Luna De Xelajú
Luna de Xelajú is a very popular Guatemalan waltz composed by Paco Pérez in 1944. The title translates as "Moon of Xelajú". "Xelajú" (pronounced sheh-lah-HOO) is the Kʼicheʼ Maya name for the Guatemalan city Quetzaltenango, still often popularly called "Xelajú" or "Xela". The song was written to Miss Eugenia Cohen, a beautiful Jewish lady who stole the writer's heart, but eventually left him because Eugenia's parents disapproved of the relationship. She lives in Quetzaltenango and Guatemala City to this day. All of the great marimba bands of Guatemala have played it to great success. Perhaps one of the most popular recent versions is as the first selection of the CD ''Valses inolvidables de Guatemala'', with the Guatemalan Millennium Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Dieter Lehnhoff. The song has been performed by several musical acts, including Guatemalan singer and Grammy Award nominee, Gaby Moreno. In 2023, she did a collaboration with actor Oscar Isaac ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Guatemala
Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by Honduras; to the southeast by El Salvador and to the south by the Pacific Ocean. With an estimated population of around million, Guatemala is the most populous country in Central America and the 11th most populous country in the Americas. It is a representative democracy with its capital and largest city being Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción, also known as Guatemala City, the most populous city in Central America. The territory of modern Guatemala hosted the core of the Maya civilization, which extended across Mesoamerica. In the 16th century, most of this area was conquered by the Spanish and claimed as part of the viceroyalty of New Spain. Guatemala attained independence in 1821 from Spain and Mexico. In 1823, it became part of the Fe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Waltz
The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the waltz that date from 16th-century Europe, including the representations of the printmaker Hans Sebald Beham. The French philosopher Michel de Montaigne wrote of a dance he saw in 1580 in Augsburg, where the dancers held each other so closely that their faces touched. Kunz Haas (of approximately the same period) wrote, "Now they are dancing the godless ''Weller'' or ''Spinner''."Nettl, Paul. "Birth of the Waltz." In ''Dance Index'' vol 5, no. 9. 1946 New York: Dance Index-Ballet Caravan, Inc. pages 208, 211 "The vigorous peasant dancer, following an instinctive knowledge of the weight of fall, uses his surplus energy to press all his strength into the proper beat of the bar, thus intensifying his personal enjoyment in dancing." Around 1750, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Paco Pérez
Francisco Pérez Muñoz (1916–1951) was a singer, composer, and guitarist from Guatemala. Biography Pérez was born on April 25, 1916, in Huehuetenango, Guatemala to José Pérez and Luz Muñoz. At the age of 6, he acted in the municipal theater. In 1927, he moved with his family to Quetzaltenango, where he took on various roles as a singer and orator. Pérez made his grand debut in 1935 in the municipal theater of Quetzaltenango, accompanied by Juan Sandoval on piano. Later he formed the ''Trío Quetzaltecos'' with Manolo Rosales and José Alvarez. When Quetzaltenango radio station TGQ launched in 1937, he aired a series of concerts. Pérez achieved fame for his waltz, ''Luna de Xelajú'' (1944), which has become an element in Guatemalan cultural identity. The song figures in the repertory of most singers, choirs, marimba players and musical groups in Guatemala. Pérez died on October 27, 1951, in a plane crash in El Petén, Guatemala, along with his pianist, Mario Lara Mon ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kʼicheʼ Language
Kʼicheʼ (, also known as among its speakers), or Quiché (), is a Mayan language of Guatemala, spoken by the Kʼicheʼ people of the central highlands. With over a million speakers (some 7% of Guatemala's population), Kʼicheʼ is the second most widely-spoken language in the country, after Spanish. It is also the most widely-spoken indigenous American language in Mesoamerica. The Central dialect is the most commonly used in media and education. Despite a low literacy rate, Kʼicheʼ is increasingly taught in schools and used on the radio. The most famous work in the Classical Kʼicheʼ language is the ''Popol Vuh'' (''Popol Wuʼuj'' in modern spelling). Dialects Kaufman (1970) divides the Kʼicheʼ complex into the following five dialects, with the representative municipalities given as well (quoted in Par Sapón 2000:17): ;East *Joyabaj *Zacualpa *Cubulco *Rabinal *San Miguel Chicaj ;West *Nahualá *Santa Clara La Laguna *Santa Lucía Utatlán *Aldea Argueta, Sololá * ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Quetzaltenango
Quetzaltenango (, also known by its Maya name Xelajú or Xela ) is both the seat of the namesake Department and municipality, in Guatemala. The city is located in a mountain valley at an elevation of above sea level at its lowest part. It may reach above within the city. The Municipality of Quetzaltenango consists of an area of . Municipalities abutting the municipality of Quetzaltenango include Salcajá, Cantel, Almolonga, Zunil, El Palmar, Concepción Chiquirichapa, San Mateo, La Esperanza, and Olintepeque in Quetzaltenango department and San Andrés Xecul in Totonicapán department. History In Pre-Columbian times Quetzaltenango was a city of the Mam Maya people called Xelajú, although by the time of the Spanish Conquest it had become part of the K'iche' Kingdom of Q'umarkaj. The name may be derived from ''xe laju' noj'' meaning "under ten mountains". The city was said to have already been over 300 years old when the Spanish first arrived. With the help of his all ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Millennium Orchestra
A millennium (plural millennia or millenniums) is a period of one thousand years, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting point (initial reference point) of the calendar in consideration (typically the year "1") and at later years that are whole number multiples of a thousand years after the start point. The term can also refer to an interval of time beginning on any date. Millennia sometimes have religious or theological implications (see millenarianism). The word ''millennium'' derives from the Latin ', thousand, and ', year. Debate over millennium celebrations There was a public debate leading up to the celebrations of the year 2000 as to whether the beginning of that year should be understood as the beginning of the “new” millennium. Historically, there has been debate around the turn of previous decades, centuries, and millennia. The issue arises from the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dieter Lehnhoff
Dieter Lehnhoff Temme (born 27 May 1955) is a German-Guatemalan composer, conductor, and musicologist. Life Dieter Lehnhoff Temme was born in Guatemala City, Guatemala to German settlers in 1955. He has been a pupil of Klaus Ager, Gerhard Wimberger, Josef Maria Horváth, and Dr. Friedrich C. Heller in Salzburg. His ''musique concréte'' work Requiem was premiered in 1975 at the Austrian Broadcasting (ORF). He earned his master's (M.A.) and doctoral (Ph.D.) degrees with distinction at the Benjamin T. Rome School of Music of The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., where he was a graduate student of Conrad Bernier and Helmut Braunlich (composition), Donald Thulean (conducting), Cyrilla Barr, Ruth Steiner, and Robert M. Stevenson (musicology) Recent works His original compositions have been performed in Europe as well as North and South America. His ''Misa de San Isidro'' (2001) for a cappella chorus was premiered in Tenerife, the Canary Islands, Spain, in 2002, and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gaby Moreno
Gaby Moreno is a Guatemalan singer-songwriter, producer, film composer and guitarist. Singing in both English and Spanish, Moreno's music covers many genres including Latin, Alternative, Blues, Folk and Americana. Biography Moreno was born in Guatemala, and later moved to Los Angeles. As a recording artist and live performer, Moreno has shared the studio and stage with a plethora of popular performers including Bono, fellow Guatemalan Oscar Isaac, actor/musician Hugh Laurie, Jackson Browne, Punch Bros and Buena Vista Social Club to name a few. The music video for Fuiste Tu, her duet with Ricardo Arjona, has amassed over 1 billion views on YouTube, Youtube. As a composer, Moreno recorded and produced the score for the feature film Language Lessons (directed by Natalie Morales (actress), Natalie Morales and co-written/starring Morales and Mark Duplass) and received an Emmy Awards, Emmy nomination for “Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Song” for the theme song to NBC ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Oscar Isaac
Óscar Isaac Hernández Estrada (born March 9, 1979) is a Guatemalan-born American actor. Known for his versatility, he has been credited with breaking stereotypes about Latino characters in Hollywood. He was named the best actor of his generation by '' Vanity Fair'' in 2017 and one of the 25 greatest actors of the 21st century by ''The New York Times'' in 2020. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award, a National Board of Review Award and a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. In 2016, he featured on ''Time'' list of the 100 most influential people in the world. When Isaac was an infant, he moved with his family to the United States. As a teenager, he joined a punk band, acted in plays and made his film debut in a minor role. An alumnus of the Juilliard School, Isaac was a character actor in films for much of the 2000s. His first major role was that of Joseph in the biblical drama ''The Nativity Story'' (2006), and he won an AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting R ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the List of most visited websites, second most visited website, after Google Search. YouTube has more than 2.5 billion monthly users who collectively watch more than one billion hours of videos each day. , videos were being uploaded at a rate of more than 500 hours of content per minute. In October 2006, YouTube was bought by Google for $1.65 billion. Google's ownership of YouTube expanded the site's business model, expanding from generating revenue from advertisements alone, to offering paid content such as movies and exclusive content produced by YouTube. It also offers YouTube Premium, a paid subscription option for watching content without ads. YouTube also approved creators to participate in Google's Google AdSens ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Guatemalan Music
The music of Guatemala is diverse. Music is played all over the country. Towns also have wind and percussion bands that play during the lent and Easter-week processions as well as on other occasions. The marimba is an important instrument in Guatemalan traditional songs. The oldest documented use of marimba in the Americas dates to 1680 during celebrations at Santiago de los Caballeros de Guatemala. Guatemala also has an almost five-century-old tradition of art music, spanning from the first liturgical chant and polyphony introduced in 1524 to contemporary art music. Much of the music composed in Guatemala from the 16th century to the 19th century has only recently been unearthed by scholars and is being revived by performers. Mayan Music Much of what is known about how the ancient Mayans created and played music comes from the iconography that is preserved in the ceremonial pieces of mural art, or codices. One example is found in the ancient Maya archaeological site of Bonamp ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Guatemalan Culture
The culture of Guatemala reflects strong Mayan and Spanish influences and continues to be defined as a contrast between poor Mayan villagers in the rural highlands, and the urbanized and relatively wealthy mestizos population (known in Guatemala as '' ladinos'') who occupy the cities and surrounding agricultural plains. Cuisine Guatemalan cuisine reflects the multicultural nature of Guatemala, in that it involves food that differs in taste depending on the region. Guatemala has 22 departments (or divisions), each of which has different food varieties. For example, Antigua Guatemala is well known for its candy that makes use of many local ingredients: fruits, seeds and nuts, honey, condensed milk and other traditional sweeteners. Antigua's candy is popular with tourists. Many traditional foods are based on Maya cuisine and prominently feature corn, chilis and beans. Various dishes may have the same name as dishes from a neighboring country but in fact be quite different. For ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |