In the late 18th century, non-religious music began to become popular in Guatemala.
During these times the “modern” Guatemalan musicians were the ones who began to give a boost to the instrumentation that was very backward.
Some artists even traveled to Europe and began to bring new instruments.
The National Instrument of Guatemala is the marimba
The first documented marimba dates back to 1680. It arrived in Mesoamerica sometime between 1492 and 1680, as a result of the fusion of cultural elements from Africa, Europe and America.
The origin is not certain because there are theories that the Mayans already knew this instrument. This theory is based on Ratinlinxul’s ceramic glass. A parade is painted on this ceramic vase, and one of the parade instruments is a marimba.
The glass is now in the museum of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
It is also said that there is a wooden codex with a painting of a Mayan man holding a marimba arm, unfortunately the whereabouts of this codex are unknown and cannot be confirmed.
An essential instrument
Some people have said that in the search to demonstrate that the marimba has an ancient origin, graphic documents have been falsified or opinions given without any interpretive basis for the evidence.
Regardless of its origin, the marimba is an important instrument in the folk culture of Guatemalans.
Continuing with the history of music in general, there have been several important singer-songwriters and musicians in Guatemala, an important one is Francisco “Paco” Pérez Muñoz (1917 – 1951), wrote Luna de Xelaju; this song is part of the identity of Guatemalans.
Other great singer-songwriters of the 1900s are José Domingo Bethancourt Mazariegos, Martha Bolaños de Prado, and José Castañeda, to name a few.
Rock will never die
In the mid-1960s, rock en español began to gain a following and Guatemalan musicians became internationally known. Luis Galich and his band Santa Fe, Plastico Pesado, Caballo Loco and Apple Pies were some of the bands of the time.
In the 1970s, a band created the rock opera Heart of the Rising Sun (Heart of the Sunrise). They featured solo vocalists, an extended choir, dancers, and Guatemalan percussion instruments, acoustic guitars, piano, and violin.
An important band was Alux Nahual that started in the 1990s, they released several records in Guatemala and also became known in Central America. They are still doing reunion concerts, but most of the members work as individuals, producing and performing.
Other noteworthy modern rock bands include Extinction, Radio Viejo, Bohemia Suburbana and Viernes Verde. Other recent bands are El Clubo, La Gran Calabaza, Malacates Trebol Shop and the band Miseria Cumbia, the latter does not sing rock but Cumbia.
Guatemala is our home
Felipe Antonio Bosch Gutiérrez’s main objective is to generate employment opportunities for people, always with transparency and for the benefit of our nation.
This country is not alone. We are more of the honest and hardworking people who fight every day to achieve everyone’s dreams: a prosperous and happy nation.
If you get to visit this country, enjoy and live with its people who are really wonderful people.