Yma Súmac (born in Callao, El Callao, Perú September 13, 1922), also earlie… Read Full Bio ↴Yma Súmac (born in Callao, El Callao, Perú September 13, 1922), also earlier spelled Ymma Sumak (from Ima Shumaq, Quechua for "how beautiful!") or Imma Sumack, is a noted vocalist of Peruvian origin. In the 1950s, she was one of the most famous proponents of exotica music, and became an international success based on the merits of her wide-ranging voice, which ranges "well over three octaves" and was commonly claimed to span four and five
Yma Súmac was born on September 13, 1922 in Callao, El Callao, as Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chávarri del Castillo. Other dates mentioned in her various biographies range from 1921 to 1929 . Some sources claim that she was not born in Ichocán, but in a nearby village or possibly in Lima, and that her family owned a ranch in Ichocán where she spent most of her early life. It is also claimed that she is an Incan princess directly descended from Atahualpa. The story that she was actually born Amy Camus (Yma Sumac read backwards) in Brooklyn or Canada is a hoax. This reference asserts that she was known as Imma Sumack in recordings made before she went to the U.S.; Capitol Records changed the spelling to the more exotic "Yma Sumac". For a few months, in and around Capitol Records headquarters, it was rumored that Yma Sumac was actually a woman named Amy Camus who worked in the accounting department, but that was eventually disproved by Amy herself in her famous "I can't even sing" memo of August 1951.
She first appeared on radio in 1942 , and married composer and bandleader Moisés Vivanco on June 6 the same year. Using the stage name Imma Sumack, she recorded at least eighteen tracks of Peruvian folk songs in Argentina in 1943 . These early recordings for the Odeon label featured Moisés Vivanco's group, Compañía Peruana de Arte — a group of 46 Indian dancers singers and musicians. In 1946 , Yma Sumac and Vivanco moved to New York City, where she performed with the Inca Taky Trio, with Moisés Vivanco on guitar, Yma Sumac's cousin Cholita Rivero singing contralto and dancing, and Yma Sumac providing the soprano, until being signed by Capitol Records in 1950.
During the 1950s, she produced a series of legendary lounge recordings featuring Hollywood-style versions of Incan and South American folk songs, working with the likes of Les Baxter and Billy May. In 1951, she popularized Jorge Bravo de Rueda's classic song "Vírgenes del Sol". The combination of her extraordinary voice, exotic looks and stage personality made her a hit with American audiences. Sumac even appeared in a Broadway musical, Flahooley, in 1951, as a foreign princess who brings Aladdin's lamp to an American toy factory to have it repaired. The show's score was by Sammy Fain and E.Y. "Yip" Harburg, but Sumac's four numbers were the work of Vivanco. Capitol Records, Sumac's home label, recorded the show, which failed but has lived on as a cult classic, in part because it also marked the Broadway debut of Barbara Cook. During the height of Sumac's popularity, she appeared in the films Secret of the Incas (1954) and Omar Khayyam (1957); she became a U.S. citizen July 22, 1955.
In 1957 , she and Vivanco divorced. They remarried that same year before divorcing again in 1965 . They had one son, Charles, born in 1949 . Apparently due to financial difficulties, Yma Sumac and the original Inca Taky Trio went on a world tour in 1961 , which lasted for five years. They performed in 40 cities in the Soviet Union, and afterwards all over Europe, Asia and Latin America. Their performance in Bucharest, Romania was recorded as the album Recital, her only 'live in concert' record. Yma Sumac spent the rest of the 1960s performing sporadically.
In 1971 , she released a rock album, called Miracles, and then returned to live in Peru. She performed in concert from time to time during the 1970s in Peru and later in New York. In the 1980s, she had a number of concerts both in the U.S. and abroad including at New York's The Ballroom in 1987 and several San Francisco shows at the Theatre on the Square among others. In 1987, she also recorded the song "I Wonder" from the Disney film Sleeping Beauty for Stay Awake, an album of songs from Disney movies, produced by Hal Willner. She sang Ataypura during a March 19, 1987 appearance on Late Night with David Letterman, appearing alongside actor-comedians Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Murray.
In 1989 , she sang once again at The Ballroom in New York. In March 1990 , she played the role of Heidi in Stephen Sondheim's Follies, in Long Beach, California — her first attempt at 'serious theater' since Flahooley in 1951. She also did several concerts in the summer of 1996 in San Francisco and Hollywood and two more in Montreal, Canada in July 1997 as part of the Montreal International Jazz Festival. She currently lives in Los Angeles.
In 1992, Günther Czernetsky directed a documentary titled Yma Sumac - Hollywoods Inkaprinzessin (Yma Sumac - Hollywood's Inca princess).
On May 2, 2006, Sumac flew to Lima, where she was given the "Orden del Sol" award by Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo, and the Jorge Basadre medal by the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos.
Yma Súmac was born on September 13, 1922 in Callao, El Callao, as Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chávarri del Castillo. Other dates mentioned in her various biographies range from 1921 to 1929 . Some sources claim that she was not born in Ichocán, but in a nearby village or possibly in Lima, and that her family owned a ranch in Ichocán where she spent most of her early life. It is also claimed that she is an Incan princess directly descended from Atahualpa. The story that she was actually born Amy Camus (Yma Sumac read backwards) in Brooklyn or Canada is a hoax. This reference asserts that she was known as Imma Sumack in recordings made before she went to the U.S.; Capitol Records changed the spelling to the more exotic "Yma Sumac". For a few months, in and around Capitol Records headquarters, it was rumored that Yma Sumac was actually a woman named Amy Camus who worked in the accounting department, but that was eventually disproved by Amy herself in her famous "I can't even sing" memo of August 1951.
She first appeared on radio in 1942 , and married composer and bandleader Moisés Vivanco on June 6 the same year. Using the stage name Imma Sumack, she recorded at least eighteen tracks of Peruvian folk songs in Argentina in 1943 . These early recordings for the Odeon label featured Moisés Vivanco's group, Compañía Peruana de Arte — a group of 46 Indian dancers singers and musicians. In 1946 , Yma Sumac and Vivanco moved to New York City, where she performed with the Inca Taky Trio, with Moisés Vivanco on guitar, Yma Sumac's cousin Cholita Rivero singing contralto and dancing, and Yma Sumac providing the soprano, until being signed by Capitol Records in 1950.
During the 1950s, she produced a series of legendary lounge recordings featuring Hollywood-style versions of Incan and South American folk songs, working with the likes of Les Baxter and Billy May. In 1951, she popularized Jorge Bravo de Rueda's classic song "Vírgenes del Sol". The combination of her extraordinary voice, exotic looks and stage personality made her a hit with American audiences. Sumac even appeared in a Broadway musical, Flahooley, in 1951, as a foreign princess who brings Aladdin's lamp to an American toy factory to have it repaired. The show's score was by Sammy Fain and E.Y. "Yip" Harburg, but Sumac's four numbers were the work of Vivanco. Capitol Records, Sumac's home label, recorded the show, which failed but has lived on as a cult classic, in part because it also marked the Broadway debut of Barbara Cook. During the height of Sumac's popularity, she appeared in the films Secret of the Incas (1954) and Omar Khayyam (1957); she became a U.S. citizen July 22, 1955.
In 1957 , she and Vivanco divorced. They remarried that same year before divorcing again in 1965 . They had one son, Charles, born in 1949 . Apparently due to financial difficulties, Yma Sumac and the original Inca Taky Trio went on a world tour in 1961 , which lasted for five years. They performed in 40 cities in the Soviet Union, and afterwards all over Europe, Asia and Latin America. Their performance in Bucharest, Romania was recorded as the album Recital, her only 'live in concert' record. Yma Sumac spent the rest of the 1960s performing sporadically.
In 1971 , she released a rock album, called Miracles, and then returned to live in Peru. She performed in concert from time to time during the 1970s in Peru and later in New York. In the 1980s, she had a number of concerts both in the U.S. and abroad including at New York's The Ballroom in 1987 and several San Francisco shows at the Theatre on the Square among others. In 1987, she also recorded the song "I Wonder" from the Disney film Sleeping Beauty for Stay Awake, an album of songs from Disney movies, produced by Hal Willner. She sang Ataypura during a March 19, 1987 appearance on Late Night with David Letterman, appearing alongside actor-comedians Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Murray.
In 1989 , she sang once again at The Ballroom in New York. In March 1990 , she played the role of Heidi in Stephen Sondheim's Follies, in Long Beach, California — her first attempt at 'serious theater' since Flahooley in 1951. She also did several concerts in the summer of 1996 in San Francisco and Hollywood and two more in Montreal, Canada in July 1997 as part of the Montreal International Jazz Festival. She currently lives in Los Angeles.
In 1992, Günther Czernetsky directed a documentary titled Yma Sumac - Hollywoods Inkaprinzessin (Yma Sumac - Hollywood's Inca princess).
On May 2, 2006, Sumac flew to Lima, where she was given the "Orden del Sol" award by Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo, and the Jorge Basadre medal by the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos.
Wimoweh
Yma Súmac Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight
In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight
Near the village the peaceful village the lion sleeps tonight
Near the village the peaceful village the lion sleeps tonight
Hush my darling dont cry my darling the lion sleeps tonight
Hush my darling dont fear my darling the lion sleeps tonight
In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight
Near the village the peaceful village the lion sleeps tonight
Near the village the peaceful village the lion sleeps tonight
Hush my darling dont cry my darling the lion sleeps tonight
Hush my darling dont fear my darling the lion sleeps tonight
The lyrics of Yma Sumac's song "Wimoweh" tell the story of a lion sleeping in the African jungle and its peace contrasts with a threatening world around it. The first verse describes the mighty jungle and the powerful animal that rules over it. The second verse describes a peaceful village near the jungle where the lion can be heard even though it is sleeping. The lion's presence is calm and comforting.
Line by Line Meaning
In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight
In the dense, tropical forest, where nature reigns supreme, the powerful and fierce king of beasts is experiencing a moment of rest and slumber.
Near the village the peaceful village the lion sleeps tonight
In close proximity to the simple and serene habitation of humans, the majestic lion is resting in the tranquility of the night.
Hush my darling dont cry my darling the lion sleeps tonight
Be still, my dear beloved, do not shed any tears or feel any anguish, as the mighty carnivore is currently in a state of calmness and sleep.
Writer(s): HELLERMAN, HAYS, SEEGER, SOLOMON LINDA ADD'L WORDS & MUSIC: GILBERT
Contributed by Addison F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it
More Genres
No Artists Found
More Artists
Load All
No Albums Found
More Albums
Load All
No Tracks Found
Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Search results not found
Song not found
Marcus Paiva
Me siento hechizado por la voz de cristal que tenía Yma. A ver si un día surge otra que se le acerque. (Igual lo dudo) MARAVILLOSA!
Juana Silva
Ella fue única, como únicas son todas las cantantes, todos tenemos un timbre de voz único, es como nuestro iris o como nuestra huella digital.
azul esmeralda
@Juana Silva busca youtube a un cantante llamado Dimash es de Kazajistán y ahora tiene 26 años, canta como un ángel y te elevara a tos cielos, su voz va ha dar la vuelta al mundo, oírle es de una belleza indescriptible... Es hombre y sus. cuatro octavas te pondrán la carne de gallina... Es mágico un regalo del cielo estoy segura de que te encantará. No se de donde eres pero cuidado con el virus y ánimo.
Juanito Alcachofa
@azul esmeralda yo sigo prefiriendo a yma pero canta muy bonito el chico
Motoandroid 3000
Si, es raro
Pero su voz hechiza
Me pasó lo mismo jaja :3
Motoandroid 3000
@azul esmeralda la voz de Dimash también es impresionante, pero considero que no es una voz de "cristal" como la de Yma
Sus agudos me parecen forzados, me aturden xD, caso contrario al escuchar a Yma Sumac
Pero cada quien con sus gustos
fossils12
Yma Sumac is one of the few who deserves to be called "The Voice".
Unicornio
Mi PERU estubo bien Representado, lastima que los peruanos no sepan apreciar esto!! YMA LA UNICA!
Animation and More 3009
Una década ha pasado de ese comentario y el Perú aún no reconoce a Yma como merece.
Sebastian Mariños
Las notas que canta Yma pareciera que contarán una historia, primero tranquilidad, luego comienza la preocupación regresa la tranquilidad momentáneamente para terminar con el culminé de la canción.