TEXT by Miguel A. Hurtado (1922 – 1951)

Saracha parway-parwascha,

Corn, bloom that blooms, little flower.

Trigucha iray-irascha.

Little wheat, ready to thresh, little harvest.

Valicha lisa p’asñawan, niñachay deveras

Valicha, ungrateful Andean girl

¿may piraq tinkunki?

Where will you be?

Qosqo uraycunapi, niñachay de veras

Surely you are in the highlands of Cuzco

¡maqt’ata suwashan!

With the man who seduced you! 

Hermosa flor de la Sierra jilguero andino,

Beautiful flower of the Sierra, Andean goldfinch,

cholita cuzqueña

Indigenous girl of Cuzco.

Por valles, montes, quebradas jilguero andino

Through valleys, mountains, and ravines, Andean goldfinch,

Que estarás haciendo.

 I wonder what you are doing.

Saracha parway parwascha,

Corn, bloom that blooms, little flower.

Trigucha iray irascha.

Little wheat, ready to thresh, little harvest.

Translated by Jorge Ibáñez

Valicha tells a timeless and all-to-familiar story. A poor, indigenous girl of Peru (Valicha)—widely regarded as the most beautiful girl in the village—and the son of a wealthy aristocrat (Miguel) fall in love with each other. At first, they meet in secret, but eventually they are discovered.

Though his family supports them, she knows that their situation will not last. Rather than prolonging the heartbreak, she ends the relationship and marries another indigenous man. The young aristocrat responds by changing the words of a song he had written and translating some of them into Quechua—her native language.

This song has since become a national emblem for Peru. It is sung as frequently and with a similar level of love as citizens of the United States might sing America, the Beautiful. Filled with syncopations and rhythmic energy, the biting accusations seem to have lost a bit of their sting over time, reminding us that even in heartbreak, Miguel never stopped loving his dear Valicha.

While programming for JU’s From the Margins concert, I recognized that I was lacking representation from South America.  I reached out to my friend, composer, and educator Jorge Ibáñez for ideas, and he suggested this delightful piece arranged by his father.  The manuscript was difficult to read, so with Jorge’s guidance, I created a new edition with clearer text underlay, consistent beaming/spacing, and written-out repeats to facilitate easier reading.  Otherwise, these are the notes and rhythms provided by Antonio Ibáñez Rodriguez. 

This Quechua text is generally pronounced as if it were Spanish.  Note that “ray”, “way”, and “may” rhyme with the English word, “rye”, including the [ai] diphthong.  BTW, to maximize accuracy in the many syncopations, I strongly recommend using the takadimi system! 

Featured image by Chiaravi via Pixabay.