A Communication from Panama

Abstract

Since 1947, Luis Felipe Ram6n y Rivera, Director of the Instituto de Folklore, has published a number of studies and transcriptions of indigenous music, beginning with Consideraciones sobre un instrumento y mtusica de los Indios Guajiros (Acta venezolana, II, 1-4, 1946-47, pp. 104-115). His principal publications, as well as those of his wife, Isabel Aretz de Ramdn y Rivera, are listed in the Guide to the Music of Latin America (Pan American Union, 1962, pp. 378-382). An interesting comparative study is that by Isabel Aretz, Correlation between the Venezuelan Pan-pipes and those of the Andean High Cultures (Boletfn Indigenista Venezolano, VI, 1-4, Caracas, 1958). In 1947, Isabel Aretz began work on a complete study of the musical instruments of the Venezuelan aborigines--including the historical and archaeological aspects as well as present-day usage-which at this writing (January 1965) was in process of publication by the Universidad de Oriente of Venezuela. This work, however, is not limited to musical instruments of the Indian tribes; its title is Musical Instruments of Venezuela. With the creation, in 1953, of the Instituto de Folklore as a dependency of the Ministry of Education, under the direction of Luis Felipe Ramdn y Rivera, ably seconded by Isabel Aretz and a staff of trained specialists, the whole range of traditional music in Venezuela, from the primitive to the popular, has been systematically covered in recordings, transcriptions, analyses, monographs, and books. Since the Institute deals with all aspects of folklore, music is always seen in its socio-cultural context, and its study is elucidated by a wealth of ancillary documentation. As of January 1965, the Institute's archives contained more than 3,000 items recorded either on disc (up to No. 1161) or on tape. The recordings are made under the strictest norms of ethnomusicological practice.