Launch of the Original Soundtrack Huicholes : The Last Peyote Guardians

August 15, 2014

Music is essential in the daily and ceremonial life of the Wixárika People. Hence, the makers of Huichol: The Last Guardians of Peyote put special care that the music was a subject of history.

We have had the great privilege of having the Argentine multi-instrumentalist and composer Gastón Salazar contribute his sensitivity in the composition of the soundtrack of the film, together with the ceremonial music of José Luis “Urramuire” Ramirez and his family, and the contribution of a group of artists who resonated immediately with the project. This work, carried out independently at the request of the elders of the community of San Andrés Cohamiata in the Huichol Sierra represents a combination of efforts and talents committed to life.

Mr. Salazar said that “after years of study, live performances and composition of my own works and those assigned by others, I am pleased to present this collection at the request of my friend Hernan Vilchez for the documentary he has been dreaming of along with Paola Stefani and Andres Solórzano for more than three years.”

José Luis “Urramuire” Ramirez, star of the documentary, is a marakame, spiritual guide and healer, musician and artist who has guided his family and his people faithfully, keeping the ancestral heritage of their culture and worldview transmitted from generation to generation. Playing their instruments and sharing their songs, they have traveled many places, carrying the message that allows all people to return to the path of respect and harmony with life.

Gaston recalls, “The themes of the composition explored the ancestral, the sacred, respect and care for a nature that is arid but alive, and the feel of the iconic ancient culture that is defended. The sound began to flow from the heart, as an ode to the guardians. In its footsteps on the dry mountains and the desert, to the sound and strength of its women, the magic of shamans that heal and children who watch; to the water as the most precious good in the land, the life source. To those working in mining and those who no longer want to return to it. To the uncertainty of the future that we are all writing through our consciousness and our actions, individual and collective.

So, this handful of issues that are raised, and the vibrant energy of the artists who composed or played with me, and the vast inspiration emanating from the chants and touches of José Luis Ramírez Wixaritari “Urramuire” and his family, are (as is the film itself) essentially and fundamentally a labor of love.”

Continuing the pattern of independent distribution and using digital platforms with the intention of transcending borders, we publicly make available online this release of the soundtrack.

The original soundtrack of Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians is available for download at the following link: https://gastonsalazar.bandcamp.com/releases

Income earned by download will benefit all the artists who participated in the composition and interpretation of it, and to support the promotion and display of this powerful message of ancestrality and life.