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The Afro-Argentine Payador Tradition: the Art of Gabino Ezeiza

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The Afro-Argentine Payador Tradition: the Art of Gabino Ezeiza The Afro-Argentine Payador Tradition: The Art of Gabino Ezeiza by Donald S. Castro I surface, the Rojas thesis appears to be at odds with the elitist view. This is not really true, and these This article will focus on the payador tradition two positions are not mutually exclusive. While in Argentina and the impact of the Afro-Argentine Rojas expressed a fascination with the gaucho based on this Rioplatine cultural form with particular culture in terms of the organization of his work on attention given to the payador Gabino Ezeiza (1858 Argentine literature, he demonstrated a preference 1916). The actual role in, and the impact of the for Euro-based literature and literary movements in Afro-Argentine on, Rioplatine culture is the subject Argentina in the balance of his study. Nevertheless, of much controversy. The use of the word "Rio even if unintentional, Rojas' work strongly sug platine" instead of Argentine is intentional because gests that Argentine culture was creole-gaucho it is the crux of the controversy: is Argentine based and therefore, by implication, regional, due to culture a product of an autochthonous experience a commonality of experience that produced the limited to the area west of the Rio de la Plata culture in the first place. estuary or is it a part of a broader regional exper The debate on the origins of Argentine culture ience inclusive of the geographic area today called greatly affects the role of the Afro-Argentine in the Uruguay? If we use the apparent definition of Argen eventual meld of what is called today "Argentine tine culture presented by Ricardo Rojas in his study culture" (cultura argentina). For example, if the on Argentine literature, then the underpinning of place of origin of Argentine culture is exclusive of that culture is gaucho based.1 While Rojas did not Uruguay, then the role of the Afro-Argentine is speak to the fact that the gaucho experience was not severely limited through the process of denial. An limited only to the area now called Argentina, Argentine base of origin is usually associated with clearly there were (are) gauchos in Uruguay and in a Euro-creole experience, while a broader base of Southern Brazil. Therefore, the conclusion that origin (inclusive of the Banda Oriental del must be drawn is that a gaucho based culture cannot Uruguay), includes a major contribution from an be limited to an Argentine experience only. In fact, African experience in the region. What is implied it is centered in a much larger area that is clearly in this aspect of the debate is the following: the "Rioplatine." area of modern-day Uruguay was the watershed for If the more traditional elitist porteno view is much of what is called Argentine culture; the im adopted, gaucho based culture is predicated on an ex pact of the Afro-Uruguayan was significant in clusive American experience that was viewed as terms of transmitting that culture to the city of backward. To the Argentine ruling and cultural Buenos Aires; and that the transmitted culture be elites after 1862 (point of national unification), came the basis for the Argentine puppet theatre, the only a European-oriented-and based-culture was Argentine circus, the Argentine theatre, and above acceptable. The elitist's view defined Argentine cul all, the origin of that supreme symbol of Argen ture as rooted in an initially Spanish and later more tina, the tango. The role of the Rioplatine black is general European culture base brought into the pivotal in the debate. However, in the discussion of geographic area on the western shore of the Rio de this role, it appears that the focus is on the Afro la Plata estuary. Therefore, the elitist view is not Uruguayan. When Argentines argue their counter only Eurocentric, it is as well, site specific. On the case, they include the Afro-Argentine only to deny AFRO-HISPANIC REVIEW FALL 1994 This content downloaded from 164.73.224.2 on Sat, 24 Nov 2018 02:47:39 UTC All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms The Afro-Argentine Payador Tradition his participation. Therefore, regardless of the side la Plata were totally dislocated from their cultural taken, the role of the black in Argentina seems to African home with a loss of language, religion, and be minimized or ignored. While the Argentine tribal affiliation (Cosas de negros 9). From a position is Creole based, it is implicit that Creole in cultural point of view, Rossi suggested blacks the context of the debate is definable in terms of became perhaps more Creole than did the other com whiteness.2 ponents of Rioplatine society. In the rural areas, The primary focus, in all of the discussions on they became gauchos, were the backbone of the Argentine cultural origins, is on what is essentially montonera forces [irregular mounted troops], the culture of the city of Buenos Aires, and not that symbols of patriotism and local autonomy, and in of the interior. This is true even when the discus the city of Buenos Aires, they became the origi sion centers on the literature of the rural interior, nators of the tango. Rossi argued that there were e.g., the gaucho epic and the rural thematic theatre two musical cultural symbols of Argentineness, the productions. This debate has involved some of the urban tango and the rural payada musical tradition leading cultural figures of Argentina and Uruguay of the gaucho. and is far from being resolved. Many authors can be Clearly the Afro-Argentine played an important cited as participants in this debate. Only two are role in the formation of these symbols of Argentine most noted here because of their ideas' impact on ness: the tango and the payada. Even as shown by the perception of the cultural role of the Afro Rossi, as the gaucho became more a subject for lit Argentine (Afro-Uruguayan): Raul H. Castagnino erate authors and thus became a "folk hero," he was and Vicente Rossi. More modern authors are still whitened and shorn of his Indian and Black heritage. debating and reacting to the arguments presented by As stated by Rossi metaphorically, "...la herencia these authors as long ago as in the early 1900s. autoctona esta en la savia, aunque la nieguen las Raul H. Castagnino, the author of many hojas" ["...the intrinsic essence of a tree is in its books on the Argentine circus, early theatre, and on sap, even though the leaves deny their origin"] the tango, has argued specifically in favor of the (Teatro nacional 105). Yet this denial was impos idea of a regional culture and of the early identifi sible to maintain because the folk tradition of the cation of the tango-milonga with blacks. His only gaucho payador [gaucho troubador], the itinerant disagreement with Vicente Rossi is where the folk singer who was the preserver of oral traditions, Creole theatre originated, as a separate cultural phen includes the Afro-Argentine as shown, for example, omenon (Castagnino) or as part of the Creole circus in the second part of Martin Fierro ("La vuelta" (Rossi).3 Vicente Rossi, a long-term resident in Ar ["The Return"], 1879) and later with Gabino gentina of Uruguayan origin, was one of the first to Ezeiza. write on the role of the African in the culture of the A number of authors, including George Reid Rio de la Plata. He wrote three major studies in Andrews and Nestor Ortiz Oderigo, have arugued which he discussed the cultural role of blacks in the that the close association of the Afro-Argentine to Ri'o de la Plata: Teatro national rioplatense: the payador tradition is very understandable. Their Contribution a su analisis y a su historia [The arguments differ from the earlier Rossi view. Rioplatine National Theatre: Contribution to Its Rossi's arguments focus on an American cultural Analysis and to Its History] (1910); El gaucho: su origin and not on any African influence as such. origen y evolution [The Gaucho: His Origin and Therefore, the Afro-Argentine contribution is based Evolution] (1921), and Cosas de Negros [Things on an American experience instead of an African Related to Blacks] (1926). In these studies, he indi carry-over. This has generated controversy among cated the cultural debt owed to blacks by Argen more modern authors who have argued an African tines. By using the word "Rioplatine," Rossi made cultural origin transmitted by Afro-Argentines a forceful statement on the interconnectedness of because of their African roots and not due to exper culture in the Rfo de la Plata region. By using the iences gained in the Americas (Andrews 213).4 title Cosas de Negros, Rossi also made a definite These authors present the argument that the payador statement that things related to blacks were not fool tradition is African in origin. Wherever there was ish but were significant. This was at variance with an African presence in the Americas, a musical con the standard Argentine meaning of the term, cosas trapuntal tradition developed. It could take the form de negros, which equated it with foolish things or of either an instrumental or vocal counterpoint. with sex. In the Rossi thesis, blacks in the Rfo de Examples of the African inspired contrapuntal AFRO-HISPANIC REVIEW FALL 1994 This content downloaded from 164.73.224.2 on Sat, 24 Nov 2018 02:47:39 UTC All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms Donald S. Castro tradition range from the instrumental "duels" in conclusion. What is irrefutable, however, is the American jazz (cutting contests) and in Afro-Carib essential role the Afro-Argentine played in advan bean music (cf.
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