Only Live Yma Sumac Recording Released to Date
Don Pierson | United States | 04/17/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Perhaps I am not too impartial since I am the one who produced this CD but I'll try. As Yma Sumac's only commercial release of a live performance and if you've never attended an Yma Sumac concert you'll at least hear what it was like. In 1961 when this was recorded her voice was in its prime and it is also a rare recording to have the Inka Taki Trio which was comprised of Yma Sumac (soprano), Cholita Rivero (contralto, dancing) and Moises Vivanco (guitar and conductor). The recording itself was originally made for a TV broadcast and then later released onto vinyl and even on some 45 and 78 rpm singles. Unfortunately the videos could not be located (does any reader have a source?).
The original 1961 LP from Bucharest, Romania's Electrecord label was put together rather randomly to make the tracks fit on the two sides of the vinyl disk. Using knowledge of Yma Sumac's usual repertoire and a copy of the original show program, which listed some songs not performed and some on this recording were not listed in the program as was typical of an Yma Sumac concert (she rarely performed the same as the program), we were able to come up with the likely order in which they were performed and we are presenting them here in that order.
In addition to this being more true to an actual live performance in the song order, this is the first and only release to contain the overture - the instrumental piece that preceded Yma Sumac's appearance on the stage. Before now this song was heard only on an obscure 45 rpm single released as the B-side to Chuncho.
The booklet and packaging contains photos from the actual performance and extensive notes written somewhat by me but based on translations of text from the original show program, the original LP's sleeve, and from the announcer who introduced each song and described it in Romanian. It was my hope to have these voice-intros on the CD too but, unfortunately, they had been removed from the masters for a later repressing of the LP and my own copies with them were not of a high enough quality. Their translations are in the booklet's text, though.
There was another CD released some years ago that was made from a cassette tape recording of the LP, complete with stylus noise, under the title Yma Sumac Live In Russia but that CD was a bootleg on a "fake" record label called Elect - a play on words of Electrecord.
The bottom line is that this CD is the real thing, made from the master tapes as supplied to us by Electrecord, and is a must for any Yma Sumac fan and only a limited number were made!"
Track Listings (14) - Disc #1