Huayno

Gilberto Rojas Enríquez

Huayno (Waynu in Quechua)^[1] is a genre of popular Andean music and dance. It is especially common in Peru, western Bolivia, northwest Argentina and northern Chile, and is popular among the indigenous peoples, especially the Quechua people. The history of Huayno dates back to colonial Peru as a combination of traditional rural folk music and popular urban dance music. High-pitched vocals are accompanied by a variety of instruments, including quena (flute), harp, siku (panpipe), accordion, saxophone, charango, lute, violin, guitar, and mandolin. Some elements of huayno originate in the music of the pre-Columbian Andes, especially on the territory of the former Inca Empire. Huayno utilizes a distinctive rhythm in which the first beat is stressed and followed by two short beats.