JESUS PEREZ

SPRING 2003 NO.7Diálogo 70

AND THE TRANSCULTURATIONOF THE CUBAN BATÁ DRUM1

by Ivor Miller

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Because of his comprehensive efforts todocument and interpret Cuba's multi-faceted popular culture, Fernando Ortizy Fernández became known as the“Third Discoverer of Cuba.” Ortizlearned much by maintaining lastingrelationships with leading practitionersof various African religions. Amongthem, Jesús Pérez Puentes was one ofDon Fernando's main informants forthe study of Lukumí music, derived fromthe Yorùbá of West Africa andmaintained by their descendants as theSantería religion.

After several years of researching theaccomplishments of Jesús, in part byinterviewing those who worked closelywith him, I conclude that he was aprimary figure in the transculturation ofthe Cuban batá drum. During hislifetime, from 1915 to 1985, batá wentfrom being an obscure instrument, usedexclusively in Santería ceremonies, tobeing a secular instrument usedthroughout popular music in Cuba, andaround the globe. The batá began as alocal phenomenon of Havana andMatanzas, where it was recreated byYorùbá migrants in the 1830s. It is usedtoday in Santería ceremonies across theplanet. Jesús played a pivotal role inthese transitions.

Jesús played the tres, flute, bass andtrumpet. He was also a dancer andsinger. But he was famous for hismastery of batá. A religious man, hewas a mason, an Abakuá (a secretsociety derived from southeasternNigeria), and a santero with Changó“made” (a Santería initiate consecratedto Changó, thunder deity). It is wellknown that Changó is “king of thebatá.” Not surprisingly, many importantOmo Añá, or “children of the sacreddrum,” have been “sons of Changó.”Yet Jesús stands out among them. As anOlu Añá, or “keeper of the drum,”Jesús's ritual Lukumí name was Obá-Ilú.2

Obá is 'king', and Ilu has two meanings,depending on its pronunciation. AsRogelio Martínez Furé (artistic directorof the National Folklore Ensemble ofCuba) told me:

There aren't sufficient words to detailhis stature: Oba Ilú: King of thepeople [the Santería community], orOba Ilu: King of the drum . . . bothepithets serve to crown his regal head.

As a young man Jesús was fortunate tohave studied with the masters of thisculture. His teachers were essential linksto the orthodox Santería and Abakuá

traditions that flourished in nineteenthcentury Cuba through West Africanslaves brought to work in the sugarindustry. Notable among them wasPablo Roche, master batalero (batáplayer), “son” of Changó and Abakuáleader of Guanabacoa; MaximilianoOrdaz, singer and diviner for Santería,Abakuá leader and godfather to Jesús.

Jesús was exceptional for his leadershipin defending Afro-Cuban culture byperforming and teaching it to others.Among his achievements are playingbatá in Fernando Ortiz's first conferenceon Afro-Cuban culture in 1937 inHavana.3 Jesús enjoyed a long andconsistent relationship with Ortiz,enabling his studies of the Cuban batá, aswell as Abakuá music, as found in the fivevolume masterpiece “Los instrumentosde la música afrocubana.” Amado deJesús Dedeu, a student of Jesús, describedthe background:

“Jesús told me a lot about the firstconferences with Fernando Ortiz.Pablo Roche played the Iyá [the leaddrum], Aguedito played the Itótele[the second drum], and Jesús theOkónkolo [the smallest], illustratingthe theories of Ortiz with theirmusicianship.4 The three majorinformants for Ortiz were Jesús Pérez,Santos Ramírez “El niño,” and AgustinPína “Flor de Amor” (who wasAbakuá and a rumba player). Jesústold me that on Ortiz's birthdays,intellectuals and politicians wouldcome to greet him in the Palacio deAldama, on the corner of Reina andAmistad streets, where he had anoffice. On some occasions, whenFernando was in his office with thesepeople waiting for him below, hewould tell the porter, “If Jesús,Agustin, or Santos 'El niño' arrive, tellthem to come upstairs.” Thus theyhad a great fellowship with Fernando,and contributed much to his work.”

From the first conference with Ortizonwards, Jesús acted as a bridgebetween the esoteric traditions of hislocal religious communities, and thepublic sphere of national culture. In1937 he played batá with the orchestraof Gilberto Valdés, and in the 1940swith Obdulio Morales, both of whomsought to integrate Afro-Cubanliturgical ideas into popular music (cf.Ortiz 1937). In this decade, Jesús taughtand performed with renowned singerMercedita Valdés. Mercedita told me:

“For the first time in Cuba, I created aprogram of Yorùbá chants andprayers on radio Suaritos, whichbecame famous throughout theisland. We performed these chantsand prayers with their authenticdrum rhythms. I learned all this fromJesús and Trinidad [Torregrosa], thepercussionists who accompanied me.They guided me, and if I had doubts,I consulted with them. Doctor Ortiz,after listening to the program, askedJesús and Trinidad to bring me to hishouse so he could greet me. Whenthey brought me to his house, on thecorner of L and 27 streets, he openedthe door. Being surprised by my smallsize, he gave me the nickname “thelittle aché.” [Aché is 'power' in theLukumí language].

In 1955, Jesús worked in Venezuela, inthe show of Havana's cabaretMontmartre with legendary congadrummer Tata Güines. As Tata Güinestold me:

There is much to say about JesúsPérez, yet little has been said. I thinkthat when one mentions his name,one mentions the master of the batáin Cuba. I think that the batá playerwho doesn't mention Jesús Pérezdoesn't mention his own drum. Jesúsis eternally present, and when onespeaks of percussion, one must speakof Jesús Pérez. It was he who openedthe breach, the path to follow.

In the late 1950s, he created Afro-Cubanshows in cabarets like Tropicana, theRiviera, Sans Soucí. In 1959, he traveledto Mexico with his show “Oba KosóBatá” (The batá of Changó) where herecorded an album of traditionalLukumí and popular music.5

Returning to Havana, he acted asinformant to Dr. Argeliers Leon in theNational Theater en 1959-60. In 1961,Jesús played a leading role as a founderof Danza Moderna by selecting many ofits members.6 In 1962 he co-founded theConjunto Folkórico Nacional, where heagain helped select members, andconstructed their drums. Here, he actedas informant to Rogelio Martínez-Furéfor twenty years, and toured the planetperforming with the Conjunto.

In 1977, when he participated in FESTAC'77 with Danza Nacional de Cuba, hebecame the first person to carryconsecrated Cuban batá drums toNigeria. There he played batá beforethe Aláàfin of Òyó, a traditional leader

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in Changó's historic homeland, whocommented on the resemblance toYorùbá sacred music. Batá were createdand maintained since the slave trade inCuba, and Jesús became the first personin the Americas known to bring thebatá back to its homeland.7 Later thatyear (1977) he traveled to París withDanza Nacional, where they performedin the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées.

As a member of “Los Amigos” de FranEmilio, he was the first to bring the batáinto the Cuban descarga (jam) sessions,demonstrating the capability of thebatá to create a musical dialogue withthe quinto (conga drum) of TataGüines.8 In 1968, he co-founded thegroup Orú, later performing with themaround the world. Composer andguitarist Sergio Vitier told me:

“Jesús had the rare capacity tointegrate himself into differentworlds; he knew how to bring histalents even into the world of classicalmusic. Cuban music has two phases: inthe first, Lukumí culture did not enterinto the language of popular music.After 1968, when we formed thegroup Orú, we began its introductioninto popular music, which today hasbecome the rage.9“

In addition to his performances, Jesúsrecorded music for several films,including Obá-Ilú; Una pelea cubanacontra los demonios; Shangai; and Decierta manera.10

As a teacher, he contributed to theprocess of transculturation by teachingwhite students. Before the 1960s,whites were not taught batá, but Jesúsbroke the mold, nurturing students like

Amado de Jesús, currently director ofthe rumba group Clave y Guaguancó.This is only one way Jesús helped bringbatá into Cuban national culture.Whereas in the nineteenth century itwas considered an African drum, and inthe early twentieth an Afro-Cubandrum, today it is viewed as a Cubaninstrument, integrated into all forms ofmusical expression as a symbol ofcubanía (cubanness). Even leaders ofthe Nueva Trova (the New SongMovement), Silvio Rodríguez and PabloMilanés have used batá in their music.As Amado de Jesús told me:

“Jesús wanted drummers who wereserious and responsible. Manywanted to play with him, but hewouldn't let them to because theywere “puppets” [informal]. Many ofthe young drummers liked to inventand improvise with the batá rhythms,and Jesús strongly rejected this. Hetold them to play within thetradition, and not to invent. When hewent to ceremonies and heard theyoung drummers improvising, hewould get up and leave.”

By respecting the ceremonial traditionsof Santería, even while being innovativewith its music in secular contexts, Jesúsbuilt bridges in a way that eventuallyearned him the respect of orthodoxreligious leaders, many of whom firstcondemned him. We know he earnedtheir respect because his funerary riteswere performed with the participationof hundreds of religious elders.

The importance of well attendedfunerary rites as a symbol of respect isfound throughout the African diaspora,and Cuba is not an exception. Martínez-

Furé (1999: 15) wrote: “To die of naturalcauses at an advanced age, leavingbehind numerous progeny, like a 'treebent from the weight of its fruit,' and inharmony with the divinities and theancestors; to be buried with theperformance of all the rites that markthe tradition -- which permit one toenter Orun (the other world), whereone is reunited with the ancestors ofone's lineage to be later reincarnated --constitutes for the Yorùbá the gooddeath.”11

Popular poet Eloy Machado “El Ámbia”(1993: 21-23) wrote “Oba Ylu,”dedicated: “to Jesús Pérez, with all thelove that he merited”:

. . . Tocaba con sentido poético:

. . . He played with poetic feeling:su versohis verseera el sonido del tambor,was the sound of the drum,yorubizaba el cuerpo,it yourbized the body,la vida, life,era el sol del tambor,it was the sun of the drum,la luna del mayor,

the moon of the elder [Iyá drum],lucero batable.drummable star.Y se canto la rumba And rumba was chantedtocando en su ataúd.While playing on his coffin.Era mi amigoHe was my friendy yo lo llevaba.And I carried him [to the grave].Si un peso teníaIf he had one peso

Jesús, Mercedita y Barreto en su casa con su tambores de fundamento atras. Early 1980s.

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medio peso me daba. . . .he would give me half . . .

The extraordinary outpouring of praiseto Jesús Pérez reflects not only hisstature as a charismatic individual, butalso the fundamental importance ofAfrican-derived drumming traditionsand their caretakers to the identity ofmany contemporary Cubans.

Many of his students and colleagueshave maintained the memory of Jesúsalive in their own ways, by DanzaNacional's recording the LP “Homenajea Jesús Perez”; by director “Goyo”Hernández naming his folklore groupwith Jesús's Lukumí name “Oba-Ilu.” Ihope that my forthcoming book onJesús Pérez and the history of the Batádrum in the Americas will encourageCuban institutions to celebrate hislasting contributions to the nationalculture. To this end, I thank MiguelBarnet (president of the Fernando OrtizFoundation), who told me:

“I think that Jesús Pérez is a symbol ofCuban popular culture. As is LázaroRos, as was Mercedita Valdés, wholearned much from Jesús Pérez. Allbatá drummers have to pay homage toJesús Pérez - Oba Ilú, the greatest of allbatá players I have known in my life.And all this was nurtured here, in thehouse of Fernando Ortiz. DonFernando had tremendous respect forJesús, Mercedita, Pablo Roche, andMaximiliano Ordaz. This is what I cansay about my great friend Jesús Pérez.”

Beyond this, I hope my study will helpparticipants in the now global practiceof batá drumming to study the worksand legacy of this teacher. Jesús left stillanother contribution, a nearly 400 pagemanuscript on batá history andtechniques with musical annotations bya classically trained composer.12 I aim topublish this work with a large archive ofphotographs and extensive interviewswith his colleagues.

Many genres of Cuban popular musicare based on the performance ofcomplex rhythms originating in Westand Central Africa, later transformed inCuba. Due to a past of oppression anddiscrimination, the great majority ofmen and women who helped createCuban music from the sixteenth tonineteenth centuries are unknown tothe present generation. We arefortunate then to have detailedinformation about Jesús Pérez and hiscolleagues, so that their contributions

will be understood and celebrated inthe future by students around theworld. As Cuba is well knowninternationally as a source of musicalwealth, to laud its leading musicianslike Jesús Pérez is to celebrate thesociety from which he came.

Ivor Miller is Visiting Professor ofAfrican & Black Diaspora Studies atDePaul University.

SOURCESAbímbólá, ‘Wáñdé. 1976. Ifá: An Exposition ofIfa Literary Corpus. Ibadan: Oxford UP Nigeria.

Abímbólá, ‘Wáñdé & Ivor Miller. 1997. IfáWill Mend Our Broken World: Thoughts onYorùbá Culture in West Africa and theDiaspora. Roxbury, MA: AIM Books.

Barnet, Miguel. 1997. Interview by the author inthe Fundación de Fernando Ortiz in December.Revised by Mr. Barnet in March of 1998.

Carvalho, José Jorge de & Rita Segato. 1992.Shango Cult in Recife, Brazil. Caracas,Venezuela: Fundef, Conac, Oas.

Catalogo de filmes producidos por losestudios cinematográficos y de televisión delas FAR: 1962-1986. 1986. La Habana:Imprenta central de las FAR.

Dedeu Hernández, Amado de Jesús. 1996.Interview by the author in the home ofDedeu Hernández. Revised by Amado in1998 and 1999. La Habana.

Güines, Tata. 1999. Interview by the authorin the home of Mr. Güines in April. Havana.Revised by Mr. Güines in May of 1999.

Hernández, Gregorio “El Goyo.” Interview bythe author in the home of Mr. Hernández inSeptember. Havana. Revised by Mr.Hernández in December 1997.

Linares, María Teresa. 1995. Interview by theauthor in the home of Dr. Linares inNovember. Havana. Revised by Dr. Linares inDecember 1997.

Machado, Eloy “El Ambia.” 1993. El callejondel suspiro. La Habana: Ediciones Unión,UNEAC.

Martínez Furé, Rogelio. 1999. “Descargas:ritual y fiesta de la palabra.” Conjunto (revistade Teatro Latinoamericano, Casa de lasAméricas). nos. 112/113. Enero-Junio. p. 13 - 16.

Martínez Furé, Rogelio. 1995. Interview bythe author in the home of Martínez-Furé inMarch. La Habana. Revised by Mr. Martínezin 1996 and 1997.

Ortiz, Fernando. 1937. “El concierto afrocubanode Gilberto Valdés.” Estudios Afrocubanos. vol.1, no. 1 (La Habana) : 139-145.

Ortiz, Fernando. 1938. “La música sagrada de

los negros Yorubá en Cuba.” EstudiosAfrocubanos. vol. 2, no. 1. Pages 89 - 104.

Ortiz, Fernando. 1951-55. Los instrumentosde la musica afrocubana. 5 vols. La Habana:Habana: Ministerio de Educación.

“Una pelea cubana contra los demonios.”1971. Tomás Gutiérrez Alea, director. LaHabana: ICAIC.

Ros, Lázaro. 1995. Interview by the author inthe home of Mr. Ros in November.Guanabacoa. Revised by Mr. Ros in December1997, and January 2000.

Valdés, Mercedita. 1996. Interview by theauthor, Michel Díaz, and Idania Díaz in thehome of Michel Díaz in May. La Habana.

Vitier, Sergio. 1995. Interview by the authorand Michel Díaz in the home of Mr. Vitier inMarch. Revised by Mr. Vitier in July 1995.

PHOTOGRAPH CREDITS1. a & b) “Ricardo Carballo plays batá at the

tomb of Jesús Pérez.” 1985. Old Cemetery ofGuanabacoa. Archives of Ricardo Carballo.

2. Jesús at home with Mercedita and Barreto;fundamento drums at back. Early 1980s.Author’s archives.

3. Tropicana nightclub, 1950s. Archives ofRicardo Carballo. “Lulu Yenkori group.”Left to Right: “Papo,” Luisa Barroso,Ricardo Carballo, Mercedita Valdés, JesúsPérez, Ramiro Hernández. Fernando Ortizinterpreted “Luku Yenkori” as “chants,rhythms and dances,” using the term forone of his conferences with MerceditaValdés (p.c. Natalia Bolivar, 1999). Itappears that M. Valdés used this title forher own group.

NOTES1. This article is based on a presentation

delivered on November 27, 1999, at aninternational conference sponsored bythe Fundación de Fernando Ortiz inHavana, when the author was a Scholar-in-Residence at the Schomburg Centerfor Research in Black Culture. Researchfor this article was funded by theNational Endowment for the Humanitiesthrough the Schomburg Center forResearch in Black Culture’s Scholar-in-Residence Program.

2. There are three categories of initiation forbatá drummers. The first is having one“hands washed” (las manos lavados), aceremony that enables men to play theAñá drums. The second is called Omo Añá,referred to as “sworn to the drum”(jurado al tambor). Literally “Child of thedeity Añá,” the Orisha (divinity) of thedrum, this ceremony is akin to initiationinto Santería, that is, it is a complex, sevenday ceremony. Omo Añá are able to learnsecret batá rituals. The third andmaximum level is “Olu Añá,” where an

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Omo Añá receives a set of batá Añá inorder to be its caretaker. As an Orisha, Añádoes not have an “owner,” but acaretaker. Olu Añá are popularly called“owners of the drum” (dueños deltambor), but they are actually consideredits “slaves.” During ceremony Olu Añá areritually linked to a particular set of batádrums. If these drums are not cared forproperly, the divinity Añá inside them willwither and die. So too, the well-being ofits caretaker is thought to be endangered.

3. In an essay about this conference, held onMay 30, 1937, Ortiz points out that thebatá music heard by the audience wouldnot be “contaminated” by Europeanmusic, that it would “conserve its ancestralpurity.” He wrote: “In Cuba, these religiouschants of the yorubá are conservedorthodoxly and purely . . . because of theiresoteric isolation, their African orthodoxyhas not yet been transformed by theinfluence of whites.” Ortiz expressed hishope that this batá music would contributeto “the glory of the national music ofCuba, and its repeated universalcontributions [a reference to the theninternational rage of Cuban popularmusic]” (Ortiz 1938). Ortiz was aware thathis efforts would encourage thetransculturation of the batá into nationalculture. It was Jesús Pérez who took thelead role in the actual process.

4. In Ortiz’s first conference in 1937, PabloRoche used a set of consecrated batá drumsinherited from his father. On this occasion,the musicians were Pablo Roche on Iyá;Águedo Morales on Itótele and Jesús Pérezon Okónkolo (Ortiz 1938: 93-95).

5. Oba Kosó Batá literally could beinterpreted as “The bàtá of Sàngó (Theking of Kòso, or the King who did nothang).” The phrase “Oba Kòso” in Yorùbáhas two interpretations: 1) Oba a Kòso“The Oba [ruler] of Kòso [“the compoundwhere the political head of the Sàngó cult

lives in Òyó” (Abímbólá 1976: 247)] and 2)Oba kòso: “The Oba did not hang[himself]” — a reference to a legendwhere Sàngó disappears from the treewhere he had committed suicide and washeard triumphantly thundering from thesky. Thanks to Victor Manfredi for theseinterpretations.

The Yorùbá language of West Africa hasthree tones: high, mid and low, indicatedby diacritics. Without these, Romanspellings of Yorùbá words would be eitherambiguous (out of context) ormeaningless. One would be unable todistinguish a town (ìlú) from percussion(ìlù). Because the Yorùbá language hasmany varieties, interpretations betweenCuban, Brazilian, and West African usageare often complex. Changó in Cuba isoften Sàngó (pronounced Shangó) in WestAfrica (cf. Abímbólá & Miller).

6. Originally the Conjunto Nacional de DanzaModerna, later named Danza Nacional deCuba and today known as DanzaContemporánea.

7. Batá are known as drums of Shango. Thename batá is used for drums in BrazilianCandomblé, but these seem to not have aguild tradition and a ritual lineage whichare key to the Cuban bata drummers.Recent research, however, has found that“at the oldest shango house of Recife[Brazil] one can still hear a trio of batadrums being played. These well knownYoruba drums, still found today in Cubaand among the Cuban communities in theU.S.A., were believed extinct in Brazil formore than fifty years. Thus, the batadrums which can be heard in our musicselection are, most probably, the only onesthat can still be found in Brazil” (Carvalho& Segato 1992: 9).

8. The group “Los amigos” performeddescargas with Guillermo Barreto on thepailas, “Tata Guines” on the congas, JesúsPérez on batá (and sometimes with Regino

Jimenez) Jorrín on flute, “Cachaíto” onbass, Frank Emilio on piano, and oftenwith Sergio Vitier on guitar.

9. Cuban popular music has its foundation inrhythms and instruments derived fromKongo (Bantú), such as the Son and theRumba, as well as in Spanish secular music.Before the group Orú, instruments derivedfrom the Yorùbá (Lukumí) peoples werenot widely used. Before Orú there werevarious attempts to do so, as in the case ofGilberto Valdés, Obdulio Morales, Caturla,Roldán and others, but they had fewfollowers. The name of the group is Orú,but the term is pronounced ‘óru’ by manyprofessional bataleros, such as in thephrase ‘óru seco’ (dry óru), which areliturgical batá rhythms performed withoutchanting.

10. Obá-Ilú.” 1985. Documental. Realización:Emilio Oscar Alcalde. 9 minutos. PremioCaracol al mejor Documental en elFestival de Cine UNEAC/1985. “Recoge lavida de un tamborero de batá, JesúsPérez, Obá-Ilú en lengua Yoruba, uno delos grandes tamboreros de batá de lamúsica afrocubana” (Catalogo 1986: 417).

11. “Fallecer de muerte natural muy anciano- o anciana - , dejando tras sí unanumerosa prole, como un ‘árbol dobladopor el peso de sus frutos,’ y en armoníacon las divinidades y los ancestros. Serenterrado tras celebrarse todos los ritosfunerarios que marca la tradición, y quele permitan entrar en Orun (el más allá),donde se reúna con los antepasados desu linaje y luego reencarnar, constituyepara los yorubá la buena muerte.”

12. Mr. Juan Elósegui, a musician andpedagogue formerly of the NationalSymphony of Cuba.

Foto en el Tropicana, 1950s