The incomparable soprano was the first Peruvian to manage to bring the roots of our country to the world, becoming the highest reference of the Andean sounds that built the national identity as we know it now.
The records that describe her presence on stage associate her voice with sounds that could be used for self-hypnosis. The records that she managed to achieve set her apart from the rest of the artists who aspired to earn a name in the Hollywood entertainment industry, a market that currently has a significant number of talents born in Latin America.
More than one mystery is hidden in the biography of soprano Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chavarri del Castillo, known under the pseudonym Yma Sumac. From the beginning of her career, she defined herself as an Inca princess because her family descended from one of the top leaders of the empire of ancient Peru.
Her mother, Doña Emilia Atahualpa, was the direct descendant of Atahualpa, the last emperor of the Inca regime.
OF CAJAMARCA, CALLAO AND THE WORLD
Born on September 13, 1922, the exact place where she opened her eyes for the first time was surrounded by doubts because there were no official data that required it from her. In 2011, the PUCP published a publication, through the Biblioteca Marquense blog, in which it presented a document that revealed that her birth certificate indicated Calle Cochrane, located in the first Peruvian port, Callao.
Mention is made that she would have Cajamarca origins, but this clarifies the picture. Her family is known and she moved to various areas of the country; from its location in the district of Magdalena until reaching Cajamarca.
Those who have contributed to the record of her experiences indicate that she learned melodies thanks to the songs of the birds. The mountainous city witnessed the discovery of her as a singer. When she went to a friend's house, she was surprised with a singing practice for a folkloric show in which Moisés Vivanco participated, who would later become her husband and her representative. He made her debut with the Conjunto Folclórico Peruano in 1942. It took less than three years for both of them to decide to continue her path but away from the group.
This is how she marked her new life in the United States, traveling to New York in 1946. This first destination did not fully convince them, so they quickly moved to Los Angeles. The trip and the sacrifices were worth it because they obtained the backing of Walter Rivers, a Capital Record businessman who offered them their first contract to release a first album after being captivated by the voice that came from the Peruvian. Her first studio work, released in 1950, was called "The voice of Xtabay", inspired by a Mayan legend about a woman who terrifies men with her powers: it sold more than a million copies.
LOVE AND MARKETING
We can dare to mention that Vivanco became a pioneer in marketing to manage artists, although in his time there was no such term as we know it now. He used the history of Yma Sumac's ancestors to form a profile attractive enough for the US and European markets. The concept of him was supported by our compatriot, who reinforced the mysterious idea by declaring herself an Inca princess or stating that she "was born two thousand years ago, but she is still young."
This narrative accompanied his career until his last days and it is that he formed a character associated with the strangeness of her voice that no one dared to mock; quite the contrary, he earned respect and raised the Andean culture that was being defined by the capital of Lima to the border limits.
CONQUERING THE CITY OF DREAMS
Having a history of presentations that took her to visit much of the world, her offers for her to demonstrate her other talents were not long in coming. Confident in her abilities, Zoila Chávarri placed her name on the list of talented Hollywood actors, being part of the cast for the 1954 film "The Secret of the Incas", in which she shared scenes with Charlton Heston and Robert Young.
With this production, she won the recognition of film experts and conquered with her interpretation of "Ataypura".
While she still wielded power over her fans, whom she mesmerized with her vocal range, she was awarded a star on the Walk of Fame, the first Peruvian to achieve this recognition.
