Organilleros - Human Living Treasures
From time to time, the mad racket of the city is suddenly interrupted by a melodious string of sweet sounds, reminiscent of times gone by.
Happier, gentler times, when people had time to enjoy the simple things of life, and children skipped the rope, marvelled at soap bubbles, and played safely on the street.
The evocative music flooding the street and turning back the time is played by an organillero (organ grinder), a centuries-old traditional errant street musician. And the magical effect of his instrument is not mere chance.
Héctor Lizana and his organillo, in Santiago.
Along with calliopes and bandonions, small organs were developed in Europe following the industrial revolution. Organ grinders were not an uncommon sight on the streets of Germanic countries in the XIX century.
Famed Swiss writer Johanna Spyri even included one in her celebrated children’s novel, “Heidi”.
In the XIX century, the tradition arrived to America by the way of travelling musicians from, mainly, Germany and Italy, settling in Mexico and countries of strong European heritage, such as Argentina, Peru, Chile and Uruguay.
As cities expanded and became noisier and more hostile towards street acts, the tradition or the organ-grinder - as many other trades - was lost during the XX century.
Nowadays only two countries in the world maintain the organillero tradition as a standing trade: Chile and Mexico.
While both Mexican and Chilean organilleros work with Italian or German instruments, each one developed different regional characteristics.
In Mexico, the organillo (organ) was an instrument rented for individuals to make money for some periods of time, and was used in Circus presentations, festivals, serenades, and private parties.
The organilleros in Mexico usually wear a gray or taupe uniform in reference to the military uniform used by general Pancho Villa.
An organillero in Mexico City
In Chile, the organillero owned the instrument and this craft was his main job. As such, he worked in public spaces, fairs and private parties, but he seldom associated with the circus. Instead, he was and still remains a fixture of Fiestas Patrias (the National Holiday).
He usually wears a black hat and vest, and although most of them are men, there are also women, who follow a similar dress code.
The music played by each is also different, with Mexican organilleros favouring traditional Mexican songs and Latin American tunes, and with Chilean organilleros favouring traditional Chilean folk songs, some European waltzes and Mexican tunes.
Also, while Mexican organilleros carry their one-legged instrument, most organillos in Chile rest on pneumatic four-wheel carriers, making them easier to transport.
In addition, in Chile the organillero must possess the skill to train and work with a parrot, and the ability to create traditional handicraft toys (paper windmills, dolls, sawdust balls, cardboard rackets, etc) to sell.
The first travelling organilleros arrived in America from Europe during the second half of the XIX century, specially from Genova, Berlin and Saxony. These errant musicians visited the commercial ports and main cities of each region.
By the turn of the century, the trade had been established in the region, and the first local artists began importing instruments from Germany and Italy.
These are the same organillos that are still played today, since the craft to create these instruments was lost during the first half XX century.
In fact, the craftsmanship to repair these delicate clockwork instruments is currently found only in Chile, performed by a handful skilled artisans dedicated to this art.
Unlike the calliope, the organillo works with an inner diaphragm which expands and contracts through a clockwork mechanism controlled by the handle. This constant air flux through its pipes gives the organillo its ‘voice’, modulated by the cylinder pegs -which contains the coded music- rotating inside the wooden box.
The organillero must be very skilled in maintaining the pace when turning the handle: doing it too slow means the organ will not sound; doing it too fast or erratically may damage the instrument.
Photo: Paulina López
In its origins, the organillero travelled along a trained monkey, which danced and collected coins from the audience. However, not being an endemic species, monkeys were expensive and hard to find in Chile, and sometimes reacted aggressively towards children. Over time, it was replaced by the endemic, easier to train, tamer parrot.
While some parrots were trained to dance and even whistle along the songs played by the organillero, over time their main function became that of ‘fortune teller’, by choosing little papers with written auguries for the paying audience.
Audio track: Listen to the music of an organillero:
In addition to bringing joy and music to parks and squares, the organillero also sells small toys. And while the traditional cardboard and paper handicrafts have been replaced by plastic toys, the paper mills continue to be the trademark of their offering.
Photo: Patricio Casassus
In Chile, the organillero continued as a lone errant musician until mid XX century, when it was joined by another local street artist: the chinchinero.
The chinchinero originated in Chile, a mixture of one-man-band and the Andean drummers of the colony, who carried a large drum (bombo) on their back, played with both hands. They added to this instrument a double cymbal, played by a foot pulled by a string connected to it.
The loud pulsating beat of the drum, and the brilliant clash of the cymbals of the chinchinero, offered a contrasting rhythm section to the sweet sound of the organillo, adding lively Andean pulses to its mild European flavour.
Over time, though, the chinchinero developed a new skill: dancing while playing the two instruments.
Audiences watch entranced the dexterity of the Chinchineros as they play the drum and cymbals, dance, whirl and skip at lightning speed, without ever tripping or missing a beat.
Although the chinchineros can present shows on their own, it’s their duo with the organilleros that attracts the most public.
In Chile, different families of organilleros-chinchineros have gathered in organizations, creating in 2001 the Corporacion Cultural de Organilleros de Chile, as a sort of guild in order to protect their craft and their practising members.
Some of the families passing the tradition from generation to generation include the Lizana (whose patriarch, Hector Lizana, originated the chinchinero dance show), the Saavedra Toledo , and the Toledo Peralta.
The Lizana family has even travelled worldwide with their show, including the Orgenfest in Waldkirch, Germany, to present their unique show that, in the words of the audience, brought back to Germany a piece of culture that they seemed to have forgotten.
In 2013, the UNESCO declared the Organilleros and Chinchineros as Living Human Treasures.
Video (5:40)
However, this noble distinction has not protected them from extinction.
Modernity has played against the modest art of the organillero. The excess of entertainment offers and technology have robbed them of children (their primary audience), and the increasing cynicism of modern life has hardened the hearts of the rest of their public.
However, the organillero is a noble, long-standing tradition that is still availed by nostalgic and old-fashioned audiences, and as such, it valiantly refuses to disappear.
The Toledo Peralta family
Going along with the times, the organilleros have extended their efforts to Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram, where they have organized in groups, give workshops, lectures and support each other, welcoming all those interested in learning and expanding this tradition.
The organilleros are a noble breed of artists devoted to their craft, transmitting it from generation to generation. They are keepers of a centuries-old tradition, in love with what they do, bringing that love and a touch of brilliance and untainted joy to our lives sunk in over-modernity.
Their sweet melodies, modest toys, and amiability, speak of innocence, purity, kindness, and humanity, reminding us of values that, just like their tradition, should never be forgot.
To Learn More
Interesting documentary (17:56 min) about the Organilleros in Chile, on occasion of being declared Living Human Treasures by the UNESCO (In Spanish only):
1970's short film (5:40 min) about an organillero in the city of Santiago (In Spanish only): https://youtu.be/-TLYuVTWpYY
Sources: Sistema de Información para la Gestión del Patrimonio Cultural Inmaterial (SIGPA), Dibam.org, Wikipedia, Diario La Razón.
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