Sumac, Yma

▪ 2009

Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chavarri del Castillo 

      Peruvian-born American folk singer

born Sept. 13, 1922, Cajamarca, Peru

died Nov. 1, 2008, Los Angeles, Calif.

was internationally renowned for her extraordinary vocal range and for her interpretations of traditional South American songs. Known as the “Peruvian songbird” and the “nightingale of the Andes,” Sumac possessed a soaring soprano voice that spanned at least four octaves. Most of her professional career was spent in the U.S., to which she moved in 1946. She became a sensation on the New York City nightclub and supper-club circuit before releasing her first album, Voice of the Xtabay (1950), which sold half a million copies. She also attracted widespread attention with her appearance in the 1951 Broadway musical Flahooley. A string of other albums followed, including Legend of the Sun Virgin (1952), Mambo! (1954), and Fuego del Ande (1959). Sumac made notable appearances in two films, Secret of the Incas (1954) and Omar Khayyam (1957). Although her popularity declined after the early 1960s, she continued to perform. The release of a 1992 documentary, Yma Sumac: Hollywood's Inca Princess, helped revive interest in her music, and many of her albums were subsequently reissued. She was awarded the Orden del Sol, Peru's highest honour for achievement, in 2006.

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