History

Little is known about precolonial music in Paraguay due to the difficulty in finding archaeological evidence in the tropical soil as well as the nomadic nature of the local tribes. Early European explorers reported the sounds of drums, horns, and a large rattle known as the mbaraká used by the Guaraní tribes they found in modern-day Paraguay (Watkins, 2000). 

The Jesuits were impressed with the indigenous peoples' musical prowess, and, upon the construction of the Jesuit reductions (reducciones jesuíticas, Jesuit mission towns hosting native peoples), they began to instruct them in European musical styles using European instruments, focusing mainly on violin, guitar, voice, and harp (Szarán, 1998). Using music to convert the natives and win them over by associating music with the Catholic Church proved to be an effective method of evangelizing. Yapeyú, a mission in the south of the country, became an important musical hub.

As the language used in these missions by the Jesuits was Guaraní and the importation of European instruments were expensive, the Guaraní people living in the missions quickly learned how to make their own instruments, often modifying the design as with the Paraguayan harp, and began composing their own music with lyrics in Guaraní. Paraguayan folk music was borne out of this tradition of indigenous people using European instruments to express uniquely Paraguayan ideals.

The Paraguayan harp is unique among the Paraguayan folk instruments as Paraguay has its own unique variety of the instrument, unlike the guitar, bass, or violin. A Paraguayan harp is a diatonic instrument with between 32 and 40 strings that are fixed to the center of the instrument, unlike most classical harps, which have their strings to one side. Traditionally, the instrument is played with the fingernails, with the left hand playing broken chords in the bass while the right hand plays melodies (Colmán, 2015). It can either be used as a solo instrument or in an ensemble with voices, guitars, and, increasingly, electric bass. Tremolos and glissandi are common features of the repertoire of the Paraguayan harp, musical techniques that are meant to capture sounds of nature such as birds or water.

The Paraguayan harp, a well-known symbol of Paraguay and its culture. Note the tuning pegs' location--centered at the top of the harp, which differs from most classical and chromatic harps.

Paraguayan culture has been heavily Hispanicized since the arrival of Europeans; however, indigenous cultural practices, especially the Guaraní language, have been continued underground for as long as Paraguay has been a nation. During the 19th century, Paraguay was embroiled in a bloody war with Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina, which it badly lost. The fledgling country was left with half its population dead and much of its territory (much of which was Guaranophone) ceded to neighboring powers. The loss of those territories massively shrunk the proportion of the Paraguayan population who spoke Guaraní as a native language. Besides this loss, the foreign occupiers of the country were frustrated that the Paraguayans had a language that they could use amongst themselves so that foreign soldiers wouldn’t be able to understand them, just like in the war. Because of this, these occupiers supported politicians in the Paraguayan government that not only supported the foreign occupation of the country, but also those who had a low opinion of the Guaraní language (Nickson, 2009). Through this political subterfuge, Guaraní was portrayed as a backwards language that was only used by those who did not fit in modern society, a mentality that was strengthened by the new wave of European migrants coming to the country and these immigrants’ affluence.

After the war, the Colorado Party adopted the language and other Paraguayan folk traditions to distinguish themselves from the Liberal Party. They portrayed the Guaraní language and other folk traditions, such as traditional music and dance, as one of the nation’s strengths, and molded them into an incontrovertible aspect of Paraguayan patriotism that distinguished them from other Latin American countries. In addition, after seeing its success during the war, Guaraní began to be utilized by the armed forces as a unique communications tool that only Paraguay had, and since nationalism and patriotism in the country were inextricably linked to the armed forces, the seeds of the connections between folk traditions, patriotism, and Paraguayan national identity were planted and began to grow (Nickson, 2009).

During this time, two Paraguayan harpists, Félix Pérez Cardozo and Luis Bordón, and two classical guitarists, José Asunción Flores and Agustín Pio Barrios (also known as "Mangoré"), began to achieve national and international fame playing Paraguayan traditional music (Colmán, 2015). Their popularity began to cement the guitar and the harp as Paraguay's traditional instruments and gave the country a folk tradition to latch onto, combining their indigenous past with their country's European influences.