit!
The puma is comingthe one that makes others forget; that distracts us. Now, will he [the
llama] die in only one day?

Stanza 3, Juliana sings

R: Wfala chullumpi Long live the chullumpi!
V: Chayllapiachu qidachikunki Just there, you are made to stay

Juliana shouts
Hina nishachun Inca arrieroq. Waqashachun, waqanman.
It is like that, you will say to the owner. Like that he is crying, why would he cry?

Stanza 4
V: Wfala chullumpi Victorious chullumpi!
R: Taytachay tukaykushanki My dear father, you are playing

Stanza 5
V: Pachalla phuyu laqhaykumuqtin When the fog casts its shadow
R: Wfala chullumpi Long live the chullumpi!
V: Taytachay tukaykushanki My dear father, you are playing

In this recording, two women and one man sing, on the same pitch level: approximately
B-flat, D, F. Sometimes they sing the same text simultaneously, other times not. In Stanzas 1 and
2 the women and man sing somewhat together, with some overlap. The text of both stanzas
describes the llama trains as they ascend from the monte with the corn cargos. Kumpustay is
from the Spanish verb componerse (to consist of, to comprise), and its uses in this context refers
to fellow travelers who understand one another, get along well, know how to pass one another on
the trail, walk in line together, and so forth. The llamas walk slowly uphill with the clouds,
because the clouds always come from the forest below and rise into upper Qeros.

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 Then, suddenly Juliana breaks into speech, as if she is living a moment that did or could
happen, probably both. She talks to an imaginary young girl herder, rather harshly saying
dammit, we wont let the llamas loose! Juliana continues, not wanting to let the llamas free to
graze out of the corral because the puma, pampa pillunqa, is a trickster, qunqachikuq, one
that can make others forget, and it could distract the people and attack and kill a young llama.
Juliana calls the puma by a name that is a classificatory name for a brown llama: pampa
(brown color of flat grassy areas or pampa) and pillun, from the Spanish pelln (pelt).16 Juliana
told me that because of the pumas mischievous nature, it would more likely come on the day
least expected, that is, during Machu Fistay, rather than on an ordinary herding day. Because of
this it is necessary to address the puma with affection on this day, the same way they address
their llamas, so that it is pacified (pers. com., 15 September 2006). She completes this idea by
saying that the llamas will not die just because we have kept them in from grazing for one day.
In Stanza 3 Juliana sings a refrain of praise for the male llama, and then sings an
improvised verse that follows what she was just talking about: the llamas are made to stay in
their corral, for protection against the puma.17 Juliana then speaks again, directly to the male
llama, instructing him to say to his owner (Inca arriero) that this is the way things are, in order
to pacify the owners concern about the puma. Then she comments that the owner is crying, but
that he should not cry, adding why should he cry? because it is like this in Qeros.
In Julianas brief monologue, she has created a scene that regularly happens in Qeros:
the attack of a puma, which temporarily traumatizes a herd and is devastating for the owners.
The girl (wacha) could be her youngest daughter, Rina, who herds with Juliana regularly, or
perhaps she is remembering her own childhood when, as she told me, she herded daily with her
grandfather, or both. She addresses the loss and crying that she and any herder feel about the
death of a llama. In this way, she is articulating her own anxiety and fears, which are communal
fears.
Inca arriero (literally Inca muleteer) is a formal name the Qeros use in ritual to refer
to the llamas owner. The name Inca arriero is used in a myth they used to recite regularly
during Machu Fistay in the past, but it rarely occurs anymore. The myth has many versions that

16
The qa suffix on pillunqa is for emphasis.
17
The verb she sings is qidachikunki from the Spanish quedar (to stay).

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basically tell of a llama or llamas that help the Qeros win a moonlight battle against the Spanish.
The myth glorifies the strength of the llamas and connects them to the mythical past.18 In this
way, the ancient and heroic lineage of the llamas is evoked.
Stanzas 4 and 5 address the llama as he plays, in the sense of playing/sounding an
instrument. Tukay comes from the Spanish tocar. Juliana told me this refers to the llama
playing his high-pitched y-y natural sound that he makesthe very sound that mestizo
chronicler Guamn Poma de Ayala drew in the scene of the Inca singing with his llama in the
early seventeenth century, as depicted in Figure 7.1 (ibid.).
In sum, Audio Example 7.2 and Song Text 7.2 show the beginnings of personal
expression of fear and anxiety in the reenactment of the possible arrival of the life-threatening
puma. Juliana addresses the crying and sadness anyone would feel over such a loss. Later on,
when people go to the mullucancha for drinking with the llamas and replacing their tika, the
personalized expression of anxiety and loss reaches its peak. Audio Example 7.3 shows the
sound aesthetic during this peak ritual time, as people are in the height of inebriation and singing
fervently and continuously.

Audio Example 7.3

In Audio Example 7.3 it is obvious from the outset that there is more urgency in the
singing and an increase in overall energy and intensity of sound when compared to the morning
singing (Audio Example 7.1 is from the same day, people, and place, but just earlier in the day).
In this excerpt, many people sing simultaneously, but rarely line up the melodies together
except on aysariykuy. They sing in different pitch centers simultaneously, and dance with the

18
John Cohen recorded extended discourse that references Inca arriero and the myth, in an older version
of Machu Taki that is no longer sung. This can be heard on track 28, Woman with Bells (1964), in 1991 [1964],
Mountain Music of Peru, Smithsonian/Folkways. Up until about twenty years ago, sections of this myth were
regularly retold in Machu Fistay, and discourse was quite extensive. Francisco Quispe Machacca explained that we
used to talk a lot like this while singing the awpa Machu Taki, (old version of Machu Taki) but no longer
(pers. com., 15 September 2006). He believes it has something to do with the change in the character and quality of
drunkenness. We used to drink just aqha, but now we drink [pure] alcohol, and we cannot recite [the myth] like
before (ibid.).

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llama bells among the llamas. The peoples overall intentions in the ritual to reach the Apu, and
their filling the song with samay, are heard in the intensity of the peoples singing. The singing is
at its peak as people interact with their llamas, having them drink aqha and changing their tika.

Song Text 7.3. Machu Taki, excerpt of afternoon singing in the mullucancha in Machu Fistay.
(Transcription from Audio Example 7.3. Recorded in Challmachimpana, 27 August 2005).

Stanza 1, Juana Flores Salas sings

Refrain: Taytallay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
Verse: Kayllapiachus chayllapiachu It will be only here, it will be only there

[Another woman joins Juana during the aysariykuy; she sings approximately a minor third
lower. People dance with bells.]

Stanza 2, Juan Quispe Calcina sings (in same pitch center as Juana)
V: Antisuyullay pachay phuyu The cloud from the antisuyu (monte)
R: Taytallay wawqellay My dear father, my dear brother
V: Qanqa taytallay thaskiykuy You, my dear father, walk carefully

Stanza 3, Juana overlaps with Juan at this point and sings

V: Pasa wawqellay, pasa mistillay Just walk my brother, just pass my misti (mixed)
R: Taytallay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
V: Sayasqallayki pampapi In the meadow where you rest

[A woman joins Juana on aysariykuy, singing a fifth below.]

Stanza 4, Juana sings

V: Taytallay sayaykushanki My dear father, you are standing tall
R: Taytallay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
V: Kunan punchaytaq punchayniyki Today is your day

Stanza 5, A woman sings simultaneously under Juanas last verse

V: Wfala Machullay Victorious llama!
R: Qucha ulayraq ulaykusun Like the waves of the lake, we will make waves

Stanza 6, Another woman sings

V: Wfala Machullay Victorious llama!
R: Huqlla, iskhalla machuqa Only one, only two llamas

Stanza 7, Juana sings

V: Awsanqatichay lontoqa My little white snow of Ausangate
R: Taytallay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
V: Piqpa maypalla machuntaq Of whom, from where is this valiant llama

Stanza 8, Juana sings and cries

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V: Apasa runallaq machuntaq It is the llama belonging to the man Apasa
R: Taytallay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
[Juana begins to cry here]
V: Kayllapiachus chayllapia(chu) It will be only here, it will be only there

Stanza 9, Older woman sings, about a fifth below Juana

V: Quncha punkuman sirvuykunata You serve us even to the stoves door
R: Wfala Machullay Victorious llama!
[verse difficult to discern; not translated]

Stanza 10, Older woman again

V: Piyunchallaykis harriyasunki Your peon is herding you
R: Wfala Machullay Victorious llama!
[verse difficult to discern; overlapping voices here]

Stanza 11, Juana sings

V: Apasachallaq runallaqa It is the llama belonging to Apasa
R: Wfala Machullay Victorious llama!
V: Rumi kaspiwan harriyaykuna You are herded with sticks and stones

Juana adds a second refrain

R: Lluqillamanpas, paallamanpas To the left, and to the right

[Here an older woman sings in aysariykuy a fifth below Juana]

Stanza 12, strong womans voice

V: Manyarikullay, haywarikullay Please partake, please serve yourself

Stanza 13, Juan sings

V: Taytallay wawqellay My dear father, my dear brother
R: Mayraqch uhaykushaswan For how long will we be drinking so much?
V: Taytallay wawqellay My dear father, my dear brother

[verse difficult to discern]

Stanza 14, Sebastiana Machacca Apasa sings

V: Kunan punchaychu punchayllay Today is your day
R: Taytallay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
V: Ausangatillay lontoqa My little white snow of Ausangate

Stanza 15, Sebastiana sings

V: Wawqechallantin xx Two brother llamas together (xx indiscernible)
R: Wfala Machullay Victorious llama!
V: Hali Taytallay niykuwaq Rest, stop my father you shall say

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Stanza 16, Sebastiana sings
V: Uyariqllapas Tukunkichu You pretend you do not hear
R: Wfala Machullay Victorious llama!

Stanza 17, Juan sings softly

Taytallaykiqa uhaysun Your dear father, we will drink

Juana Flores Salas is the first singer. Her pitch center from the morning to the afternoon
shifts from approximately D-flat to E. This rise in pitch of about a minor third is indicative of
heightened energy and emotion. Right away at the beginning of this example the individual
nature of the communal singing of Machu Taki is obvious when two women sing at different
times, in different pitch centers, and with different texts. They sing as they stand next to the
llamas, threading the bright pink or red yarn into needles, in order to hand the tika to the men
who will thread it into the llamas pierced ears. Many people play the rusayu and dance with
them in the mullucancha.
In Stanza 2, Juan describes the familiar scene of clouds as they roll up from the humid
monte below (just like Juliana described in Stanza 2 of Audio Example 7.2), which is an effect
caused by the rising warm humidity of the lowland cloud forest as it meets the drier cold air
above. This is the typical and nearly daily weather pattern in Qeros. The term antisuyu
(anti/eastern and suyu/section or partiality) is from pre-Hispanic times, and the best-known use is
by the Incas to refer to the eastern quarter of the empire, which was essentially the lowland area
of the Amazon cloud and rain forest.19 The Qeros use of the term antisuyu, then, refers to their
land in the monte, and is more commonly used in song or ritual and not daily speech. The
following verse describes the llama as he walks slowly and carefully, ascending the narrow
path on the journey up from the monte.
In the first verse of Stanza 3 Juana refers to the movement of the brother llamas as they
pass each other on the busy trail. This verse is a general one referring to brother llama, and not
a personal one, improvised by Juana, because she uses the word wawqey (the term a man calls
his brother), and not turay (the term a woman calls her brother). The misti (mestizo) that is on the
trail refers to a llama and alpaca hybrid, or mix.
The second verse of Stanza 3, In the meadow where you rest, refers to the single large
meadow on the trail, qirispampa, which is the only place the hundreds of simultaneously
19
Anti is the origin of todays name of the mountains: Andes.

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ascending and descending llamas have room to pass each other during the days ascent/descent.
All people and llamas arrive on the pampa sometime mid-morning (usually between 9:0010:00
a.m.), for a large communal rest when they eat karmu (food carried for the trail) and socialize.
There may be a few hundred llamas in the pampa at any given time, and they sometimes get
mixed in with those of other groups. It is wonderfully exciting to see the people laughing and
shouting as they run around separating their llamas, and herd them onto the appropriate up or
down trail. The peoples singing about qirispampa highlights the importance this place plays in a
successful corn harvest.
In this verse, Sayasqallayki pampapi, we hear another woman line up her melody with
Juanas, but with a different text. She holds her aysariykuy approximately a fifth below Juanas
pitch on aysariykuy. Pinkuyllu playing is heard in the background. There is much overlapping in
singing here, with Juanas voice in the foreground.
In Stanza 4 Juana sings My dear father, you are tall, which some Qeros say refers to
the llamas as they stand and wait for the corn cargos to be loaded on their backs. It is also a
general comment on the stature and comportment of the llamas. The second verse in Stanza 4 is a
common one, exclaiming that today is your day, the day to celebrate the llama. The woman
who sings Like the waves of the lake, we will make waves in Stanza 5 is referring to the waves
of drinking and dancing that the people make throughout the celebration. This is a floating verse
that is found in many songs, including Pukllay taki.
There is one brief, yet fascinating moment, which I believe shows how the Qeros have
their own sense of relative pitches or keys; that is, pitch levels that are comfortable for
singing in relation to one another while simultaneously singing in his/her own comfortable range.
Between 1:011:03, three women line up their aysarikuy on three distinct pitches that together
comprise a major triad. On Juanas second verse of Stanza 4, kunan punchaytaq
punchayniyki, she holds her aysariykuy in the pitch of E. The woman who sings qucha ulayraq
ulaykusun in Stanza 5 holds her aysariykuy on the pitch of A, a fifth below Juanas pitch level,
and still a third woman sings the refrain Wfala machullay simultaneously in the background on
the pitch of C#. So, their combined pitches (A, C#, E) comprise the intervallic relationship of the
tritonic pattern that is foundational in Machu Taki, Pantilla Tika, and all Pukllay taki. It
makes sense that when people sing in different keys, they would naturally sing in a pitch center
that has some pitches in common with the one that his or her neighbor is singing in (and

172
therefore is more comfortable for singing). In other words, a persons sung triad will have some
of the same pitches as their neighbors triad, in intervals of a fifth or a third above or below.
This example supports my suggestion of certain communal criteria and boundaries within
individualized singing, such as an agreed-upon tempo and relative pitch levels or keys among the
singers (see Chapter 5, subheading Musical Aesthetics of Pukllay taki Performance, for a
discussion of relative keys).
The verse only one, only two llamas in Stanza 6 comments on how the Qeros must
select the strongest llamas from all the males in a herd to carry the corn up from the monte,
because all are not capable. This highlights the special status of the ones that are selected.
In Stanza 7 Juana sings about the llama that is white like the snow of Apu Awsanqati, and
in the next verse she queries, To whom does this one valiant llama belong? Then, in Stanza 8,
she answers her own question it belongs to the man named Apasa. This is a fixed verse, and in
this case does not refer to a particular Apasa (as it did when Vctor sang his wifes last name);
rather, the verse is generically associating the llama with any Qeros person, as Apasa is a
common name.
At this point in the ritual, the emotional intensity begins to cause people to cry, which we
hear in the breaking of Juanas voice as she sings the refrain of Stanza 8, Taytallay Machullay.
The intensive sharing of aqha with the llamas and changing of their tika, one by one many
women and some men begin to cry, as described in the above ethnography. Their continued
singing is that of the known verses, with an occasional personal improvisation.
In Stanza 9, an older woman sings, You serve us even to the stoves door. The llamas
not only carry many loads to the homes, but, figuratively, to the very hearth of the home, the
stoves door, where the corn (that the llama carried) is cooked on the fire that their very dung
fuels. The perception is one of how the llamas serve the people, carrying and providing so many
sustenance items that keep the people fed. On this matter, I heard one woman say precisely, We
are served by the llamas.
Stanzas 10 and 11 describe herding the llamas on the return trip from the monte, and
daily herding in general. A herder is sometimes referred to as piyun (peon, Stanza 10) who
sometimes herds with sticks and stones, to the left and to the right (Stanza 11). These verses
are also sung in Pantilla Tika, because they are about herding in general, and not specifically
to the llamas.

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 In Stanza 12 Juana sings, Please partake, please serve yourself respectfully to the
llama, inviting him to enjoy and abundantly drink the aqha that is being served to him on his
special day. Juan follows in Stanza 13 when he also addresses the ritual drinking by singing an
open-ended question that acknowledges the intensity and enjoyment of Machu Fistay, For how
long will we be drinking so much?
The remaining verses have been sung before, with the exception of Stanza 15 and two
brothers together, which refers to two strong male lead llamas. Using the term wawqe (brother)
to refer to the llamas, like taytay, shows the kinship-like feelings they hold for the animals.
The song is a discourse about the llamas labor and the peoples strong feelings about
him; significant places and typical scenes along the trip to and from the monte are named; the
llamas strength, colorings, slow gait, and stubborn personality are detailed; familial kinship and
lineage of father and brother are acknowledged; and celebratory drinking is referenced. The
refrains are repeated allegories of praise to the male llama, expressions of gratitude to him and
his lineage for service rendered, and feelings of kinship toward him. The expressions are
affectionate and familiar, while simultaneously respectful and reverent. In many cases the words
are specific moments, a sort of sung story (two brothers, just walk and pass, you pretend
you do not hear). The song text is a narrative of lived moments and true feelings, a window into
the peoples interdependence with and respect for the male llamas. And, finally, the song is the
vehicle that is used to express personal sentiments of loss, fear, and anxiety.
The fourth and final recording in this sequence is Audio Example 7.4, which was
recorded in the anexo of Qocha Moqo, like Audio Example 7.2 from the same morning, except
the recording is from late afternoon. This recording is two sequences in one, the first one earlier,
with a short fadeout (00:30), which is followed by another example that was recorded about an
hour later. They are both from the latter part of the ritual in the mullucancha, when the llamas are
made to drink aqha and their tika is being replaced. This audio example focuses particularly on
the sound of the bells as the people dance and sing with the rusayu when they embody and
celebrate the revered lead llama.

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 Audio Example 7.4

In both sequences of Audio Example 7.4, the bell sound is in the foreground with much
animated talking, singing, and pinkuyllu playing in the background. The two selections, one after
the other, show how intensity builds throughout the afternoon. In both, all women sing in the
same pitch center, yet this center rises over the course of the afternoon. In the first part of the
recording from earlier in the afternoon (0:000:30) the pitch center on aysariykuy is an
approximate B-flat, which changes to an approximate D-flat in the second recording. This rise in
pitch of a third is the aural representation of increased energy in the ritual as the afternoon
progresses. Furthermore, in the second recording the womens voices are fuller and more
assertive, and the singing has a heightened fervor that is somewhat like a forceful shout. In the
same vein, the talking among the women is more intense, with vocal quality equally as intense
and forced. The shaking of the bells in the first part is more rhythmic and with a steady pulse,
and the latter is more continual with a trance-like feeling to it. I observed this progression
physically as well as aurally: the women who sang standing over the machu misa earlier in the
afternoon moved in a more regular, pulsating dance-like fashion that later was transformed into
more of a passionate trance-like swaying from side-to-side. At this latter point in the ritual many
of the women were crying and expressing personal sentiments, in spoken or sung discourse.
The song texts in Audio Examples 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3 with their accompanying Song Texts
7.1, 7.2, and 7.3, show the deep significance the male llama holds for the people, how he is
revered and loved, and how he plays an integral role in the peoples lives. The verses richly
detail the llamas personality and physical traits, important place names, and specific moments of
interaction in the corn-carrying journey. The refrains celebrate male llama and human ancestry,
and have metaphorical connections with male virility and wisdom, the Apu superpowers, and the
bird/supernatural/birth origin associations.
The singing and playing undergoes an evolutionary process throughout the ritual, from
that of formal expression early in the day (Audio Example 7.1) to one of full and open passion
by the end (Audio Examples 7.3 and 7.4). This open passion is often transforming, and fosters

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the release of great emotion, when crying about loss emerges and is expressed through dialogue,
enactments, and song, as heard in Julianas puma sequence, Audio Example 7.2. I expand more
on reasons for this emergence of emotion in the next chapter.

Yanantin Relationship between the Songs Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika
Machu Taki is very much the brother-song to its sister-song, Pantilla Tika. The texts
of both songs, especially the refrains, encompass the meaning of both rituals: reverence of male
and female camelids respectively, with metaphorical associations to human lineage, birds, and
the supernatural (see Chapter 6, subheading Pantilla Tika: Song for Llamas and Alpacas). The
former song focuses on the male animals in the qhari dry season time of year, and the latter on
the female animals in the warmi wet season time of year. In addition to paired textual and
contextual relationship, I argue that the coupling of these two songs is manifested in their shared
melodic structure and song form which are distinct from all Pukllay taki, and all other animal
fertility songs (to the cows and sheep).
Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika are very similar in melodic and rhythmic structures,
as well as overall song form. Both songs have a verse-refrain-verse (ABA1) form, which differs
from the verse-refrain (AB) form of all Pukllay taki; however, the melodic relationship between
the vocal and pinkuyllu parts of the two songs is like that of all Pukllay taki, with the tritonic
melodies in a yanantin relationship to each other (see Chapter 5, subheading Yanantin in Song
Structure and Paired Pusunis Conch Shell Trumpets). That is, the vocal and pinkuyllu melodies
begin in a shared-pitch area (chawpi: mi and sol), and then the two verses and the refrain end
with clear warmi/qhari distinction that forms an interval of a fifth (warmi on do, qhari on sol).
Audio Example 7.5 and Musical Transcription 7.2 shows the yanantin relationship
between Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika in regards to shared musical traits: ABA1 form,
duple meter, and rhythmic length of melodic lines. These two transcription excerpts can be heard
back-to-back in Audio Example 7.5, so that by reading the transcriptions combined with
listening to the songs the resemblance of both songs is apparent. In the first example, Machu
Taki, I have transcribed the pinkuyllu part (upper notes) even though there is no pinkuyllu in
this particular audio excerpt.

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 Audio Example 7.5

Musical Transcription 7.2. The Yanantin Relationship of Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika
1) Machu Taki: Excerpted from field recording in Challmachimpana, 27 August 2005.
Singer, Juana Flores Salas; pinkuyllu player, Vctor Flores Salas.

1) Machu Taki:

[A Verse____________ __] [B Refrain ] [A1 Verse ]

A) Sayasqallayki sankhapi In the promontory of rocks where you stand

B) Taytayllay Machullay My dear father, my valiant llama
A1) Surallaykiwan mikhuykunki You who eats the humid grass

2) Pantilla Tika: Excerpted from a 1984 recording by John Cohen (Track 38 on 1991 [1964].
Mountain Music of Peru. Smithsonian/Folkways CD), Singer, Monica Apasa Vargas; pinkuyllu
player is Monicas cousin, Enrique.

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Musical Transcription 7.2, continued:

2) Pantilla Tika:

[A Verse ] [B Refrain ] [A1 Verse ]

I ma cha ma nta fal ta ta --- Pantillaphall chay wa ma nki Chayllachuma na u hay ku(saq) ---

A) Imachamanta faltata I want for nothing

B) Pantilla phallchay wamanki My lovely, pink phallcha flower, wamanki
A1) Chayllachu mana uhaykusaq How am I not going to drink?

The ABA1 form is obvious in both songs, with the refrain centered between the verses.
The straight-forward duple pulse of Machu Taki and Pantilla Tika contrasts with the triple-
compound rhythm of all Pukllay taki (see Appendix B). This rhythmic contrast between the two
genres I believe is related to the songs contrastive functions: the animal fertility songs are for
direct supplication to the super powers, and the Pukllay taki are for playful fun. The duple pulse
feel of the former is more declarative, while the triple compound meter of the latter is more
dance-like.
The two songs have the same number of measures and therefore the same number of
rhythmic pulses or beats in both songs. Every other beat is stressed in the singing, so that there
are four strong pulses in each of the three sections. Therefore, the three sections of both songs
are uniform: A) verse of four strong pulses, B) refrain of four strong pulses, and A1) verse of four
strong pulses, with aysariykuy at the end. In addition to having the same pulse organization, the
pitches of the sung melodies are also organized the same within these pulses. The first pulse of
each of the three sections in the vocal melody begins on the higher pitch of sol, then the second
pulse moves to mi, and the third and fourth pulses are held on do. Machu Taki is slightly more
syncopated than Pantilla Tika, which is one minor difference between the two melodies.
Other than that, the melody, rhythm, and form are strikingly similar.

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 For many reasons, both musically and functionally, these two songs are mirror images of
one another: similar melodic, rhythmic, and formal structure; the female/male, animal/human
lineage, bird/supernatural textual associations; the alternating female/male focus in ritual and
season; and, finally, intent of song function as propitiation for healthy herds (this last reason is
expanded upon in the next chapter). Just as Tom Cummins states that Yanantin takes a pictorial
form in queros, because when a toast is offered the two cups held up to each other produce a
mirror image (Cummins 2002, 260), the same is true with these two songs, except the mirror
in this case is aural, and not visual.
Furthermore, I argue that it would not be too far-fetched to say that, in essence, they are
really the same song, one being the female aspect or warmi version, and the other the male
aspect or qhari version. This is like the powerful force of Pacha Mama and the Apu that has
female and male aspects one within the other, and are not conceived of separately, as Agustn
demonstrated when he exclaimed I cannot talk about them separately. Warmintin qharintinpuni!
(woman/man inclusively, always!) (pers. com., 22 May 2006). I remember asking Luis, What
would happen if offerings were made only for the Pacha Mama and not the Apu? He responded
that the Apu would not receive the offering, that the offering must be to both; that they are
inseparable (pers. com., 7 August 2007). Catherine Allen describes the interconnected nature of
the Andean world: Pacha (World), the prototypical body, is not a simple or passive thing but
rather a specific configuration of matter, activity and a moral relationship, a state of shared and
materialized experience (Allen 2008, 8). This state of shared and materialized experience is
comprised of female and male aspects, with Pacha Mama and Apu as the grandest and most
powerful. In this light, perhaps the songs should not be thought of as two separate songs for two
separate rituals; rather, their relationship to one another is indicative of a complementary duality
that is more appropriately considered (in Qeros perception) as a complete whole. Another way
to put it is that it can be no coincidence that the two songs are so similar to one another, and not
to the other Qeros autochthonous songs; and that whenever these songs came into being, they
came from the perception of viewing the world within a yanantin whole. Indeed, the songs for
the cow and bull also have similar melodic traits to one another, and the songs for the ewe and
the ram have the very same melody, but different texts.20 Therefore, with all Qeros animal

20
These are pentatonic songs sung and played on the panpipes during Sinalay, which is the ritual to the
cattle and sheep held just before Todos los Santos in October.

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fertility songs, the yanantin relationship of the animals and the fertility rituals is also manifested
in the yanantin musical relationship between the corresponding female/male animal songs.
This yanantin pairing, as expressed in musical mirror images, supports the argument I
posited about the yanantin relationship between vocal and pinkuyllu melodies in all Pukllay taki
(see Chapter 5, subheading Yanantin in Song Structure and Paired Pusunis Conch Shell
Trumpets), as forms of cultural insistence (Urton 2003, 44 referring to Robert and Marcia
Ascher), refraction (Guss 1989, 4), and habitus (Allen 2002, 179, referring to Bourdieu). By
extension, my argument evolves beyond that of melodic relationships in the internal structure of
songs to that of yanantin relationship between two songs (which also have the internal yanantin
structure). This yanantin relationship between the two songs, just like the yanantin relationship
between vocal and pinkuyllu parts in all Pukllay taki, Machu Taki, and Pantilla Tika, and
the continual cyclical performance of them, is a musical re-creation of the Qeros worldview
and cosmological perception.
The cyclical performance of the paired songs represents the continual cyclical return that
characterizes Andean time and space (pacha). Just like Cummins reminds us that . . . although
they [the cups] are made in pairs, there is a slight difference in size, such that one is Hanan and
one Hurin, the songs too have a hanan-hurin relationship that fluctuates according to season
(ibid., 260). During the Incan Empire the terms hanan and hurin referred to predominant status
and subordinate status, respectively, and status was continually fluctuating depending on context.
For example, during times of war or battle, Cuscos higher, larger square of Awqaypata or
Waqaypata (place of war or weeping), and its associated moiety held predominant status
(hanan), while the lower, smaller one Kusipata (place of joy or happiness) with its moiety was
subordinate. In times of celebration or feasts this status was reversed, such that the Awqaypata
was subordinate to the Kusipata. Similarly, the year goes through seasonal cycles, when the dry
season is hanan to the wet, and then transition occurs (chawpi) when the rains come, and the wet
season becomes hanan to the dry. In this way, during Machu Fistay, Machu Taki has hanan
status to the hurin status of Pantilla Tika, and conversely, during Phallchay, Pantilla Tika
has hanan status to the hurin status of Machu Taki. 21 Machu Fistay and Phallchay, with their

21
Ideas for this section drawn from Randall 1982b, 51.

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mirrored focus on male/female animals with male/female-oriented songs, are in continual
cyclical return with a male/female seasonal relationship to one another.
Andean cosmology is premised on such cyclic relationships and returns. The presiding
sense is one of cyclical return of equilibrium, punctuated by interim periods of transition, which
is the relationship inherent in yanantin. In this sense the paired elements of the songs form,
melodic, and rhythmic relationships, as well as seasonal performance, are musical synecdoche of
cyclical return that Andean pacha is premised on. That is, the pairing of musical elements is the
small scale, musical version of what occurs on the large scale.
The musical aesthetics of Machu Fistay and Phallchay, in particular the continuous
overlap and prolonged aysariykuy in the singing and playing, are aspects of musical production
that serve in the re-establishment of an ayni relationship with the cosmos. In the next chapter I
address the vocal technique of aysariykuy performed in continual overlap as intention to re-
create good relationship with the cosmos, and grief-singing that can result when this relationship
is breached.

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 PART IV
SOCIAL AND COSMIC REPRODUCTION
IN THE PERFORMANCE OF INDIGENOUS QEROS SONGS

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 CHAPTER 8
TOWARD AN INDIGENOUS ANDEAN THEORY OF MUSIC:
RITUAL BLOWING OF SONGS, AND THE SINGING OF GRIEF

Why do you pull the songs?

Chayanankupaq, Uyarinankupaq
So that they [the songs] arrive; so that they [the spirits] hear.
Hilrio Machacca Apasa, 28 July 2007,
and Juliana Apasa Flores, 4 August 2007.

Why do you often cry when you sing?

Waqaspapuni asta awiluykumanta.

Waqaspapuni takishayku. Kusisqa, kusisqa waqashayku.
We have always cried, since the time of our grandfathers.
We always cry while singing. Joyfully, joyfully we cry.
Juliana Apasa Flores, 4 August 2007.

Aysariykuy: So that the Songs Arrive

The vocal technique of aysariykuy is one musical element that reveals the Qeros
intention to fulfill ayni obligations with the Apu. The anxiety inherent in the uncertainty of
fulfillment of ayni obligations often results in personalized singing of grief, along with other
factors such as the power of embodiment, inebriation, and the intimacy of the family-animal
environment during fertility rituals. A particular intention in this chapter is to highlight the
Qeros point of view about aysariykuy, ayni with the cosmos, and grief-singing and its effects,
which then lends insight into an indigenous, Andean theory of music.
During my first two years of intense fieldwork when I was constantly immersed in Qeros
life, I inquired many times about the particular vocal and playing technique of aysariykuy: the
prolongation on the last syllable of certain phrases, when the air is accelerated and fully expelled,
often resulting in a slight rise in pitch at the very end. I found this way of ending phrases to be
very beautiful, unusual, and intriguing.
Common responses to my queries about it were: SAllin tunuyuq, It is with a good
tone, and Takirayku aynatapuni, We have always sung that way; one of my favorite
responses was sumaq aysariykuy, It is beautiful pulling. I had repeatedly been told that a

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good singer is someone who sings kallpa sapayoq, full of strength, and manan
manchakunchu, is not afraid. So I understood that assertive, strong singing, and the long
pulling of the ends of phrases, were all desired aesthetics, considered beautiful, and markers of
good musicianship.
Agustn elaborated on these points by comparing good and bad pinkuyllu players. He said
that blowing with full strength was preferred to a weak sound, and that one should play slowly
and not too fast. He also mentioned, as did many others, that a good pinkuyllu player was one
who was not shy, but played with loud enthusiasm (pers. com., 12 September 2005). Likewise,
when Vctor was teaching me to play pinkuyllu, he pointed out that I was not fully pushing out
the air of the final tone. I sustained the tone while playing, but was not expelling it with vigor,
which is what he indicated I needed to do. From these teachings, I learned that assertive and slow
playing, breathy timbre that is rich with overtones, and full and forceful exhalation at the end of
held phrases were desired aesthetics. But even though I knew that a strong aysariykuy was the
correct way to sing and play in Qeros, I still did not know why.
After I sang and participated in rituals through a full years cycle (2006), I felt intuitively
that there was more to it than just beautiful pulling. In both Pukllay and animal fertility ritual I
sensed a strong intention that undergirded the way they pulled the ends of verses. So I began to
query again, specifically pinpointing this aspect of singing I was interested in: Why do you pull
the song? I still continued to receive many of the same answers, It is good singing, we have
always done it that way, etc., but one day I received a response that was substantially different,
which I immediately sensed to be significant because it pointed to their cosmological
perspective. Hilrio succinctly replied: Chayanankupaq, So that they [the songs] arrive
(pers. com., 28 July 2007). Then, only days later, Juliana said: Uyarinankupaq, So that they
hear (pers. com., 4 August 2007). And I asked, Who? So that who hears? And she simply
said, Apu, Pacha Mama (ibid.). A few days later I watched Luis hold up an offering, and call
to the Apu with the usual stream of invocatory words I had heard numerous times over the
previous two years. He said that the purpose of his invocation was: Uyarinankupaq,
uyarinankukama, So that they hear, until they hear (pers. com., 7 August 2007). In one of my
last discussions with Agustn before leaving for the U.S. to write this dissertation, he confirmed,
Chayananpaq Apuman, Pacha Mamaman, So that it [the song] arrives to the Apu and Pacha
Mama (pers. com., 12 December 2007).

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 Suddenly I was able to make connections between this specific vocal technique and the
numerous times I had seen coca leaves and offering bundles held up and blown in the direction
of the Apu: aysariykuy was also a phukuya ritual blowing. Of course it was the same with
song! This action of blowing the song was one of a stream of overlapping and continuous ritual
actions: phukuy on the pagu and coca leaves; libations on the khuya, inqaychu, the entire herd;
speaking, blowing into, and tossing the pululu; the shaking of the bells that were wahananpaq
(to call); along with aysariykuy in singing and playing pinkuyllu. Songs are a part of this huge
bundle of offerings and supplications, and one of the many actions employed to send energy or
samay out, just like alcohol and flowers are thrown. Isaac told me Takipas samaymantan, hatun
ofrenda, Also songs, which are from samay, are a big offering (pers. com., 4 August 2007).
An analysis of the Qeros name for this action helps illuminate the intention inherent in
the vocal and playing technique. Quechua is a language in which multiple suffixes are added to
basic verb roots, which change or add to the meaning. The root of aysariykuy is aysay: to pull,
to drag, to haul, and to throw. Added to aysay are three suffixes: the first, ri [ru],1
indicates an action with speed and urgency; the second, yu, implies an action performed with
intensity; and lastly, ku, is an action executed with much enthusiasm, affection, and in quantity.
For ease in pronunciation, ri-yu-ku becomes riyku, so the final word is aysariykuy. Thus, the
essence of the full translation is something like The song is pulled or thrown with urgency,
intensity, and affectionate enthusiasm and with much quantity of breath. More than just
simply infusing the song with samay, or life essence, that samay must be moved and thrown
in a particular way, with urgency, intensity, and affectionate enthusiasmso that the sound
arrives and so that they hear. Upon receipt and hearing, the Apu can then reciprocate with
healthy herds, so that the peoples lives will thrive.
Many scholars who have researched in the Andes, the Amazon, and other rainforest areas
of South America, have shown how people are agents in the intentional and causal movement of
breath for interaction with the spiritual, or invisible and intangible forces around them. Catherine
Allen comments on shaping the flow of samay, based on her work in the community of Sonqo in
the Peruvian Andes: While everything that has material existence is alive, the intensity of a
things liveliness varies and can be controlled, at least to some extent. This flow of enlivening

1
The suffix ri is really ru, but in this case the u changes to i for ease of pronunciation, based on the
subsequent suffixes.

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spirit, inherent in all matter, bears conceptual similarities to our ideas of energy and divine grace.
Andean ritual works at holding, controlling, and directing the flow of sami (Allen 2002, 34, my
emphasis). To Allens statement I add, the Qeros hold, control, and direct the flow of samay
through aysariykuy in song.
Michael Uzendoski, in his work with the Napo Runa in Amazonian Ecuador, states,
Among Amazonian (and Andean) peoples, substances are understood to give life as they flow
through various domains: human, natural, and spiritual (Uzendoski 2005, 18). Uzendoski shows
that the circulation of samai (spirit or breath) is an essential substance in the causai (life force)
that connects both consanguineal and affinal relations, even through multiple generations (ibid.,
14950, 166).
Ritual blowing is described by Dale Olsen in the curing songs (hoa) of the Warao
shamans of the tropical Orinoco Delta rainforest in Venezuela, in which a shaman both sings and
blows on his patient in order to effect healing (Olsen, 1996, 288). Similarly, David Guss, in his
work among the Yekuana in the upper Orinoco River regions, explains the ritual blowing of
chants that detoxify objects so they will be rendered safe for human cohabitation: Powered by
the breath that animates them, the words of the chants are blown or taled to the forces they are
meant to influence. Words are not simply uttered or sung but are infused with the actual spirit of
the chanter who, breaking at certain points in the performance, disseminates them with short,
rapid blowing (Guss 1989, 6667). The goal of the short, rapid blowing is the
communication with the supernatural forces animating each object, without whose submission it
cannot be safely incorporated into the life of the community (ibid., 67). Guss supports his
discussion by citing Audrey Butts work among the Akawaio people, nearby to the Yekuana:
When a person blows, it is that persons own spirit or vitality which is projected in the breath
and which is sent to perform certain work (Butt 1956, 49, quoted in Guss 1989, 67).
In all of these examples we see how the movement and manipulation or blowing of
breath affects connections and livelihood among many domains: human, spirit, physical,
metaphysical, through generations, and for detoxification and healing. Similarly, the Qeros
connect their own spirit or animu to the spirit powers, via libations, phukuy, and aysariykuy
through the energized substances of alcohol, coca, and song. If the song is not infused with the
peoples samay and correctly moved through aysariykuy, the songs effectiveness is diminished,
and the animals well-being, and therefore that of the people, is at risk. Rituals are saturated with

186
these non-stop actions, because these offerings and connections via samay and substance are so
vitally important. This explains why Luis said uyarinankukama, until they hear; all actions
must be continually repeated to ensure their arrival and receipt.
A primary intent in Qeros music-making is therefore the continual projection of samay
in payment or offering to the Apu, with aysariykuy as the technique employed to throw the
song out in offering. The reshaping of samay in the offering of song underpins the aesthetic of
music-making, as opposed to any kind of focus on singing or playing in unison. This is why
singing/playing appears so individualized; I say appears, because the projection of samay in
song is the Qeros musical coordinationthe coordination of intention. This manipulation of
samay in order to connect the animu of the various substances and entities results in the aesthetic
of unbroken soundthe continual overlapping of singing and pinkuyllu playing that is so typical
of Qeros musical production. These continual offerings (musical and otherwise) are vital to the
peoples renewal and maintenance of relationship with the spirit powers.
In his work in Kalankira, Bolivia, Henry Stobart comments on this aspect of continuous
music-making in Andean communities. He says that habitual silence is replaced by perpetual
sound, abundant food and copious alcohol (Stobart 2006, 38). Likewise, Catherine Allen states
about the rituals in Sonqo: The sound should be continuous and properly shapedfor music,
song and prayer identify the occasion and direct the flow of the sami. It matters more that the
music flow continuously than it be well-played (Allen 2002, 147). To this statement I would
argue that, from an Andean perspective as shown in Qeros musical production, music that
flow(s) continuously fulfills one criterion of music that is well-played because of the
intention inherent in the music.
After having gained much insight into the intention of aysariykuy in the context of animal
increase rituals, I inquired about how aysariykuy works with regard to the singing and playing of
Pukllay taki, as Pukllay is not a celebration that is so overtly and obviously focused on offerings
to the Apu. Francisco explained that samay is sent to the entity the song is about, such as the
thurpa flower, so that it will be happy and healthy (pers. com., 7 August 2007). As he was
explaining this, he even pointed to the ground, as if pointing to flowers, so that I sensed a
specific directionality involved in the intention. Francisco explained that the samay is sent to the
flowers as an offering, to engender beneficial effects. Jacinto confirmed the directionality of
intention in singing when he said that aysariykuy goes to the place of the wallata, to the spots of

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the thurpa and the phallcha (pers. com., 10 October 2007). He clarified that in this case the
song is arriving for the protection of these plants and animals by the Apu and Pacha Mama
(ibid.). In addition, Hilrio told me, If we sing Thurpa well, then the Apu will be happy and
the thurpa will grow (pers. com., 7 August 2007). From these responses I understood that,
ultimately, all Pukllay taki and fertility songs are sent out in a specific direction of intention (to
the Apu, to the flower), and are sung/played in order to please the Apu, so that they can
reciprocate beneficially to the people, animals, flowers, and birds, and basically everything in the
Qeros world as everything is connected by animu.
I believe that when Agustn discussed the desired technique of playing slowly and not too
fast, that he was referring to the intention that underpins the music. The song, like the pagu,
should be rendered purposefully, carefully, and with love so that it will be better received.
Jacinto and Marcelino Qapa Huamn were able to expand on this idea of desired slow playing.
Marcelino said that it takes time for the animu of the encargo (Spanish order or task, which
in this case means prayer, petition, offering), which is being sent via samay, to reach the Apu. He
compared the encargo of the song to a pagu that has to burn for a long time in order for the
animu of the offering to arrive. He explained that the destination is far, which is why they must
sing slowly and always pull the ends of phrases (pers. com., 10 October 2007).
Jacinto then added, energa chayamunanpaq, so that the energy arrives (ibid.). But in
this case he was referring to energy returning from the Apu. Chayay is to arrive, but the added
infix mu indicates the direction of arrival is from over there (i.e., Apu) to right here (i.e.,
people). Jacinto explained that energy refers to the animu of Apu Sitima. He then added,
energa muyushan, the energy goes around and around and explained, If there is no going
around of energy, there is no force or strength and we would enter into ruin (ibid.). Jacintos
concise statement, energa chayamunanpaq, describes the process of the circulation of ayni,
which is the driving force underlying all Qeros interactions, be it from offering potatoes to a
guest to singing songs for the Apu. In the former they are assured that the meal will eventually
come back around to them, and in the latter, that the Apu will reciprocate with powerful energy,
which is manifested in animal care, healthy crops, and overall good life.

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Origins of Music: Circulatory Ayni among People, Animals, and Spirit Powers
For three days I discussed the role of music in circulatory ayni of energy among the
people, animals, and spirit powers with Jacinto, his brother Marcelino, and their wives, Berta and
Gracila.2 The amazing incident for me was that the seeds of this discussion sprang directly from
my efforts to understand the transcription and translation of two particular lines of song text.
Once all the layers of inherent significance in the text were explained to me, these two lines
revealed the connection of ayni as it circulates among the people, the animals, and the Apu.
The lines of text are from China Churu Taki, the Cow Song, which is sung in
Sinalay (the fertility ritual to the cows and sheep). I participated in Sinalay with Jacintos and
Marcelinos families, and others, in the anexo of Yanaruma in the Qeros community of Hapu, in
both 2006 and 2007. In Sinalay, the pentatonic songs to the cows and sheep are the counterpart
to the tritonic songs for the llamas and alpacas, and likewise the single-unit panpipes, usually
called qanchis sipas (seven young single women), accompany the songs instead of pinkuyllu.
In China Churu Taki two verses that are very similar: Chuqiwankallaykichu
apaymusunki and Quri phukuchaykichu apaymusunki, both translate as Your panpipe is
bringing [herding] you. Chuqiwanka (golden echo or golden song) and quri phuku (golden
blowpipe) are also names for the panpipes, in addition to qanchis sipas. Jacinto told me that one
meaning in the verse is that the cow is being herded to the sacred mullucancha by the men who
play the panpipes as they walk slowly behind the cows.
I then asked about the yki (your) suffix added to both chuqiwanka and quri phuku, which
I understood to translate (literally) as your panpipe. Knowing that the songs are sung to and for
the animals, I thought this would translate as the the cows panpipe. He confirmed that the
panpipes do belong to the cow, so that the music that is guiding the cows is being played on the
cows panpipes. In other words, your pipes are bringing you is another interpretation of this
same line of text. Taking both interpretations into consideration, the panpipes belong to both the
herder and the cow.
At this point Jacinto and Marcelino reminded me how the Apu Sitima demands to play
silver and gold flutes (pinkuyllu and qanchis sipas) in order to be happy, which is why these little
quri and qulqi pinkuyllu must be placed in offerings (See Chapter 6, subheading The Eve of
Phallchay: Vesper Offerings, Apu Sitima, and Ritual Objects). Because the Apu Sitima is the

2
This entire discussion was from 1012 October 2007, Cusco, Peru.

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supreme caretaker of a given animal, Jacinto said Sitima michiq kan, the Apu Sitima is the
herder. He explained that the animu of the Apu Sitima is also right there, along with the people,
herding the cows, and then followed with a declarative statement: In the heart of the runa, we
know this. He explained that because the specific Apu Sitima of a particular animal is the
ultimate herder, that the Apu too is playing his panpipes as he herds. Jacinto added that the
Sitima plays his panpipes to scare off predators such as foxes and pumas. Marcelino clarified that
the Apu Sitima gives his energa to make the panpipes sing. Therefore, just like the people sing
and play instruments with their energa or samay, so does the Apu. This concept also transfers to
the pinkuyllu, which has traditionally been the principal instrument used for herding in daily life.
In these various interpretations the panpipes therefore belong to the herder, the cow, and
the Apu Sitima. Another way to say it is that the Apu is playing by way of the humans on the
instrument that belongs to the cow, as the verses literally say. In this way, energa
muyushan, the energy goes around and around, and the instrument, the people, the animals,
and the Apu are all connected via the circulation of energy, or samay, on the panpipes (and
pinkuyllu in the case of Phallchay and Machu Fistay). All entities are in interdependent energetic
interaction, which is why the translation of these particular texts is that the panpipes belong to all
three entities simultaneously. This is the circulation of ayni relationship and animu that
continually interconnects everything.
Yet another line of song text contributes to this same idea of interwoven energies:
hallpanallaypa iskinallanpi, which translates as in the little corner of my hallpana (coca leaf
bag). I knew that it was necessary for every person to have his/her own hallpana in ritual, and
that people constantly exchanged and gifted leaves. In addition to the three-leaf kintu
exchanges, sometimes a person would literally take a handful of leaves from his/her hallpana
and put the handful of coca offering directly inside another persons hallpana. Marcelino
explained that the text implies the animu of the cow is in the small space (corner) of my
hallpana along with the quri phuku. He added, So is the Apu Sitima, which follows what he
had described earlier about the animu of the panpipe, the animal, the herder, and the Apu Sitima
in interaction with one another. This shows the circulation and interconnection of energies, and
that the spirits of many beings are interacting in the hallpana, which is the carrier of the sacred
and powerful coca that also has potent, interactive energy.

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 The overarching point I came to understand from these three lines of song text is the
Qeros articulation of continual flow and interaction of energies, which guides their daily lives
and actions, and is in the meaning of specific lines of song text. Everythingthe Apu, the
animals, the people, the instruments, the songs, the coca, the alcohol, the ritual items, and so
onare in constant interaction. This is consistent with Allens reference to interactional
techniques for changing the lived-in world that are premised on a principle of
consubstantiality, the assumption that all beings are intrinsically interconnected through their
sharing a matrix of animated substance (Allen 1997, 75).
In this same discussion, Jacinto and Marcelino also disclosed their interpretations of the
origin of Qeros music. Marcelino explained that it is the Apu that put the songs and instruments
in the peoples heads. That is, the Apu renders the knowledge of how to make instruments and
songs so that we can make ourselves, the Apu, and the animals happy. This was the first, and
only, time I heard any discussion about the origin of Qeros music, yet origins of music
connected to the Apu made sense, as quality of life was ultimately interconnected with these
supreme energies.
In sum, the essence of animal fertility ritual is the intensified interaction of and peak
exchanges of animu in the form of shared substance, symbolic actions, and musical production.
The people must be in constant exchange with one another, with the animals, and most
importantly with the Apu and Pacha Mama, which is the ultimate destination of all exchanges
and offeringsunceasingly offering so that ayni will arrive and then be returned and quality of
life ensured. The participation is cosmic and mutual. Consumption and musical production is
extreme, and aesthetic saturation replete. Song is one of the many forms in synergetic exchange
with all other forces and actions involved in the ritual. Through singing and playing, the people
give to the spirit powers, who in turn give to the animals, who in turn give to the humans.
This highly sensual environment of saturated consumption and energetic movement is
conducive to transformation, in terms of an altered emotional state that often leads to the
emergence and expression of sadness and anxiety through song. The swirling and intensified
interaction of animu in fertility ritual often impacts in such a way that leads to the expected
singing of grief.

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Fertility Ritual as Framing Metaphor for Grief-Singing
Once when we were just beginning to sing Pantilla Tika in the ritual of Phallchay,
Rebecca turned to me and said, Waqasunchisa, Now we will cry (pers. com., 2 February
2006). Vctor told me that when he sings Pantilla Tika he feels preocupado, worried/
preoccupied (pers. com., 31 December 2006). Juliana said, We have always cried [in fertility
ritual], since the time of our grandfathers. We always cry while singing (pers. com., 4 August
2007). Vctor confirmed, Always when we sing, we cry. This is the moment the heart feels
sadness and preoccupation. Remembering our life, we cry (pers. com., 31 December 2006).
Raymundo explained, Because the animals dont grow, because the fox eats our animals, we
cry. To this his wife Julia added, Because the llama, alpaca and sheep die, we cry when we
sing. Raymundo stated, It is a costumbre (custom) to feel preocupado (preoccupied/worried)
when singing this song (pers. com., 7 December 2006).
All of these statements suggest that crying while singing is expected during increase
rituals. Because of this, I posit that grief-singing could be considered one aspect of the ritual
itself, a costumbre as Raymundo articulated. Indeed, in my three years of participation in
fertility rituals, I have witnessed so many short and prolonged episodes of grief-singing that it
does seem to be an expected custom, as illustrated in Rebeccas statement, Now we will cry.
In my discussion with Juliana about aysariykuy, she provided some insight into reasons
for emergence of grief during ritual. I asked her, What happens if a song is not pulled? She
responded, simply, The Apu will not hear (pers. com., 4 August 2007). In other words, the
offering would not arrive and ayni would be incomplete.
Julianas straightforward and simple statement points to a breach in ritual of the gravest
kind: what could happen if the peoples obligation of ayni payment is not sufficiently executed,
and therefore the desired reciprocity from the Apu is at risk. Because the fertility rituals are
centered on renewal of relationship to the spirit powers that directly impact the continuance and
quality of life, they are therefore also about the opposite: death. It makes sense, then, that acute
awareness and remembrance of loss surfaces during these rituals.
All symbolic actions, musical and otherwise, must be executed properly and correctly to
ensure continuance of the herd, and therefore that of the people. Musically, the desired
continuance of and propitiation for life are expressed in song text (metaphoric meanings and
associations), ayni payment in the repetitive sending out of animu to the Apu through songs

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(which results in overlapping musical aesthetic), and ensuring the songs arrival through
aysariykuy.
In regard to song text, the nature of metaphor allows for perceptual shifts and multiple
interpretations so that life can represent death. Anthropologist Roy Wagner posits that
metaphoric meaning and perception of it is ultimately unstable and constantly changing. He
asserts that as soon as meaning comes into being, it destabilizes . Once surfacing, this meaning is
transformed or undermined by another, and no one metaphor can be put into a forged absolute
(Wagner 1986, 24). Wagner states, When this flow of perceptual change becomes an instance of
seeing vital antithesis as differential perspectives through the same basic points of orientation,
then the difference between life and death becomes a matter of what gestalt psychology calls
figure-ground reversal (ibid., 68). Life and death shift with one another in foreground and
background status, so that in the Figure ground reversal of text about life, the overt meaning is
obviated by what is in the background, and associations with death are foregrounded.
The key points here are instability and flow, so that text interpretation and energetic
experience (the flow and interconnectedness of animu) during ritual is a continual flow of
analogies and shifts in meaning. Just as the ritual is flowing with the swirling energies of
animu, so is the interpretation of song text in a changing flow of perceptual shifts that can trigger
personal emotion and reaction.
The refrains of Pantilla Tika and Machu Taki are examples of meaning and
interpretation invoking a stream of analogies. In the refrain of Pantilla Tika, for example, one
moment the phallcha are the flowers that reside near the Apu, the red blooms are markers of the
Phallchay ritual, placed in peoples hats, and are beautiful in themselves. In the next moment, or
simultaneously, they are the animals, and the abundant flowers that are scattered on the herd are
the desired offspring. And next the flowers are lineage and family, which are loved and
cherished. They are also associated with wamanki, the hawk that lives on the Apu like the
flowers. This is an agent to the Apu and is also the Apu itself, which gives the animals and
humans life. The flowers are therefore also the Apu, the life-givers. Similarly, this same stream
of analogies is also present in Machu Taki, when animal origin places and male human and
animal ancestry are invoked, along with similar bird/Apu associations.
In addition to the refrains constant elicitation of life, the verses of fertility songs
(including those to the cows and sheep) also portray images of vitality: the Machu is standing

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tall, he is valiant, to be celebrated, is brilliant white like the magnificent Apu Ausangate, eats
healthy humid grass, and walks strongly and slowly as he carries his load and serves us all the
way to the stoves door. The embodiment of the tilantiru is also a metaphor for the desired
strong lead males. Likewise, the Mamallay llama or alpaca is tranquil and resting on her day,
and is healthy, pure white, like pure rice. The mother cow in China Churu Taki is a strong
plant with firm roots that opens the mountain tops as she grazes slowly. In a figure ground
reversal the Machu cannot carry the corn, and the Mothers are not healthy, tranquil and strong,
with firm roots. Juliana enacted a figure-ground reversal when she improvised her fear about a
puma coming to kill the young llamas (see Chapter 7, Audio Example 7.2 and Song Text 7.2).
The significance or felt experience of the various invoked analogies is not fixed, nor is a
metaphor just a name reference; rather, as Wagner states, a metaphor amounts to an
encompassing of the entire symbolic continuum within the realm of analogic relations (ibid.,
30). That is, meanings fluctuate and move, and various connotations and embodied reactions to
them are stimulated within the overlapping singing and saturation animu interaction in ritual. In
the analogical flow of associations, singing about the flowers, as well as the act of scattering
them on the animals can momentarily elicit what is in the background: flowers that do not
bloom, decay, wither, die, or the baby animals that are stillborn, killed by pumas, frost, or mal
espiritus. Because ritual stimulates analogic associations of what could happen or has happened
when ayni is not fulfilled, it seems logical that emotions of grief, remembrances of loss, and
anxiety emerge.
The figure ground reversal was starkly present in the lives of Vctor and Juana on the
Monday morning of the first Phallchay that I witnessed. They had just buried their spouses, and
they dutifully showed up to perform a ritual that was meant to procure life. It was not just that
Vctors wife and Juanas husband were not present to participate in this intimate family ritual
that caused profound sadness; it was also that the very essence of this vital ritual was precluded
by the most extreme rupture possiblethe sudden death of loved and needed family members.
The fertility ritual then becomes the framing metaphor where people can insert their own
personal experiences in regard to life, death, and loss. The ritual space is the identified cultural
reference point and locus where loss is expressed, as metaphors and signifiers about life and
death are already encased in this ritual (Wagner 1986, 7). In this regard, Cohen states specifically
about the song Pantilla Tika that This combination of death with fertility and birth is the

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central theme of the song (Cohen N.d. 1984, 9). This makes Pantilla Tika, and its
counterpart, Machu Taki, the appropriate musical context in which to express personal
analogies of figure ground reversal, and intimate feelings and remembrances about loss and
death, which nearly always surface during rituals that are about increase and life.
Another factor that contributes to the surfacing of grief in ritual is the Qeros awareness
of and anxiety about the active role they have in procuring welfare to a certain degree. This role
of fulfilling their part in ayni obligation, with its accompanying feelings of anxiety and loss, is an
Andean way of life, as Bruce Mannheim eloquently articulates:
And, as among their Inka ancestors, social relationsat least
among Runaare tinged with an ideology of reciprocity and an
axiology of loss. Reciprocity is the fundamental guiding principle
of everyday life, of social interaction, etiquette, ritual relations
with the earth and the lords of the mountains, relationships
between humans and their herds, and evenin the longest run,
after the millenniumbetween Runa and their non-Runa
exploiters. But a pervasive sense of sorrow and loss is reflected in
rite and song, perhaps as an implicit recognition that every
reciprocal action is always one-half of a cycle, that reciprocity
requires an initial surrender of the self to the gift of labor or object,
and that the cycle of reciprocity is ever liable to rupture
(Mannheim 1991, 19).

The implicit recognition is the peoples knowledge that they have a certain amount of control
and responsibility in ensuring their half of reciprocal obligation, through payment in offerings
that must be executed correctly and sufficiently, which is accompanied by the awareness that the
other half of this cycle may, or may not, be fulfilled, and is ever liable to rupture. This
means that the Qeros are not fatalistic; rather, they know they have agency and impact, which is
why, for example, aysariykuy in singing and pinkuyllu playing is considered beautiful
precisely because this technique is necessary in order to be effective.
Ritual is the vulnerable, in-between space (chawpi) where the Qeros, and runa in
general, execute their agency and control in reciprocity via multiple offerings and manipulation
of samay. The between or liminal status of the people rests in the awareness that their actions
could be effective or not, that the Apu could bestow benevolence or not; or that, for example,
malevolent spirits could cause harm, such as the mal espiritus that cause death to animals and
people. Tristan Platt discusses the angst of this between status of the Aymara Macha people in
Bolivia:

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 Caught between the upper and lower divinities, the Macha must offer the
appropriate dues to each (Purajman haywayku, I was told We give to
both sides), in order to maintain their precarious position as mediators.
The fundamental structure of the cosmos is dual, and mankind must
therefore face both ways at once in order to benefit from the
complementary yet antagonistic forces around them (Platt 1986, 242).

Platts description is the ultimate yanantin of fertility rituals: life and death forces that impinge
on runa who hold a between, or chawpi, status, in ritual with their intentions to affect those
forces through directing and controlling the flow of their offerings. In addition, the fertility
rituals are held in the most vulnerable times of the year, when Pacha Mama is the most open and
the Apu most hungry; this compounds feelings of vulnerability as the Qeros know they must
feed the insatiable hunger of the Apu during these times. The resultant anxiety caused by the
peoples awareness of their need to deliver effectively their half in the ayni cycle, the possible
rupture of that, and their precarious middle position between forces around them, inevitably
contribute to the sentiment underlying grief-singing.
Embodiment and inebriation are two other powerful elements that encourage a
transformative experience that leads to grief-singing. The Qeros embody what they supplicate:
they become the young animals suckling the mothers teat and dancing with the bells as the
strong, virile male llama.3 Embodied metaphors have a potent affect. Roy Wagner suggests that
such enactments are not just metaphors, but that human beings are vessels of its innovative
power (Wagner 1972, 172). The embodiments are a type of communication and powerful
communion with their animals as they become them, and with the Apu who have the power to
bestow what they are enacting.
Ritual drinking, the consubstantiality and inebriation of it, also contributes to the
emergence of strong and unbridled emotion that fosters both the desired singing/playing aesthetic
and grief-singing. Michael Uzendoski discusses how, in fiesta, the dangerous space of
drunkenness allows for social transformations that would not normally occur (Uzendoski 2005,
140). These emotional transformations are expressed in the form of grief-singing. Barbara Butler
writes about ritual drinking in Native American traditions, as devotion to God and other forms
of divinity through the joint consumption of alcohol by men and spirits to the point of reaching a

3
In Sinalay they become cows and sheep, mooing, and baaing during singing, and enacting
procreation. They also enact cattle rustlers who steal all the cattle and birds that come to prey on the newborns,
while simultaneously one couple supplicates to the Apu to protect the herd.

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mind-altering state of inebriation (Butler 2006, 8). This shared drinking and the ensuing mind-
altering state of inebriation is more than just drinking for the sake of drinking; it is reciprocal
exchange with their loved animals and the powerful spirits. Shared drink is invigorating
reciprocity with the Apu, Pacha Mama, the animals, and their fellow family members.
Inebriation results in singing that has more vitality. Increased vitality means that aysariykuy is
more samay-filled, and therefore more animu is circulated, so that the intention and efficacy of
song is more impacting and can contribute more fully to ayni fulfillment.
Drunkenness also encourages strong emotion to surface. Vctor stated that, in ritual,
When I am drunk, I remember, and I always cry (pers. com., 31 December 2007). Juliana
explained, Fortunately we always celebrate our animals every year. It is then that we cry.
Remembering our lives, we always cry. I remember the loss of my animals in Phallchay. When I
am not drunk, I also cry for my animals (pers. com., 13 September 2005). On another occasion
Juliana stated, When we sing, we always cry. Life is hard out here on the land, up here in the
clouds, in Qeros (pers. com., 1 January 2006). And still another time she explained, We have
always cried, since the time of our grandfathers. We always cry while singing. Joyfully, joyfully
we cry (pers. com., 4 August 2007). Agustn explained crying and singing from his point of
view: Its like that; sometimes we sing and cry from happiness, and we also cry from sadness.
We always cry. When we get drunk, we always cry (pers. com., 1 January 2006). Vctor,
Juliana, and Agustns explanations suggest that being drunk in ritual encourages the expected
occurrence of crying and singing in ritual.
Another factor that contributes to the surfacing of grief is that the rituals are held within
the intimate or extended family, and not the whole community like Pukllay. This space is likely
to be more comfortable, familiar, and supportive for expressing vulnerable intimacies.
Furthermore, it makes sense that intimate expression of loss is shared also as nearly every
activity is communally shared within the family. I have seen that the communal sharing of
profound emotion is a natural part of who the Qeros are, and I believe that, conversely, crying
and grieving alone would be perverted in the sense of straying from the societal norm. For
example, I could not imagine Juliana or Juana crying while walking alone, herding her animals.
The herding areas are really not alone anyway, as the women and children from the entire
anexo are involved in the same activity nearby.

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 This explains the naturalness with which I experienced Isaac, Vctor, and Juana
expressing their grief in ritual, and why they were equally as comfortable with my videotaping of
it. They were neither shy nor exhibitionistic. They just were; they naturally expressed their
profound loss in the familial space where anxiety is already a part of the ritual complex, and
expression of this kind was the societal norm.

The Song Above, the Sorrow Below

John Cohen and I have discussed the times when we have witnessed the beautifully rich
and deeply anguished expression of grief through song. We both agree that the song somehow
takes on a floating or hovering quality, which people dip in and out of it as they choose, among
talking, shouting, crying, and pinkuyllu playing. Cohen poetically called it, The song above, the
sorrow below (pers. com., 19 January 2007). The sense is that the song permeates all ritual
activity, is ever-present, and not forgotten. The song is multi-purpose: it is sung for the animals
because they are loved; it is ayni payment to the cosmos; and it is a vehicle of personal
expression.
Every fertility ritual is unique with regard to the degree of manifestation of personal
sentiment and use of the song to express it. Sometimes crying comes quickly, at the very outset
of the ritual. Indeed, crying often seems to be just another element of the ritual. Other times I
have seen little or no crying, nor personal expression through song in terms of text improvisation
(that I was aware of). In cases of extensive text improvisation, as I witnessed with Isaacs family,
the verses were always the points of personal disclosure, and the refrain, which expresses the
essence of Qeros life-sustenance and cosmology, remained constant.
In this next section I present the text and transcription of a 1984 recording by John Cohen
of such grief-singing in the song Pantilla Tika from Phallchay. I have chosen to include this
song because it is an exquisite example of the personalized expression of many core themes that
are central to Qeros lives: the imminence of life and death; the identification with and power of
place; animal and family lineage; and speaking to the dead whose animu is very much alive.
Audio Example 8.1 is a recording of Mnica Apasa Vargas, mother to Hilrio, who disclosed so
much information to me about aysariykuy and the pusunis paired conch shell trumpets. Audio
Example 8.1 is transcribed and translated in Song Text 8.1.

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 I played this recording for Mnica in July 2006, twenty-two years after Cohen recorded
it. When the recording began and she heard her voice as a younger woman, she sat abruptly
upright as if in stunned disbelief. She was riveted as she listened to her husband speak and her
cousin sing and play the pinkuyllu, both of whom are now deceased. Mnica was able to guide
me through some of the text, explaining that her father had died just prior to the making of this
recording and that her mother had died many years before. She clarified her familys place
names that she sang. She became very sad when listening, and, I believe, was incredulous that
such a moment that happened so long ago was even possible to listen to and discuss so many
years later.

Audio Example 8.1

Song Text 8.1 and Audio Example 8.1. Pantilla Tika, from Phallchay, 1984.4
(1984 Recording by John Cohen, from: 1991 [1964]. Mountain Music of Peru.
Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40020, track 38. Singer: Mnica Apasa Vargas).

Stanza 1
Refrain: Tikay wamankis wamanki My flower, wamanki, wamanki
Verse: Hamuy Mamallay qhaynaykusun Come here my mother, lets celebrate
[in the corral]

4
The transcription, translation, and explanation of this selection were a joint effort with Agustn Machacca
Flores, Juliana Apasa Flores from Qeros, Gina Maldonado (Quechua tutor) and Holly Wissler in Cusco, Peru.
Mnica Apasa Vargas (the singer) in Qeros was able to confirm place names, and give information surrounding the
circumstances of the song and what was occurring in her life at the time, and also clarify the meaning of some
verses. Agustn and Juliana have particular and intimate insight into Mnicas situation, since they are extended
family and know one another well (Mnicas current husband is Agustns older brother, and Juliana is Agustns
wifes sister).
John Cohen also provided an English translation of portions of this recording in ca. 1984. An excerpt of
this same event (though not the same portion) can be viewed in Cohens film Mountain Music of Peru (1984).
Cohens translation and mine differ in sections, and I believe this is probably because Cohen relied on translators
who, while native Quechua speakers, were not Qeros. The gist and metaphor of both translations are similar, but
nuance and detail differ. Discrepancies in transcription occur even in those done by native speakers because of the
way the Qeros pull and drop syllables, thereby making discernment difficult, especially when crying is also
involved. Cohen acknowledged in a footnote these complications of translation (in the unpublished article). For this
reason (among others) I included Qeros in all transcription and translation sessions, and, when possible the singer
or at least a relative of the singer who knows his/her singing. While it is beyond the scope of this dissertation, it
makes for interesting and necessary observation about Quechua song transcription practices and methodologies.

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Stanza 2
V: Waunachallaykamalla
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki
V: Huntasqachatan saqiyuwan
Mnica Speaks
Licinsaykismanta
Pinkuyllu plays
Stanza 3, Mnica Sings
V: Imachamanta faltata
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki
V: Chayllachu mana uhaykusaq
Stanza 4
V: Wauq runalla uhaykunchu
R: Panti phallchallay wamanki
V: Ripuq runalla uhaykunchu
Stanza 5
V: Chayllachu mana uhaykusun
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki
V: Qayay minchhalla wataman
Enrique (Mnicas cousin) speaks
Tumaysun, tumaysun
Mnica speaks
Lisinsaykismanta
Stanza 6, Mnica Sings
V: Wauq ripuqllay runakuna
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki
V: Quwasanillay pasa kani.
Stanza 7
V: Yana Urqullay puka chiqchi
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki
V: Huqpaqkamalla mikhuykuway
200
Until my death arrives/Until I die
My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
also
Scatter the little pink flower, wamanki
He left me with all [the animals]
with your permission/license
I want for nothing
My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
How am I not going to drink?
Do the dead people still drink?
My little, pink phallcha flower
Does he who goes [dies] still drink?
Like this why dont we drink
My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
For the years to come
Lets drink
With your permission . . .
The people who die, they go
My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
I am the young woman from Quwasani
[Quwasani is her fathers birthplace]
My Yana Urqu, of red hail
My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
Please eat me quickly
[Yana urqu is another place her father lived]
Stanza 8
V: Santu Duminguy paquy punchu
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki
V: Kusi wayqullay lichi phawsi
My Santo Domingo, poncho of vicua color
My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
White waterfalls of the Kusi Wayqu
[Place names of her childhood]

Stanza 9
V: Llaqtachallaypis kaykushayman I would like to be only in my home
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
V.Wawqichallantin panantin I would be with my family

Crying starts here . . .

Stanza 10
V: Imallapaqsi uywawanki(s) Why did you raise me?
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
V: Amalla uywawankimanchu You should not have raised me

Mnica Speaks/Cries
Qapaquchallay, Mamay allpa, xxx?, gustuchu puuyushanki
My dear Qapaqucha, [burial site of her mother], earth of my Mother, are you sleeping happily?

Stanza 11: Mnica sings what she just said, with much crying
V: Gustuchallachu puuyushanki Are you sleeping happily?
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
V: Apasachallay taytayqa My beloved Apasa, my father
[Manuel Apasa was her fathers name.]

Mnica Speaks
Qankuna, qankuna uhaqta qhawarimankichis You all are seeing that I am drinking
Mana waturikamankichisman Would you not visit [me]?
Lisinsaykismanta with your permission . . .

Stanza 12: Mnicas sisterinlaw sings

V: Hamuy Mamallay qhaynaykusun
R: Pantilla phallchay wamanki
V: Hukllatawanchu(s), hukllatawanchu(s)
Come here my mother, lets celebrate
[in the corral]
My lovely pink phallcha flower, wamanki
One and another time, one and another
time

This recording begins in Stanza 1 with Mnica singing a common verse to the Mother
alpaca. She beckons for the Mother alpaca to come and celebrate in the mullucancha (the verb

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qhaynay, implies to celebrate in special or ritual sense, and in this context refers to the ritual in
the mullucancha).
The text in Stanza 2 is autobiographical. Mnica describes how her father, in his recent
death, left a large herd of animals (He left me with all the animals) that now she will have to
care for the rest of her life (Until I die) (pers. com., 19 July 2006). The song provides the space
for Mnica to express her current situation and anxiety about it.
Mnica then asks permission from someone, lisinsaykismanta (and, therefore,
ultimately from the Apu) for something, which is likely to chew coca or drink alcohol. In Stanza
3 she comments on her current situation of herd inheritance, singing I want for nothing,
because she now has so many animals. The next verse is a fixed one that is commonly sung in
Pantilla Tika, about drinking in Phallchay. Drinking is an integral part, so how am I not
going to drink?
In Stanza 4 Mnica appears to think about her deceased father: Do, perhaps, the dead
people still drink? and Does he who goes [dies] still drink? This idea is similar to a moment
in the grief-singing that I first witnessed with Isaacs family in Phallchay in 2005. Vctor sang:
Mayllataq kunan kaykunchu, How is it that you are not here? as he remembered his deceased
brother-in-law, Jorge. Juana tried to comfort Vctor by saying, Ukyashan, riki, ukyashan,
ukyashan, riki, He is drinking. He is drinking (see Chapter 6, Pantilla Tika: Song for
Llamas and Alpacas). Juana was saying that her husbands animu was there drinking with them,
which is the gist of Mnicas questions here. The questions are, in effect, comments about how
dead people do drink. In a ritual such as Phallchay, when drinking is sacred and shared among
the animu of the people, animals, symbolic objects, and the spirit powers, the Qeros are also
especially aware of the animu of their dead kin, particularly those who just recently died, as was
the case with both Vctor and Juana in 2005, and Mnica in 1984. Particularly in the first year
after death, a persons soul is more vulnerable and susceptible to wandering, which is why an
offering is often performed for that person to help put the soul to rest (see Chapter 6: The Eve
of Phallchay: Vesper Offerings, Apu Sitima, and Ritual Objects), and why he/she is also
considered to be present and drinking with the family. Mnica completes this idea in Stanza 5 by
singing that she and her family will drink for years to come.
Beginning in Stanza 6, Mnica sings a map of her fathers life, naming the important
places he lived. She begins with a statement about how the people who die, they go, in

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reference to her father, and then begins remembering her fathers and her birthplace: Quwasani
(near the anexo of Qolpa Kuchu, see Map 2.3). She is remembering when she was a young,
unmarried woman (pasa) there: I am the woman from Quwasani.
In Stanza 7 Mnica sings about Yana Urqu where her father had also lived. She follows
this with Please eat me quickly, which perhaps is a reference to the strength of the red hail she
mentions in conjunction Yana Urqu, or perhaps it is a comment on her sadness, and a desire to
die.
In Stanza 8, like 6 and 7, she sings important places of her childhood: the Apu Santo
Domingo, which is also in the Qolpa Kuchu valley, and Kusi wayqu, which is a canyon with
white waterfalls (lichi phawsi) near Apu Santo Domingo.
In these three consecutive stanzas (68) Mnica sang a detailed map of important places
in her fathers residence, and of her own childhood, which segues into her singing in Stanza 9
about how she would like to be only in my own home, together with my family. At the time of
this recording, Mnica was living with her first husband in the anexo of Challmachimpana. She
had not lived in her childhood home area for some years,5 and therefore was reminiscing about
childhood places from her somewhat distant past. These places may hold more distant and
melancholic significance for her now that her father has died.
Regarding these particular lines of song text when Mnica sings place names, Cohen
comments, This suggests that the precise place of ones birth in Qeros remains a factor in self-
reference throughout ones life. Since the Apus are considered important in affecting a persons
fortune or destiny, they are always kept in mind (Cohen ca. 1984, 10). Because the concept of
pacha refers to both time and place at once, Mnicas remembrance of her recently-deceased
father, and by extension her own past and childhood with him, is therefore to remember place as
well. In other words, it is not just the memories of past times; rather, time (childhood, young
adulthood) and place (Apu, canyons, waterfalls) are intertwined.
In Stanza 10 Mnica begins to weep, and sings a question, probably to her parents, about
why they raised her. This is perhaps a comment about the suffering of her life in general. She
then begins to speak, and names the burial site of her mother (Qapaqucha). Mnica asks her
mother directly, Are you sleeping happily? She then sings the very same words she had just

5
Mnicas first husband has since died, and now she lives in the anexo of Qocha Moqo with her second
husband.

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spoken. I heard this similar segue from speaking an idea to singing it with Vctor in Phallchay
2005, when he first spoke about how Jorge used to come and drink with him, which he
immediately followed up by singing, How is it that you are not here? and Why did you
abandon me? This alternation between dialogue and singing gives the song its hovering
quality. The song is interwoven into monologues and dialogues that spontaneously emerge, and
after extended or brief talking, the song is always returned to. Vctors wifes aunt also
interspersed the song amid her own monologues and extended reproaches to the family.
In Stanza 11 Mnica continues to cry. In the first verse she sings a question to her long-
deceased mother (Are you sleeping happily?), which she immediately follows by singing her
recently-deceased fathers name (Manuel Apasa), Apasachallay taytayqa, My beloved Apasa,
my father. This is also similar to Vctor singing his wifes surname, and Juana singing her
husbands (Song Text 6.3, Pantilla Tika, Excerpt of Grief-Singing). In the case of the surname
Apasa, this name is sung generically in both Pantilla Tika and Machu Taki to represent the
archetypical Qeros man and lineage. An example of this is shown in Stanza 8 of Song Text 7.3,
Apasa runallaq machuntaq, It is the llama belonging to the man Apasa. In both cases of
Mnicas and Vctors grief-singing, they personalized the verse by adding my father and my
dear wife, respectively, to the name Apasa, thereby literally referring to their deceased loved
ones.6 The excerpt finishes when Mnica speaks would you not visit me? as if in plea to her
parents for a reunion in this intimate, family ritual.
This interpretation shows layers of meaning that, while specifically autobiographical to
Mnica in the moment, are also exemplary of themes expressed by any Qeros woman or man in
fertility ritual singing, so that the essence of the meaning is communal at the same time. Some of
the communal themes expressed in both Pantilla Tika and Machu Taki are references to the
animal and human lineage, the world of the dead and drinking, focus on the power of place, and
personal suffering. The refrains of both songs constantly point to metaphorical associations with
animals, flowers, life, and the spirit world of the Apu, so that amid Mnicas continual references
to death, the song contains an ongoing concern with birth and life-giving forces (Cohen
ca.1984, 9). In this case, Mnicas singing constantly alternates between life and death; that is,

6
Apasa is a common name in Qeros, and particularly Qolpa Kuchu, where both Mnicas father and
Vctors wife were from.

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between life-giving forces and associations (Apu, phallcha, wamanki), and the rupture of them
(her parents deaths).
I believe improvisation as I use the term here in many cases means not necessarily the
creation of completely new text; rather, it is the personalization of known and commonly-lived
repertoire that is spontaneously drawn upon and personalized in the moment, according to the
state of mind and memories of the singer. For example, any person from Qolpa Kuchu would
generically sing about the local protective Apu of that anexo: Apu Santo Domingo (just like a
person from Challmachimpana sings about his/her local protective Apu Impernasqa, and
similarly a person from Qocha Moqo about Apu Waman Lipa). The fact that Mnicas cousin,
Enrique, seems to sing along occasionally, but softly underneath, with a text that matches
Mnicas, is indicative of this shared, known text and frame of reference. In Mnicas case she
held a specific memory in her mention of Apu Santo Domingo, in the context of her
remembrance of her recent fathers death and naming both his and her power places. Another
example of personalization of place was heard in Song Text 6.3 (Pantilla Tika, Excerpt of
Grief-Singing), when Juana sang Chuchuqiachay chakillanman, At the foot of Chuchuqia
[he left me]. Apu Chuchuqia is commonly invoked by anyone from the anexo of Chuwa
Chuwa, but in this case, Juana had personalized it in remembering that she is alone at the foot of
this great Apu, now that her husband has died. Similarly, the above example that uses of the
archetypical name Apasa and is sung in a personalized way by both Mnica (my father)
Vctor (my dear wife), exemplifies the personalization of a commonly-sung verse. Some texts,
though, are completely new, such as He left me with all the animals and Are you sleeping
happily.
In this way, singing in animal fertility songs is both communal and individual. The
themes and texts are communal, but are often personalized in the moment according to the
memory or sentiment of the singer at the time. Cohen alludes to this idea of communal/individual
in his analysis of Mnicas grief-singing:
There seemed to be a hierarchy of realities invokedsome were direct references
to the apus called forth by poetic combinations of specific Qeros symbols such as
the Palcha (sic) flower, huaman, motherthe lineage of alpacas, offerings to
mother earth, mention of the mountain spirit Apu Santo Domingo. Others were
anthropomorphic roles assigned to the alpacas, where they were given human
qualities. And others were ideas framed by her own feelings of abandonment, of
suffering and separation from her place of birth and the mountain spirit (Apu

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 Santo Domingo) which guides her fortune. All these together seemed to constitute
her state of mind which belonged to the ritual (Cohen, N.d., ca. 1984, 8, my
emphasis).

Mnicas state of mind which belonged to the ritual succinctly and accurately describes animal
fertility ritual as the cultural reference point (Wagner 1986, 7) and framing metaphor where
personalized sentiments are acceptably and expectedly expressed. Without the ritual and the
fertility song, Mnica would not likely have expressed the multi-layered reality and profound
loss that was current in her life; likewise for Isaac, Juana, and Vctor. The combination of
interacting energies and intention, symbolic action and metaphorical association, sensory
saturation, and the anxiety of rupture, encourage such a state of mind. She is a part of the
energetic interactions, influenced by and belonging to the communal whole, while individually
discharging her own personal experience through a commonly-known repertoire.
Not only is fertility ritual the space to vent deep emotion, but this venting seems to affect
many people in healing ways that are then incorporated into their daily lives once the ritual is
over. Some Qeros friends have described such release of emotion as having positive and
unifying effects, both on the individual and communally. A common human experience is a
sense of relief that results from the release of pent-up thoughts and feelings, and many Qeros
articulate this. Francisco explained that they cry thak kapunaykipaq, so that there will be
tranquility (pers. com. 4 August 2007). This statement suggests a prior awareness that crying
has beneficial results, and is therefore desired. Francisco added that afterwards they feel like
mosoq runa, new people (ibid.). Similarly, Juliana stated that waqaruspaa thak
karushani, after crying I feel tranquil, clear (ibid.). Thak is a descriptor that means tranquil,
clear, calm, and rested. This may be why Juliana declared joyfully, joyfully we cry (pers. com.,
ibid.). Agustn told me, There is no shame when crying (pers. com., 1 January 2006). Beside
the fact that crying is expected, it is done openly and communally, and it was this candid
openness that so startled me the first time I witnessed it. Rebecca commented that they cry
llulanakuymi, to mutually console, and qoyunakuymi, to mutually give to one another
(pers. com. 15 September 2006). Rebeccas response suggests that not only do the Qeros
recognize the personal benefits of crying, but also the mutual and communally shared benefits.
All of these comments point to an awareness that crying has renewal and cleansing
effects, that it is expected in ritual, and not something they are ashamed of. People speak of

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individual purging that results in feelings of tranquility (thak) and newness (mosoq), as well as
shared consolation (llulanakuymi) and giving (qoyunakuymi). Thus not only does grief-singing in
Qeros animal fertility rituals have both individual and communal healing effects, but the Qeros
are aware of this and articulate it.
Many scholars have documented the societal benefits of the singing of grief in various
song forms of indigenous cultures (Feld, 1982 and 1995, Urban, 1988, Briggs 1992). The
Qeros singing of grief is not ritual mourning with a defined, stylized, and separate expressive
form of its own, such as the five named patterns of Kaluli crying (Feld 1995, 87), or the ritual
wailing of Brazilian Amerindians (Urban 1988, 385), or dirges, keens and Mediterranean
lament forms. Qeros grieving has its outlet through existing, potent songs in a specific and
socially acceptable space (fertility ritual) and through appropriate means (enactment, monologue,
dialogue, and song).
Grief-singing in Pantilla Tika and Machu Taki is the socialized musical expression
of loss, sadness, and anxiety through song, just like the singing of Pukllay taki is the socialized
musical expression of joy. While the fertility songs and Pukllay taki both serve to nurture
sociability, they differ in that the fertility songs are sung forms of intense movement of samay
and ayni circulation tinged with anxiety and fear of rupture, while Pukllay taki are sung forms of
joyful celebration and temporary removal from and enjoyment of the lack of rupture. In the next
chapter I show how both fertility and Pukllay songs are in a yanantin relationship to each other,
and that the singing of the songs in their respective contexts serves in community balance and
equilibrium. They are ultimately expressions of social and cosmic reproduction.

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 CHAPTER 9
CONCLUSION: SOCIAL AND COSMIC RENEWAL THROUGH SONG

The Yanantin of Joy and Grief in Music as Social Reproduction

The Qeros Pukllay taki and animal fertility songs have inherent power and impactful
meanings that are intricately bound to their respective contexts and functions, which the Qeros
sense as they sing them. In regard to inherent impact in the songs, I refer to anthropologist
Robert Plant Armstrong who contends that art and ritual aesthetic has, what he terms, an
affecting presence. Every symbolic object and action has an interior state and affecting
function (Armstrong 1971, 5). It is not just what the people do (i.e., inebriation, offerings, and
repetitive sound) and believe (i.e., reciprocity) that motivates and impacts, but the objects of the
symbolic actions have their own innate power and presence, and therefore influence and affect.
Songs are like receptacles of the significances and intentions of the celebrations they pertain to,
which results in their having an affect that is associated with those specific meanings.
This affecting presence is consistent with the Qeros belief that all things have
animuan interactive energy that influences and affects. The Qeros experience the differing
sensational and emotional impacts of Pukllay and fertility rituals, and therefore the respective
songs carry their own inherent sensations that impact the peoples experience of joy or grief,
respectively.
Armstrong maintains that sometimes objects are in presence and sometimes not
(Armstrong 1981, 10). For example, the llamas bells are in presence when they are used for
singing and dancing over the misa in Machu Fistay. At that time the bells power invokes, even
reaching the spirit powers (wahananpaq, for calling [the Apu], Juan Quispe Calzina, pers.
com., 15 September 2005). The bells also symbolize the male llamas at work, as the people
embody the strong, lead males they so desire. The powerful presence of the bells during ritual
contrasts from times of daily use, such as when the people casually hang the same bells up on a
cornstalk after the llamas arrive to the monte after their long descent. In this case, both the bells
and the llamas are resting; they are not in ritual and performance, and therefore neither in
presence nor impactful (ibid.). When an object is in presence it has power, efficacy, and
affect.

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 Armstrong adds that the affecting presence of any ritual object can be enriched and
power increased (ibid., 15). Examples of this in Qeros rituals are the increasingly fervent
shaking of the bells throughout the day and into the night, and the more frequent blowing on
coca leaves and offering of tinka libations. These actions augment the efficacy of the bells for
calling the Apu, and the arrival of the samay of the ritual blowing and powerful alcohol libations.
I believe the animal fertility songs are always in presence, because they are only sung
in ritual and with great intention. Thus these particular songs always hold impacting power and
affect. The first time I requested a recording of Pantilla Tika out of context, Vctor looked at
me directly, and firmly said Prohibido!these songs are prohibited from singing outside of
ritual (pers. com., 15 February 2005). Similarly, later in the year my Qeros friends also refused
when I wanted to record Machu Taki out of context. I did record the cattle and sheep songs out
of context (as did John Cohen), but usually the Qeros do not sing these songs out of the fertility
ritual context.
In addition, the presence of the fertility songs increases as more and more people join
in, because the overlapping singing is the continual manipulation and sending out of samay
through aysariykuy. This increase in energy and presence of Machu Taki is shown in the
progression of Audio Examples from 7.1 through 7.4 (see Chapter 7).
Conversely, the rule about singing Pukllay taki differs from that of the fertility songs.
Pukllay taki are sung in various contexts: in the festival of Pukllay; during daily herding and
weaving; at drunken, impromptu social gatherings (versus ritual drinking); and most freely for
my recording benefit. Pukllay taki then have multiple associations and intentions: for community
cohesion during Pukllay; for companionship while herding and weaving; and for fun partying.
This means that their level of presence and affect changes according to context.
I also believe that the fact that the fertility songs are the same every year, whereas
Pukllay taki change, impacts the presence of the songs. Pantilla Tika and Machu Taki hold
life/death connotations year after year. This contrasts with the communal fun and celebration
during Chayampuy when the authorities choose a new song that the people eagerly await to sing
for the first time at Pukllay. This act of the change in song is a joyous celebration, and denotes
renewal.
The songs, like the contexts they pertain to, serve complementary balancing functions in
the community, as the differing rules of use between the two genres demonstrate. Pukllay and

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Pukllay taki have the affect of playful fun and therefore nurture community joy and cohesion,
whereas the fertility songs have the affect of urgency and anxiety that fosters individual feelings
of sorrow. Another possible way to state the difference between the song genres is secular and
sacred. The playful presence of Pukllay taki is what makes these songs appropriate and
permissible for daily herding and casual partying. The restrictive, sacred use of the fertility
songs permits the socialized expression of grief that the people do not show in daily interactions
such as herding or weaving.
I felt a difference in the affect between Pukllay taki and fertility songs in my first
performances of them with the Qeros. Below, I compare two excerpts from my (already quoted)
fieldnotes in order to underscore the differences of affect between the two song genres that I
experienced during performance. In my fieldnotes from Pukllay (2006) I wrote:
The continual overlapping of sounds was invigorating,
exhilarating, and even transporting I would sayin a wonderful
way. Singing forcefully from the gut felt like natural and deep
expression. With both the men and women I felt included, as a part
of the community (excerpt from fieldnotes, 1 March 2006).

This contrasts with how I felt when I sang during Machu Fistay, singing and dancing with
the bells over the machu misa:
I was completely enveloped in the loud clanging of the bells, the
vibration going through my body, the full-bodied singing, all of
which was very powerful and altering. I felt swept away by the
sound and sensation. The sensory overload was overwhelming, and
I felt tears come forth, surface, and eventually flow (excerpt from
fieldnotes, 2 September 2006).

Even though I am not from Qeros, nevertheless I feel that my continual and deep
immersion in the community and compassion for the people and their customs lends insight into
the differing experiences in the performance of both song types. The experience or affect of
Pukllay taki performance was one of playful joy, exhilarating release, and community inclusion,
while that of Machu Fistay was trance-like, tear-inducing, and with intense sensory overload.
I remember when I sang Phallcha in Pukllay (2006) I stood in a public line in Inlis
Pampa with about one dozen women who all sang simultaneously; this differed from singing
over the private family misa inside of a home with only two other women. Singing Phallcha
was communal, while singing Machu Taki was private and intimate, with one family whom I

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knew well and felt comfortable with in letting my tears flow. The presence of Machu Taki
was continually augmented through increased intention to reach the Apu, caused by repetitive
infusion of samay and aysariykuy. The continual bell-sound evoked the strong, tearful emotion
that singing Phallcha did not.
This presence of the fertility songs, which hold the meanings of figure ground
reversal (life/death), is what caused Rebecca to say to me waqasunchisa, now we will cry
(pers. com., 2 February 2006) when we began singing Pantilla Tika, and likewise Vctor to
state that he always feels preocupado, worried/preoccupied (pers. com., 31 December 2006)
when singing the same song. The known and anticipated presence of the song fostered
Mnicas release of her own grief about her parents deaths, as it also compelled Vctor and
Juana to express theirs about their spouses deaths. Indeed, Vctor and Juana did not participate
in Pukllay in 2005 (the day after their grief-singing about their spouses), both because of societal
rules (they were in mourning) and their own personal states of being. Pantilla Tika allowed
Vctor and Juana to express what was current in their lives, which the performance of Thurpa
the following day in Pukllay would not. Grief-singing in Pantilla Tika was the acceptable
musical context to express sorrow, so that Vctor and Juana could begin to heal, and sing in
Pukllay the following yearwhich they did.
The differing soundscapes and musical aesthetics of the performance of both genres
indicate their complementary functions and affect (compare Audio Example 5.1 with Audio
Example 7.3). The singing and playing of Pukllay taki is communally oriented: the length of
time one group sang in any given watukuy was fairly regimented (about twenty to thirty
minutes), as groups knew they needed to stop and move on in order to allow the next group to
enter the home. This placed the focus on the joyful sociability of the song in constant, communal
rotation from home-to-home versus the urgency and necessity of continual propitiation. The
people retained a somewhat consistent high level of ecstatic energy throughout the all-night
singing/playing, with everyone singing and playing continuously.
Importantly, Pukllay taki are rarely improvised upon, as musical production is communal
and not personalized within immediate family. Occasionally I heard a verse improvised here or
there, but the text was not personalized emotion; rather, it seemed more action/community-
based, such as now we will chew coca.

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 By contrast, the singing of animal fertility songs is more intimate and family/individual
oriented: each person shows her/his intention of sending out samay in urgent propitiation in
continuous singing that results in more individual overlap than the performance of Pukllay taki.
Individuals and families cry and sing their grief and anxiety, whether current or memories of the
past; the performance increases in intensity over the course of the ritual, more so than in Pukllay,
as the necessity and anxiety of fulfillment of ayni obligation to the spirit powers builds (Chapter
7, Audio Examples 7.17.4) . It is natural for emotion to be aborted if it is interrupted or
diverted, so that spending uninterrupted time for three or four hours in the mullucancha (versus
the stop-start of watukuy) encourages strong sentiment to surface and be expressed freely.
The two song genres serve in complementary relationship to one another in their
fulfillment of communal and individual needs. Pukllay taki are centered on fulfillment of ayni
that is social, and fertility songs on fulfillment of ayni that is cosmic. The former impact joyfully,
which is why Dominga said, We remember Pukllay all year long; It makes us very happy (p.c,
2 February 2005); the latter nurture anxiety, which is consistent with Raymundos statement, It
is a custom to feel preoccupied when singing this song (pers. com., 7 December 2006). Pukllay
taki serve for expression of communal joy and to renew, re-create, and strengthen social bonds;
animal fertility songs revitalize bonds among people, animals, and spirit powers, and serve as
individual release of pain and grief. The performance of Pukllay taki is the replete enjoyment of
the temporary assurance of life, and the fertility rituals songs act on renewing and re-creating that
assurance, and these carry the awareness of the opposite. In sum, Pukllay taki and animal fertility
songs serve to fulfill community needs that are complementary in nature: the shared release of
joy, and the shared release of sorrow. The two song genres are therefore in a yanantin
relationship with one another, and their respective complementary communal/intimate and
joy/grief aspects contribute to the balance, and even healing (thak) of social relations on
individual, family, and communal levels. This yanantin relationship that is the necessary
expression and sharing of joy and grief balances and nurtures social reproduction.
Various aspects of musical production also reinforce social reproduction . The womens
and mens musical roles are complementary, as they are in daily life, and the women state they
cannot sing without the mens pinkuyllu playing. Likewise, the men cannot play without the
womens singing. The womens role as herders and caretakers of the children who necessarily
stay close to home and do not travel far is re-created in Pukllay performance: they sing in line

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formation with no dance movement, and their melodic lines often line up on aysariykuy. They
tend to sing in pitch centers that are either the same or related (in thirds or fifths). Conversely,
the mens assertiveness and traveling (both in and out of Qeros) are re-created in their stomping
dance, and individual tuning and playing of pinkuyllu.

Musical Production as Cosmological Reproduction

In addition to Pukllay taki and fertility songs serving as forms of social renewal and
reproduction, both genres also re-create the Qeros cosmological perceptions and relationships.
The basic structuring principle of yanantin that drives Qeros perception is re-created in many
aspects of music and music-making. The female and male complementary relationship of
yanantin is expressed in instrument pairs. The warmi pusunis is qompo (round, spherical,
smooth) in complement to the qhari pusunis, which is chacha (waqrachayoq, with horns).
The former has a au (thin) voice to complement the latters rakhu (thick) voice, and both are
necessary for balance in musical production and symbolism. Another example of instrument
pairing is the Qeros panpipes, qanchis sipas, which are played in Sinalay for the cattle and
sheep. Many Qeros state that the nearer, sounding row of pipes is qhari, and the farther silent
row of pipes is warmi. This is similar to a ritual I observed in Chayampuy when the wives of the
newly-installed authorities were required to be completely silent, even non-interactive, during
the main feast, while their husbands were busy interacting and socializing. Yet, as Agustn
reported, without the support of warmi, the qhari row of pipes cannot sound, and the authorities
cannot conduct their roles properly (pers. com., 22 May 2006). The unequal halves are
interdependent and both are necessary.
The Qeros articulate such yanantin relationships. Indeed, much to my surprise, when I
asked Agustin why they held two rows of pipes and only played one, he answered energetically
with one word: Yanantin! (ibid.). His one word answer was so simple and direct, yet profound
in that it encompassed a perception that is foundational to the Qeros worldview. This
worldview is why the Qeros necessarily employ couples of pusunis and qanchis sipas musical
instruments.
I have shown how yanantin is imbedded in the relationship between womens and mens
melodies in Pukllay taki and the two complementary fertility songs. The Qeros reproduce this

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cosmological perception in physical objects, such as instrument pairs, weavings designs, two
piles of coca leaf offerings, and quri and qulqi pinkuyllu placed in yanantin offerings to the Apu
and Pacha Mama. They re-create yanantin on the large, visible scale, such as community layout
(ichiniku/castilla), and on the small and invisible, such as pitch relationships between melodies
in song structure. The pitches of the two melodies are interactive in a way that is consistent with
yanantin: the melodies interact in a middle or chawpi transition area (pitches of mi and sol) and
then arrive at an established equilibrium in aysariykuy on the interval of a fifth, when the
warmi and qhari relationship is clearly established (do and sol respectively). This equilibrium is
momentary, and then the warmi/qhari dialectic starts anew (the song is continually repeated),
which results in the dense overlapping texture that is a hallmark of Qeros musical production.
Even though the Qeros do not articulate yanantin relationships in musical terms such as melody
and pitch, I have argued that the presence of yanantin in song structure is one of cultural
insistence, as this cosmological view is re-created in many other small and large aspects of daily
and ritual life.
In addition, I have argued that Pantilla Tika and Machu Taki are also in a
warmi/qhari relationship because their melodic structures, song form (ABA1), and duple rhythm
mirror one another. This song pair has similar musical attributes that differ from those of Pukllay
taki (ABAB1 in compound rhythm; see Appendix B), which sets them off as a pair. The songs
exemplify and re-create the warmi/qhari relationship that their respective rituals encompass in
the complementary seasonal cycles. Thus, the songs are sonic synecdoche of this larger
relationship: Pantilla Tika/Phallchay/warmi /female animals/wet season, which complements
Machu Taki/Machu Fistay/qhari/male animals/dry season.
The equilibrium of aysariykuy is not only musically stable (the interval of a fifth), but
this vocal technique serves in the vital renewal of relationship with the cosmos: the Apu and
Pacha Mama, which hold the greatest sway over Qeros livelihood. Repeated aysariykuy sends
the peoples samay and animu in continual offering to the spirit powers, so that the sound
arrives, and so that the powers can reciprocate to the people and the animals with a good life
and healthy herds. Song, infused with animu that is sent out through aysariykuy, then, is one of
the many offerings that is necessary in re-creation and renewal of ayni relationship with the
cosmos. When vital relationship with the cosmos is maintained, this allows the animals and the
people literally to reproduce, so that cosmic reproduction is also social reproduction, in the most

214
literal sense. Conversely, rupture in relationship with the cosmos results in rupture in animal and
human lineage. Song, including the specific way song is produced, is one of the many energetic
offerings that serve to maintain, renew, and regenerate cosmic and social reproduction.
The song texts of both genres express what is both beautiful and vital to the Qeros. The
Pukllay taki text underscores social cohesion in its focus on what the community believes holds
aesthetic beauty (adornments and decorations) and mystical import (wallata, kiyu, sirina). The
texts are celebratory, and they illustrate the belief in animu in that topics are addressed as if they
were living beings.
The texts of the fertility songs focus on the cosmos (Apu) and the peoples desired
outcome as a result of relationship renewal with the cosmos (plentiful herds). The numerous
metaphorical associations embedded in the refrains (flowers, birds) are ultimately references to
the Apu, and the verses focus on the attributes of the strong animals they beseech the Apu to
bestow upon the people, their animals, and daily lives.
Both Pukllay and animal fertility rituals employ songs that are noted to be uniquely and
emblematically Qeros, and they hold many musical aspects in common: tritonic vocal melodies
with tritonic pinkuyllu accompaniment, the required vocal technique of aysariykuy, and the
musical aesthetics of dense overlapping. The Qeros sing Pukllay taki and fertility songs with
similar intention: to renew and fulfill social and cosmic ayni obligations, respectively, and for
successful fertility. Pukllay fulfills ayni relationships among people (cargo roles carried out,
social obligations completed), and it focuses on human fertility in courtship and play, and in the
performance of topical songs with texts of affectionate expression. Musical production has the
affect of renewal, indulgence, communitas, celebration, and joy. Increase rituals fulfill ayni
among people, animals and the spirit powers (symbolic actions in circulatory ayni among the
three); they also focus on animal fertility. Musical production has the affect of urgency, energetic
intention, sorrow, and loss. In order for the purpose of Pukllay and fertility rituals to be attained,
they are necessarily musical; music holds essential emissary roles in the fulfillment and renewal
of social and cosmic ayni relations.
The texts, musical structure, and production of Qeros songs re-create the most basic life
tenets of Qeros (and Andean) lifeanimu, yanantin, and ayni. Qeros autochthonous songs
serve in vital re-creation, renewal, and reproduction of social and cosmic relationships and
cosmological perception that are fundamental to the Qeros identity as runa in the Andean world.

215
While the Qeros share the beliefs in and re-creation of animu, yanantin, and ayni with many of
their Andean neighbors, the musical specificities of Pukllay taki and the fertility songsi.e.,
texts, melodies, rhythms, song structure, and aesthetics of musical productionreflect a musical
style that is emblematically and authentically Qeros.

216
 GLOSSARY

Alcalde: Sp. mayor. In Qeros, this term is used for two separate offices: the political office of
community mayor and the sponsor (carguyuq) of the Pukllay festival.

Ayllu: A term that refers to groups of people that are organized by a shared focus. In the case of
Qeros, the high altitude hamlets are ayllu, where people live and work in the same valley area.
Today many Qeros refer to these hamlets by their legal political term, anexo.

Apu: Mountain deity.

Aqha: Fermented corn beer.

Ayni: Reciprocal exchange, a fundamental tenet of Andean society.

Aysariykuy: Literally, to pull. Prolongation of pitch and breath at the end of sung/played
phrases. This is the Qeros active way to send the song out through breath so that it will reach
the spirit powers.

Anexo: Spanish, annex. Hamlets (clusters of homes) that pertain to one community, which are
usually far from one another (such as in separate river valleys), and have their own names apart
from the community name. Modern-day Andean communities will have many anexos, which are
often based on traditional ayllu relationships.

Bandurria: Sixteen-string lute in four courses.

Capitn: Spanish, captain, referring to the head male llama.

Castilla: The right two valleys of the Qeros community when approached from above (includes
the anexos of Qocha Moqo, Qolpa Kuchu, Charkapata, and Hatun Rumiyuq). It is also the name
for the dance sling worn by the men in Pukllay.

Carnavales: Popular song genre sung and danced during Carnaval, often played on popular
string instruments, such as the bandurria and the requinto.

Chawpi: Center, most specifically (in regards to this study) the center or meeting place of the
two parts of yanantin.

Chullumpi: Water birds in the high Andes with the markings of black on top and white
underneath, associated with the places of birth origins of llamas and alpacas.

Compadre/comadre: A familial tie created in the rural Andes by conducting the first hair-cutting
ritual (chukcha rutuy) of a child, or in urban areas through Catholic baptism. The selected
godparents and the parents become co-fathers (compadres) and co-mothers (co-mothers) through
the hair-cutting ritual/baptism of a child.

217
Comparsa: Folkloric dance group, usually comprised of numerous costumed-dancers and
musicians.

Chuqiwanka: Golden song or golden echo. One name for the Qeros panpipes (see qanchis
sipas).

Charki: Dried, salted meat. Origin of English word jerky.

Chuu: Freeze-dried potatoes.

Despacho: Spanish, dispatch, meaning an offering bundle for the Apu and Pacha Mama.

Encomienda: Large tracts of territory allotted to the Spanish conquistadors (encomenderos),

where the indigenous people who lived there worked it, similar to peasants in the European
feudal system. This system was operative from the Spanish conquest until independence (1532
1821).

Faena: mens community work projects, such as planting and harvesting, bridge building, or
roofing.

Gringo/a: Foreigner, which includes the city people from the capital city of Lima. More
commonly these foreigners are called turistas (tourists) by the Qeros.

Hacienda: Large territories of privately-owned land during the Republican Period in Peru (1821
ca. 1970s).

Ichiniku: The left two valleys of the Qeros community when approached from above (includes
the anexos of Chuwa Chuwa and Challmachimpana).

INC: Instituto Nacional de Cultura

Inlis Pampa: Inlis is from the Spanish iglesia (church), and pampa refers to the large, open
grassy area in front of the Church built by the large landowner (hacendado).

Justicia: Sp. justice. Another name the Qeros use to refer to the alcalde, or head sponsor of
Pukllay.

Kena: From Aymara, referring to a notched, vertical flute with six finger holes and one
thumbhole.

Lliklla: Womans woven shawl

Machu Fistay: Festival for the male llama which occurs after the corn harvest. Other local names
are: Santiago (after the Catholic feast of Santiago, July 25, most commonly the date of the corn
harvest in Qeros), and Aqhata Ukyachichis (to make drink the corn beer).

218
Machuta kachariy: To toss/drop/release the male llama. Throwing of the pululu gourd for
divination about llama herds.

Misa: From Spanish mesa. Offering space on the floor of a home used during animal fertility
rituals, where the ritual objects are placed.

Mestizo/misti: An Andean person (urban or rural) who has incorporated influences such as
formal education, Catholicism, speaks Spanish as well as Quechua, and wears factory clothes
(pants, shoes, jackets).

Monte: The lowest of the Qeros three ecological zones, where they cultivate corn, approx.
6,0008,000 feet above sea level.

Montera: Wide, flat hat. This is the hat the Qeros used to wear daily, that is now only worn
during Pukllay.

Mullucancha: The ritual corral where animals are gathered for fertility rites.

Qhunqe: Dried, unsalted meat, which is naturally smoked by hanging from the rafters above the
cooking area inside a home.

Pacha: Time and space.

Pacha Mama: Mother Earth.

Pagu: Ritual offering to the Apu and Pacha Mama.

Pallay: Weaving design; literally to retrieve or to pick up, referring to the motion of
selecting individual threads, which results in a specific pattern.

Phallchay: Animal fertility ritual for all llamas and alpacas, with particular focus on the females,
which occurs on the Monday before Ash Wednesday.

Phukuy: To blow. Ritual blowing.

Pinkuyllu: Four-holed, vertical, notched flute made of bamboo, played by the men in Qeros.

Pitu: Transverse flute with six finger holes.

Pukllay: Literally to play. The Quechua name for Carnaval in Andean communities.

Pukllay taki: Literally Carnaval song. The indigenous Andean songs sung at Carnaval usually
with voice and flute. Pukllay taki are distinct from the popular dance genre called carnaval in
that the former tend to be indigenous and community specific, while the latter are more mestizo
and regionally popular.

219
Pululu: The carved gourd that is used for drinking and divination in Machu Fistay.

Puna: The highest of the Qeros three ecological zones, where they raise llamas and alpacas,
approx. 13,50015,500 feet above sea level.

Pusunis: The Qeros name for the conch shells the authorities use during Pukllay. Many Andean
communities call these pututu.

Qanchis sipas: Literally seven young unmarried women. Name for the Qeros panpipes
composed of a double unit of seven bamboo tubes each. Only the nearer unit of seven pipes are
sounded.

Qeros (also keros): ceremonial drinking vessels.

Qhapaq qolla: Folklore dance representative of people from the altiplano, or high plateau, which
was first popularized at the Paucartambo festival the Virgin of Carmen, and later taken to the
large pilgrimage of Qoyllur Riti.

Qhari: Literally man. The male half of yanantin.

Qheswa: The middle of the Qeros three ecological zones, where they cultivate potatoes, approx.
10,50013,500 feet above sea level.

Qoyllur Riti: The largest pilgrimage in the southeastern Andes of Peru, where people express
their faith to a Christ image on a sacred stone (the Seor de Qoyllur Riti) through costumed
dances and songs.

Qulqi: silver (female element).

Quri: gold (male element).

Quri phuku: Literally golden blowpipe. One name for the Qeros panpipes (see qanchis
sipas).

Requinto: Ten-string lute, with four single strings and two courses of three strings.

Runa: Literally person. Quechua people who live a traditional, Andean lifestyle refer to
themselves as runa.

Runasimi: The Quechua language.

Rusayu: The bells, ropes, and fringe of the lead male llama. This term is only used in ritual
(Machu Fistay).

Samay: Animating essence.

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Sinalay: From Spanish sealar (to mark), referring to the animal fertility ritual for the sheep and
cows. It is uiually held just before Todos los Santos on the liturgical calendar (1 November).

Tilantiru: From Spanish delantero. Lead male llama.

Tinku: Meeting place, commonly used for the confluence of two rivers.

Tinkuy: To meet; a meeting.

Tinka: Ritual alcohol libation.

Warmi: Literally woman. The female half of yanantin.

Waylla champa: Chunk of sod placed on the family altar during fertility rituals, for the animal
statues to graze on.

Wayno: The most popular song/dance genre in the Peruvian Andes.

Wayri chunchu: A costumed dance that represents lowland Amazonian inhabitants, danced by
the Qeros (and many others) at the Qoyllur Riti pilgrimage festival.

Yanantin: Complementary duality. The working union of two contrasting yet congruent parts in
search of equilibrium and balance, and with a meeting and overlap in a center.

221
 APPENDIX A
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ANNUAL RITUAL CYCLE IN QEROS

Table A. An Overview of the Annual Ritual Cycle.

Festival Level/Location Time Music(s)/Performance Purpose(s)

Elements
Chayampuy Communal/ Saturday- Communal: Receipt of
Hatun Qeros Monday, Pukllay Taki cargos by
2 weeks Specialized: incoming
prior to Ash authorities
Sargento songs/
Wednesday sung/danced by youth
(usually early (genre of greater region) Selection of
February) song for the
year
Phallchay Individual Lunes Suyu Song: Propitiation to
Families/ (Monday of Pantilla Tika/ spirits for
At homes in Carnaval) Men: pinkuyllu healthy llama
annexes and alpaca
Women: voice herds (focus on
females)
Pukllay Communal/ Tuesday, Ash Communal: Renewal of
(Carnaval) Hatun Qeros Wednesday, Chosen Pukllay taki for the community ties
Thursday year/
(usually mid- Men: pinkuyllu Festive release
February to
early March) Women: voice
Tinkuy Two annexes meet Friday, Young People dance to Expression of
on adjacent passes Sunday, recorded carnavales and courtship and
Monday, waynos/played on cassette competition
Tuesday tape w/ loudspeaker among young
immediately adults
following
Pukllay
Pascuas Communal/ Saturday Specialized musicians play Raise new
(Easter) Hatun Qeros Gloria and popular waynos/ on pitus weavings on
Easter Sunday (transverse flutes), Arku (arch)
(usually late tambores, (drums) for celebration
March, early Procession of
April) Catholic
images
Qoyllur Riti Communal Trinity Specialized dancers and Veneration at
pilgrimage to the Sunday, musicians/ holy
glacial Qoyllur Monday, -Wayri chunchu/ pitus, pilgrimage site
Riti festival site, Tuesday, tambores
a days walk from Wednesday -Qhapaq qolla/ kenas Participation
Qeros (usually late (notched flute), accordion, with larger
May, early drum set Andean region
June)

222
Table A, continued. An Overview of the Annual Ritual Cycle.

Festival Level/Location Time Music(s)/Performance Purpose(s)

Elements
Corpus Communal/ Thursday and Same dancers and Participation in
Christi Hatun Qeros Friday musicians as Qoyllur Riti a regional
following ritual at the
Qoyllur Riti local level
Procession
of crosses

Machu Individual Up to the Song: Propitiation to

Fistay Families/ discretion of Machu Taki/ spirits for
Or: Aqhata At homes in the family. Men: pinkuyllu healthy male
Ukyachichis annexes After the July llamas
corn harvest, Women: voice
(Santiago) Celebration of
usually August corn harvest
or September
Sinalay Individual Up to Songs: Propitiation to
(Santos) Families discretion of For cows and sheep/ spirits for
At homes in the family. Men: qanchis sipas healthy cows
annexes Usually and sheep
October before Women: Voice
Todos los
Santos on
November 1st

Notes about Table A:

Most celebrations in Qeros are now linked to the liturgical calendar. The only music
not listed are the popular bandurria and requinto styles for enjoyment that the youth
are starting to learn. The names in parentheses are the Catholic names for the festivals,
which the Qeros sometimes use, even though the rituals have minimal Catholic
elements.

223
 APPENDIX B

KUNAN PUKLLAY TAKI (CURRENT CARNAVAL SONGS)

Thurpa
Recorded out of context, September 12, 2005, Cusco, Peru.
Voice: Juliana Apasa Flores, Pinkuyllu: Agustn Machacca Flores
See Chapter 5, page 95, for alternate transcription that shows yanantin relationship.

Audio Example Thurpa

224
 Thurpa
Transcription and translation
Recorded out of context, September 12, 2005, Cusco
Voice: Juliana Apasa Flores, Pinkuyllu: Agustn Machacca Flores
Pukllay taki choice: 2005

Refrain: Panti Thurpachallay

My lovely pink thurpa flower

1. Anantachallay, castilla puka My lovely Ananta, red like castilla

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[Ananta is a small ravine that is compared to the red castilla dress worn at Pukllay because of the
thurpa in full bloom there.]

2. Qanchis palqaman, sinrukuna In seven strands, you are in line

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[The flowers are threaded and hung in strands to put on a womans hat.]

3. Walqachapaqch kutimunki Perhaps you have come to be a necklace

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[Thurpa are not worn as necklaces; rather, hats are adorned with thurpa.]

4. Halwachapich uywasqayki I will care for you, perhaps in a little cage

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[Halwa is from the Spanish jaula (cage). The expression means that the little flowers will be
well-cared for.]

5. Kawsaq sunqulla waqaykuchiq You who make the vibrant hearts weep
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[The flowers are so lovely they can make a person cry. This can be a metaphor for a young
woman too. This verse is a floater, one that is sung in any Pukllay taki.]

6. Awas pushkasqa watuykuqlla To recount/remember what I have woven

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[This is a reference to the new weavings that are woven especially for Pukllay.]

225
Thurpa continued:

7. Justiciachallaq alforjanpi In the saddle bag of the Justicia

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[Justicia is another name for the alcalde in charge of Pukllay. This verse is about the past
Chayampuy, when the authorities rode horses laden with saddle bags from Paucartambo back to
Qeros.]

8. Chayllari kunan imanasuntaq . . . and now, what shall we do?

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

9. Qucha qasallay, malwa panti My lovely Qocha Qasa, where the pink malva grows
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[Malwa (malva in Spanish) is another flower that grows nearby that they use to decorate their
hats. Qucha Qasa is a high pass near the largest Apu, Waman Lipa.]

10. Sulterachallaq pallaykusqan Gathered only for the single women

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

11. Yana qaqallay, castilla puka In the dark, rocky places, red like castilla
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa flower

[Thurpa flowers turn the rocky places red, like the castilla worn at Pukllay.]

12. Pilluchallapaq sinrukuna For adorning with flowers, you are in a line
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[The flowers are placed in neat strands in the bands of womens hats in Pukllay].

13. Anantachallay, malwa panti My lovely Ananta, where the pink malva grows
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

14. Pilluchallapaq sinrukuna For adorning with flowers, you are in a line
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

15. Ichuq sullunman sinrukuna Near the sprout of the ichu, you are in line
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[The thurpa flowers grow up high, where ichu grass also grows.]

16. Pichallan apaykumusunki Who is it that has brought you?

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[This is one of the most common floater verses sung in all Pukllay taki.]

226
Thurpa continued:

17. Asnaq turupi sarukuqpaq So that you will be stomped on in the foul-smelling mud.
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[This is a reference to the stomping dance and watukuy rounds the people do. If the thurpa
flowers fall from someones hat, they will be stepped and trampled on in the wet mud that has a
strong odor from much urination due to obligatory drinking.]

18. Pallaqchaykita akaykushay To whom has gathered you, speak badly

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[This verse goes with verse 17. The person who has gathered the thurpa and allowed it to fall
and be stomped on should be reprimanded.]

19. Sanraruchallay pirqapichu By any chance are you on my sacred wall?

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[Sanraru is from the Spanish sagrado (sacred). Sanraru pirqa is sacred wall and refers
specifically to the Church in Inles Pampa, where the main gathering takes place on Ash
Wednesday. The question is more of a statement, saying, you are not on the church wall. This
refers to the fact that thurpa is used for decoration in festivals, and not for Catholic religious
celebrations.]

20. Qaqachallaymi niykullanki You, who are found in my lovely rocky places
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[Niykuy is to say something with much affection, so niykullanki could be translated as Lovely
you who is said to be found in my lovely, rocky places.]

21. Qasa wayrallaq uywaykusqan You who are raised only in the frosty wind
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

[Thurpa flowers grow up high, where the cold wind blows regularly.]

22. Chikchi parallaq saqtaykusqan You who are mistreated by the hail and rain
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

23. Timpuchallayki pasaruqtinqa When your time is passed . . .

Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

24. Chikchi parachu saqtasunki The hail and the rain will mistreat you
Panti Thurpachallay My lovely pink thurpa

227
 Phallcha
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
First half of recording: Voice: Juana Flores Salas,
Pinkuyllu: Santos Flores Huamn, Fortunato Chura Flores.
Second half of recording: In context, Pukllay, Ash Wednesday, Hatun Qeros, March 1, 2006

Audio Example Phallcha

Yanantin between both parts:

228
 Phallcha
Transcription and translation
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Santos Flores Huamn, Fortunato Chura Flores
Pukllay taki choice: 2004, 2006, 2009

Refrain: Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay

My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha
[phallchaysuyunki is one of the many endearing names for the phallcha flower]

1. Pichallan apaykumusunki Who is it that brought you?

Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

2. Pilluschallaypaq munaykunacha You are loved for decorations on my hat

Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

3. Sasachiqllunay khullu chupacha Difficult to gather, with your tiny tail

Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

4. Pilluschallaypaq munaykunacha You are loved for decorations on my hat

Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

5. Qucha umallay isqon colorcha Oucha Umallay, of nine lovely colores

Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

6. Pichallan pallaykusunkiman And who was it that gathered you ?

Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

7. Qucha ulayraq ulaykusun Like the waves of the lake, we will make waves
Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

8. Challachu mana puriykusun And, so will we not go walking ?

Phallchaysuyunki Phallchaschallay My dear phallchasuyunki, my little phallcha

229
 Walqa Pii
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas

Audio Example Walqa Pii

Yanantin between both parts:

230
 Walqa Pii
Transcription and translation
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas
Pukllay taki choice: 2007

Refrain: Walqachay Walqay Piichay

My little walqa, my little beads

1., 7., 17. Suchin qatipakusqayki I will always follow the suchiq dancer
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

[Suchin refers to the suchiq dancer, a custom that is no longer practiced in Qeros. On Thursday,
after Ash Wednesday, a young man wore a costume made of many green leaves, and danced and
sang a song of farewell to the authorities. This was the last event before the people left the center
of Hatun Qeros to return to their homes up high].

2. Wahakunay lichi phawsicha Little white, milky waterfall, that I must invoke
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

3. Chuchuqeay lichi phawsicha Apu Chuchuqea, little white, milky waterfall

Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

4. Chullupampay unuy rakicha My chullupampa, where the water divides

Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

[Chullupampa is where the Challmachimpa river valley meets the Chuwa Chuwa river valley.]

5. Walqachapaq munaykunacha You who are loved for adorning us

Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

6., 16. Pillan apaykumusunki Who is it that brought you?

Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

8. Inlispampay ramay qachu In Inlis Pampa, branches of grass

Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

Victor sings:
9. Wirkinkunaq munaykunan You who are loved by the young women
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

[Wirkin is from Sp. virgin, and is a general term for young women.]

231
Walqa Pii, continued:

Juana:
10. Qucha ulayraq ulaykusun We will make waves [dance] like the waves of the lake
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

Victor:
11. Takiqkunaq munaykunan You who are loved by the singers
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

Juana:
12. Chiri ima naykusuntaq Nothing makes you cold
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

[This is sung to the walqa beads; the cold does not bother you like it does the people.]

Victor:
13. Qucha ulayraq ulaykusun We will make waves [dance] like the waves of the lake
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

Juana:
14. Kuru kisay kallichapi In the street where there are stinging nettles
Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

15. Sawku sawkuy kallichapi In the street of the elderberry trees

Walqachay Walqay Piichay My little walqa, my little beads

[Sawku is from sauco in Spanish; elderberry trees.]

232
 Rinrillu
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas

Audio Example Rinrillu

Yanantin between both parts:

233
 Rinrillu
Transcription and translation
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas
Pukllay taki choice: 2008

Refrain: Rinrilluschallay
My lovely, little membrillo

1. Pillan apaykamusunki Who is it that brought you?

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

2. Suqarachallay marijacha My lovely dance sling, hanging ribbons

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

3. Qucha ulayraq ulaykusun Like the waves of the lake, we will make waves
Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

4. Pillan apaykamusunki Who is it that brought you?

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

5. Wahakunay lichi phawsi Who I should call, milky waterfall

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

6. Impernasqay lluqllay urqu Apu Impernasqa, eroded mountain

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

7. Salkantay chay lichi phawsi Salkantay, that milky waterfall

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

8. Chullupanpay unuy raki Humid pampa, full of water

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

9. Amalla llakikushawaychu Dont make me sad

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

10. Uqhu patay asnaq turu Humid place, with mud that smells
Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

11. Pillan apaykamusunki Who is it that brought you?

Rinrilluschallay Mi lovely, little membrillo

234
 Wallata
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas

Audio Example Wallata

Yanantin between both parts:

235
 Wallata
Transcription and translation
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas

Refrain: Wallatay Wallata

My dear wallata (Andean geese), wallata

1. Yana alqay wallata Black, speckled wallata

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

2. Pillan apaykumusunki Who is it that brought you here?

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

3. Sukharachay mariju My little loops of ribbon

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

4. Pillan apaykumusunki Who is it that brought you here?

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

5. Nawidaspin malqu uywaykuq You raise your young around Christmas-time

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

[The young wallata are born in the rainy season, around Christmas (Sp. navidad). The Qeros do
not celebrate Christmas, so this is an incorporated reference].

6. Malqulla uwaykusqayki The young chick that you raised

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

7. Khunkuna luru pallaykuqcha The khunkuna grass, with its tiny, parrot-like
bud
Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

8. Quchantaraq nicitanki You need/require the lake

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

9. Hatun kurus wichayta Above, the pass of Hatun Cruz

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

[Hatun Cruz (Big Cross) is a pass between the Qeros annex of Chuwa Chuwa and the
community of Ancasi. Many wallata live on Hatun Cruz).

10. Kutirinki chullumpi You will return, chullumpi

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

236
Wallata, continued:

11. Ankaq puchun wallata The remains of the wallata, left by the eagle
Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

(The anka bird [an accipiter - Gerancaetus melanoleucus] eats the young wallata)

12. Ankallapaq malqu uywaykuq You raise young chicks for the dear eagle
Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

13. Qucha ulayraq ulaykusaq I will dance like the waves of the lake
Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

14. Pillan apaykumusunki Who is it that brought you here?

Wallatay Wallata My dear wallata, wallata

237
 Sirina
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2005, Challmachimpana (Qeros)
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas

Audio Example Sirina

Yanantin between both parts:

238
 Sirina
Transcription and translation
Recorded out of context, February 14, 2006, Challmachimpana (Qeros).
Voice: Juana Flores Salas, Pinkuyllu: Vctor Flores Salas

Refrain: Sirinaschallay phawsinti

My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

1. Phawsi phawsichay sirenacha Little sirina, of my little waterfalls

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

2. Pichallan apaykumusunki Who is it that brought you here?

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

3. Impernasqallaq chakichampi At the foot of Apu Impernasqa

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

[Apu Impernasqa is the protector Apu of Challmachimpana, Juanas home. A singer from
another anexo would sing about her nearest Apu.]

4. Kuru kisachay kallichapi In the little street of the wormy nettles

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

[Kuru kisa is the name of a walking path in the community center of Hatun Qeros, named after
a specific nettle. Kalli is from calle/street, in Spanish]

5. Suchillan qatipakusqayki You who follow in Carnival

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

6. Castillachallay turpachantin The group from the right side

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

7. Inlespampallay ramay qachu Tall grass in my Inles Pampa

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

8. Quchay ulaycha ulashasun Like the waves of the lake, we will make waves
Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

239
Sirina,continued:

9. Wahakunachay lichi phawsi My Little Invocation, milky waterfall

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

[This is a waterfall in the anexo of Challmachimpana]

10. Kuru kisachay kallichapi In the little street of the wormy nettles
Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

Victor sings:
Ichinikuchay turpachaqa The group from the left side
Sirinay phawsintischallay My Sirina, my lovely little waterfall

Haku turpachay nishasunch Surely we will be saying, Lets go, little group!
Sirinay phawsintischallay My Sirina, my lovely little waterfall

Castillachallay turpakuna The group from the right side

Sirinay phawsintischallay My Sirina, my lovely little waterfall

Allinchallanta purikusun We will visit well [walk well]

Sirinay phawsintischallay My Sirina, my lovely little waterfall

Juana sings:
11. Wawqellayuqchu panallayuqchu With my lovely brothers, with my lovely sisters
Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

12. Castillachallay turpachaqa The group from the right side

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

13. Ichinikullay turpallantin The group from the left side

Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

14. Turpachay qatipakusqaykichu My little group, I will follow you from behind
Sirinaschallay phawsinti My lovely, little Sirina of the waterfall

[All of Vctors verses, and the last four of Juanas describe the visiting rounds of watukuy, when
groups walk from home to home and sing.]

240
 Kiyu
Recorded out of context, August 18, 2005, Kiku
Voice: Guillerma Machacca Zamata, Pinkuyllu: Jose Machacca Quispe

Audio Example Kiyu

Yanantin between both parts:

241
 Kiyu
Transcription and translation
Recorded out of context, August 18, 2005, Kiku
Voice: Guillerma Machacca Zamata, Pinkuyllu: Jose Machacca Quispe

Refrain: Kiyuschallay wamanki

My dear kiyu, wamanki [falcon/hawk Apu association]

1. Chayri imanaykusun And now, what do we do?

Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

2. Qhaswasqayki pampapi In the pampa, where you danced

Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

3. Phuruchayki sinraykus(qa) With your feathers all falling

Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

4. Aguila ankaq mikuykunan The eagle searches for you, to eat you
Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

5. Suchinpichu hamurqan(ki) You have come as a messenger

Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

6. Haku ripuykushasun Lets go, we are leaving

Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

7. Chayri imanaykusun(taq) And now, what do we do?

Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

8. Maytan kunan ripuyman To where do we go now?

Kiyuschallay wamanki My dear kiyu, wamanki

242
 APPENDIX C
CHAYAMPUY:
RITUAL RECEIPT OF CARGOS BY AUTHORITIES AND SONG SELECTION

Chayampuy used to be held in the district capital of Paucartambo before the

establishment of the consejo menor (town council) in Hatun Qeros in 1998. The name comes
from chayay (to arrive), and refers to the arrival of the newly-inaugurated authorities on
horseback from Paucartambo, which signals that Pukllay will begin two weeks later. In my
opinion, this change in ritual location for Chayampuy has had a significant impact (among
others) on song composition, so that the Qeros no longer compose any new Pukllay taki. This
issue is briefly discussed at the close of the dissertation, under the subheading Looking Ahead:
Are Qeros Songs Endangered?
I witnessed Chayampuy in February, 2007, and believe I was the first foreigner to do so.1
This is because it is a cloistered event that only the incoming authorities and their assistants are
permitted to participate in, meaning no women are normally allowed.2 The incoming festival
alcalde that year was one of my closest compadres, so when he requested support for his cargo,
I, in turn, requested to be allowed to witness Chayampuy in exchange for that support. I was
quite aware of and grateful for the privilege he granted me.
That Saturday night of Chayampuy was a fascinating series of all-night rituals among the
authorities, which culminated in a type of song competition. In the first part of the evening the
authorities officially received their cargos from the mayor (political alcalde) of the consejo
menor, which they recorded in the community log book. Then from about 9:00 p.m. until about
2:00 a.m. they chewed coca, ate food, and bathed the official varas (staffs denoting power) in
alcohol libations, which they then drank. The authorities punctuated each ritual event with loud
blasts on their pusunis.
Then around 2:00 a.m. the song competition began when each authority sang the Pukllay
taki he hoped would be the song for the year. They did this in a jovial, but official manner; one

1
Chayampuy begins on the Saturday that follows the Thursday of Compadres, a popular Andean festival
when the compadres of families are honored and mocked in festive fun. This places Chayampuy one and a half
weeks before Ash Wednesday.
2
This is probably in imitation of the original format of the same event as it was in Paucartambo.

243
person followed the other, first formally announcing and then singing the song of his choice. For
the remainder of the night, amidst much inebriation, they sang all of the proposed songs
simultaneously, in the overlapping texture so typical of Qeros. This continued until mid-
morning. It was a fascinating juxtaposition of simultaneous singing and pinkuyllu playing of
some five or six songs all at once.
Then, over the next two nights (Sunday and Monday), the community sang any of the
proposed songs in watukuy visits from home to home. Each group chose the song they preferred,
so that one group sang Thurpa in one home, while another group sang Phallcha, for example.
To my knowledge, this is the only time any or all Pukllay taki are sung simultaneously on the
communal level. These two nights seemed to aurally represent the transition from one year to the
next, when no one song had yet been chosen.
I have been given two interpretations about how the song is finally chosen; many Qeros
friends say it is the peoples choice, while others explain it is that of the authorities. In the
former, the people choose through the process of singing in watukuy for two nights, when one
song is sung with more energy and by more people, thereby rendering it the peoples choice.
Others have told me that ultimately the alcalde decides which song he wants for choice of the
year, which he announces on Phallchay Monday.
It seems to me that it is the process of both the authorities and the people singing over the
three-day, two-night period that leads to one song emerging as final choice, through the act of
singing. Indeed, this was also one of the common descriptions I was told about this process:
literally one song emerges (lloqsiy).
My ethnography of Chayampuy, the process of song emergence and analogy of this
process to that of weaving, constituted a full chapter in my first dissertation draft. It will remain
for a future study in which I will address the uniqueness of this ritual, and discuss the possible
role that animu and the inner life of songs play in the selection process, and the emergence of
one song as winner.
In addition to the simultaneous singing of Pukllay taki by the community during watukuy,
a small group of Qeros youth come together to sing and dance Sargento. Sargento is a popular
song/dance genre with many local variations that is prevalent in the greater Ocongate and
Paucartambo regions. It is danced, for example, in Sonqo, Paucartambo region (Allen 2002, 156
158). It is also a style of Pukllay taki in many communities in the greater Ocongate region, such

244
as Ancasi (near Qeros) and Qoa Muru (near Tinki, Ocongate). Sargento songs celebrate the
rainy season and the corn harvest in these areas, with song texts about corn. The Sargento
costume represents water birds, which are prevalent during the rainy season, such as wallata
(Andean geese). Costumes often have elaborate plumage and wings to represent these birds. The
Qeros youth don outer sleeves of long, white cloth that extend well beyond arms length; these
are the wings of the qewlla bird (Andean gull, Larus serranus). The Qeros sing Sargento
songs about corn and the qewlla, yet because the corn harvest in Qeros is a half a year later in
July, Sargento is exemplary of a regional style adopted by the Qeros and performed only once a
year at Chayampuy. The Qeros say their particular variant of Sargento is unique to them.
The Qeros youth used to perform this dance as a welcome to the authorities in their
arrival at Hatun Qeros from Paucartambo. Nowadays, however, the small group (some ten men
dancers, and five women singers) do watukuy alongside the authorities, entering a home to dance
and sing in special tribute, while the authorities receive servings of food and aqha from the hosts.
Sargento songs are based on a descending pentatonic scale, and are markedly different
from Pukllay taki. Older versions of Sargento were recorded by John Cohen in Qeros, and can
be heard on Mountain Music of Peru (1991 [1964]), track 36. This particular recording has two
different Sargento songs, with the common Sargento refrains of saraschallay (my dear, little
corn) and saray (my corn). Tracks 41 and 42 on the same CD are also Sargento songs, not
recorded in Qeros but in Qolla, near Ancasi, one valley over from Qeros. The typical
saraschallay saray refrain is heard in track 42. This is also a typical refrain in the Sargento
songs I recorded in Qeros.
Some Qeros explained that Sargento began to be danced for Chayampuy about thirty
years ago or so. Indeed, Ybar Palacios description of Chayampuy from 1922 confirms this. He
recounts how the dancers, known as Wifala, along with many community people carrying an
abundance of aqha, waited for the authorities at two leagues outside of Qeros, to accompany
them back to Qeros with great enthusiasm (Ybar Palacios 1922, 21). These dances, then, are
the youths way to celebrate the incoming authorities, then as now, and perhaps change
according to what is popular at the time.

245
 APPENDIX D

AWPA PUKLLAY TAKI: PAST CARNAVAL SONGS

Qeros Pukllay taki are about their present world, daily life, medicinal flowers and plants,
adornments, and landscape. When aspects of these various topics change, so do the topics and texts
of the songs. In the natural evolution of oral musical traditions, older songs give way to newer, more
pertinent ones. Because of this, many of the older Pukllay taki are not known to the younger
generations of Qeros, as they are no longer relevant to them. These awpa Pukllay taki (Past
Pukllay taki) are dying with the older generations who used to sing them in their youth. In
addition, many of the younger generation consider the longer melodies of these older songs to be
more difficult (sasa). Fortunately, I have been able to record a few of these songs (probably
the more recent) which are remembered only by the elders.
Following is a list of the eight awpa Pukllay taki that are rarely, or no longer sung, that
I have been able to record in Qeros, along with one additional song that was recorded by John
Cohen in 1964, which is also no longer active. According to my estimation, songs one and two
are still sometimes sung, albeit rarely, and three through nine are no longer sung at all.

1. Sortija: a song from when the Qeros lived in servitude to large landowners
(hacendados) in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The text tells of the
long journeys they were forced to make to the pass of Crucero near the Bolivian border.
Crucero was a significant crossroads of trade in the late nineteenth and early twentieth
centuries, known for vicua leather products. The song text describes the Qeros llamas
that were laden with agricultural products, which were used in trade for jewelry made of
silver that came from Bolivian mines. The Qeros had special rings made from this silver
to wear at Pukllay.

2. Ayirampu: a native plant (Opuntia soehrensii) used for making red dyes. The Qeros
cultivated this plant in the hacendados garden in Paucartambo. The text informs about
the plant, and the places on the journey between Qeros and Paucartambo.

246
 3. Asusinas: from the Spanish azucena (Lilium candidum). This song refers to the days
before the consejo menor (town council) was established in Qeros, when the incoming
Pukllay authorities traveled to Paucartambo to receive their cargos from the prefect of the
district capital during the festival of Chayampuy. During Chayampuy, the incoming
authorities received azucena flowers from the hacendado, which the Qeros also
cultivated in his garden, like ayirampu. The authorities brought back the flowers to
Qeros so that the people could don their hats with them. In this way, the azucena flowers
were symbols of the annual change in authorities and the arrival of Pukllay. Today the
Qeros authorities no longer receive their cargos in Paucartambo, nor do they work for an
hacendado.

4. Sinta Sinta Laurara: from the Spanish Cinta, mi cinta labrada (ribbon, my
embroidered ribbon). This song refers to the highly decorative ribbon both the women
and men wear, suspended from their monteras during Pukllay. The Qeros used money
from alpaca fleece sales in Sicuani to buy ribbon for Pukllay. Even though this ribbon is
still worn at Pukllay, the song is no longer sung.

5. Pariwa: a flamingo (Phoenicopterus chilensis) that lives near high altitude lakes. Luis
Ybar Palacios describes a variety of birds and animals in Qeros, many of which are
now rarely sited. Parihuana is in his list, and these flamingos are no longer seen in
Qeros (Ybar Palacios 1922, 5).

6. Lirio3: literally a lily flower, but in Qeros the term panti lirio is used as a generic
name for many pink flowers; therefore, the exact reference of the flower in this song is
vague. It could simply be another name for the important phallcha flower, or pink
flowers in general, which are used to decorate hats at Pukllay.

3
Lirio is on a 1964 recording by John Cohen (cassette tape number 399), which is housed in the
audiovisual archives of the Instituto de Etnomusicologa de la Pontificia Universidad Catlica del Per (Lima). This
indicates that this song was still active in 1964. Also on this same recording are the currently active songs,
Phallcha, Wallata, Thurpa, Kiyu, Walqa Pii, and an older version of Wallata (awpa Wallata).

247
7. Awanakus: This song refers to the lovely, new weavings worn at Pukllay for the first
time. The pallay (weaving design) most commonly woven for Pukllay are named in the
song text: qocha inti and aqcha chunchu.

8. Wiqontuy: a native bromelid (Tillandsia nana), which is used to cure internal and
external parasites of sheep, llamas, and alpacas. It is also sometimes used to cure lice
infestations, rheumatism, and flu among people as well.

9. Waitu: this is about the hand woven bayeta cloth, which anthropologist Steven
Webster reports that the Qeros used to receive from traveling Qolla merchants (from the
altiplano of southeastern Peru) on an annual basis (Webster 1972, 42). The Qeros used
to make the aymilla shirts for the men and the women, and the mens calsunas (Sp.
calzn, short trousers) out of bayeta.4 Nowadays, shirts and sweaters are purchased and
no longer made, and many of the men of the younger generation use factory pants instead
of calsuna. I did not hear this song, nor heard mention of it during my time in Qeros.
This might indicate that the song declined from use previous to the above-mentioned
songs that I was able to record. I have only heard this song in a 1964 recording by John
Cohen, (1991 [1964]) Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40020, track 34.

4
See Cohen and Rowe 2002, 75, for photos and a brief description of these garments.

248
 APPENDIX E
HUMAN SUBJECTS APPROVAL

249
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 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Holly Wissler

Holly Wissler, originally from Iowa, holds masters degrees in both flute performance
(MM, 1998) and music history (MA, 1999), from the University of Idaho. In 2007 she was
awarded the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Grant for field research in
Peru. Wissler is the producer of two ethnographic video documentaries: Qoyllur Riti: A
Womans Journey (1998, in English and Spanish), about the largest pilgrimage festival in the
Peruvian Andes, and Kusisqa Waqashayku (From Grief and Joy We Sing, 2007, in English,
Spanish, and Quechua), about the annual cycle of musical rituals in the community of Qeros,
Peru. Both documentaries have been shown internationally.
Wissler has published several articles (in English and Spanish) on various aspects of
Qeros musical rituals and the ethics of documentary production in an indigenous, Andean
community. She taught courses in music history (University of Idaho), world music, and Latin
American music, and she directed Aconcagua, the Andean music ensemble (Florida State
University).
Holly has worked as an adventure travel guide in the Andes of Peru and the Himalayas of
Nepal for over twenty years, and has taught and performed classical flute in both countries. In
addition to her native English, she is fluent in Spanish and adept at Quechua and Nepali. She
performs on various flutes from the Andes and the Himalayas, as well as the sixteen string
bandurria with singing in Quechua.
Holly is interested in pursuing research in Qeros that will track the role of shifting
musical choices as identity markers within the dynamics of urbanization, and how musical
changes pertain to and are contextualized within the larger modernization processes of
indigenous peoples in Latin America. She intends to develop comparative studies on the musical
production of cultures in the worlds highest mountain regions, the Andes and Himalayas, as a
continuation and culmination of her long-term experience and research in both regions. A future
project includes the organization of a three-week cultural and music program abroad in Cusco, Peru for
the nonprofit organization, Center for World Music (headquartered in San Diego, California). The pilot
program will launch in Cusco in 2010, with Holly as director.

264