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The last dance of Totó La Momposina

2 min read J. CARLOS GOMEZ 2 comments

J. CARLOS GOMEZ

One of the greats of Latin American music says goodbye: Totó La Momposina. At 82 years old, with a career spanning more than sixty years and with a friendliness that makes her fall in love at first contact, Sonia Bazanta Vides leaves the stages where she has represented the value of music from the Caribbean coast of Colombia.

Born in Talaigua, the heart of the island of Mompox, in the middle of the generous Magdalena River, La Momposina began her musical career very early looking for that fertile territory where African culture, indigenous roots and the sound tradition of Spanish are mixed.

 

Totó La Momposina in a concert in Mompox (Colombia) in September 2018. Author of all photos: J.Carlos Gómez

Soon he also left with his family from the hot department of Bolívar to move to rainy Bogotá. The violence, the hidden bloody conflict that devastated Colombia, caused this flight.

Not for that reason I abandon the rhythms of "tasty life" such as cumbia, joint, chalupa or sextet. Quite the contrary: in the 60s he set up his first band and continued to delve into the musical roots of his country, showing them to the world. In fact, in 1982 he accompanied the writer Gabriel García Márquez to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature in Stockholm (Sweden).

"Ancestral music is the one that reaches heaven”, he told me a few years ago on a hot afternoon in Mompox. And that was the idea that has guided Totó's career, which in the XNUMXs achieved world fame thanks to her commitment to Colombian folklore and the push of the WOMAD (World Music Arts and Dance) tour that catapulted her onto the global music scene. music.

 

With a discography of popular success such as "La candela vida", "Aguacero mayor", "El Pescador" or "Te olvidé", La Momposina retires from the stage, victim of an aphasia that has affected her speech and does not facilitate communication. Of course, as a farewell gift she leaves us two songs that review her musical archive: "Iluminan Mi Sendero" and "Acompañala".

This break, however, may not be forever. The recognized vitality of Totó la Momposina can still give us some extra dance. Four years ago she and she told us: “I am a great lady but with a feeling and a young heart”. Pay attention…the rhythm of the Colombian never sleeps.

J.Carlos Gomez is a journalist. She lived more than six years in Colombia

 

J. CARLOS GOMEZ

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