Name: Gabriel Alegría Afro-Peruvian Sextet
Members: Gabriel Alegría (trumpet), Laura Andrea Leguía (tenor saxophone), Hugo Alcázar (drums), Mario Cuba (bass), Freddy “Huevito” Lobatón (percussion), Jocho Velásquez (guitar), JF Maza (saxophone)
Current Release: The Gabriel Alegría Afro-Peruvian Sextet's new album El Muki out via Saponegro.
Interviewee: Gabriel Alegría
Nationality: Peruvian
Recommendations for Lima, Peru: Undoubtedly for music visit The Jazz Zone in Lima’s Miraflores district. You will find The Afro-Peruvian sextet in residence every Friday night.
Other non-touristy gems are the Centro Musicales throughout the city. Several incredible places are La Oficina in Barranco and Centro Musical Brena in Brena. These spots all specialize in Afro-Peruvian and criollo music.

If you enjoyed this Gabriel Alegría Afro-Peruvian Sextet interview and would like to know more about the band and their music, visit their official website. They are also on Instagram, and Facebook.



Why do you like playing in a band rather than making music on your own?

Playing in a band is a human experience; it’s about collaboration and community. Each member brings their unique voice, which creates a vibrant and living tapestry of sound that no machine or AI system can ever replicate.

For the past 20 years in this project, the interaction, the energy, and the spontaneous moments that happen every night are really why I get up in the morning!

What, to you, are some of the greatest bands, and what makes them great?

One of the greatest bands of all time to me, and one of the inspirations that originated The Afro-Peruvian Sextet was Miles Davis during his 60s quintet with Ron Carter, Tony Williams, Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter.

Miles always pushed the limits of music and the telepathic connection between these artists was legendary. For me, this created an inspiration to chase this type of connection but within my own vocabulary and genre which is called Afro-Peruvian jazz music.

How did the band come together?

Our band came together through a shared passion between drummer Hugo Alcazar and myself. We had always wanted to explore the rich traditions of Afro-Peruvian sounds within a jazz context.

Laura Andrea Leguia was a very young saxophonist at the time who had a deep knowledge of both jazz and criollo music from coastal Peru, which gave her a unique perspective into what we were trying to do.

We searched for a percussionist who could also dance, because in my head I heard zapateo dancing as part of this sound. When we found Freddy “Huevito” Lobaton, we found the beginning of our sound.

What were some of the reasons, do you think, that you wanted to play in this constellation?

I wanted to create a space where jazz music could interact and become one with Afro-Peruvian jazz music.

The Gabriel Alegria Afro-Peruvian Sextet’s constellation of musicians has grown to more than 30 over the years and always brings together different rhythms, harmonies, and styles that are produced when these two artforms are placed together from a lens of respect, honesty and integrity.

How do your different characters add up to the band's sound, and in which way is the end result – including live performances – different from the sum of its pieces?

The sound of the Afro-Peruvian Sextet is very much the result of each musician imprinting their own personality, musical influences, and experiences.

But rather than being a “fusion band” where anything goes (as often happens) we challenge ourselves to work within very strict rules and constraints. These “rules and constraints” lead to an unpredictable and organic sound that feels very much alive.

By working within two traditions that are very specific (and have a lot of rules) and finding a common language between the two, spontaneity then flows. Each member is able to express incredible musical thoughts in this context.

Is there a group consciousness, do you feel? How do you experience it?

Absolutely. Over the past 20 years there has been a non-verbal communication that has allowed for artistic developments. This band is like a family having gone through storms, drug rehab, divorce, changing continents … all within the band, and maintaining the work moving forward.

Our life off the bandstand has made it even more comfortable on the bandstand, despite having to handle the most challenging of circumstances. When the band hits the stage, the music can flow almost without question and without prior discussion.

Tell me about the process behind El Muki, please.

One thing that has been very special about the process of EL MUKI has been working entirely in Peru for every step of the album. It is indeed the first time we did that and it was very rewarding.

Peru allows for artistry to flourish, without the “rush” of places like New York or Los Angeles where we did our previous recordings. This album, El Muki, is for sure one of our finest works if not the best to date.

How does the creative process typically get started, and what is your sense of ownership like as part of the songwriting process?

For me, the creative process usually starts from a single idea, a rhythm, or even a conversation that I will record for myself. I collect these “notes” over days, weeks and months. They are “inspirations” (that’s what I call them) and I cannot really explain where they come from exactly.

Once we decide it’s time to put out a new work I start to see where some of these inspirations may fit a particular theme or idea that is of importance to me. Which means “auditioning” many ideas to see which could be developed into something special.

I feel a strong sense of ownership over the material, but once I bring the material in to my bandmates, I look forward to and expect that their contributions can reshape or enhance a concept in ways I hadn’t anticipated. My writing partner Laura Andrea Leguia is especially important in this process. We share writing and arranging usually before the band gets together.

What are your thoughts on the need for compromise vs. standing by one's convictions? How did you resolve potential disagreements?

One of the magical things about the Afro-Peruvian Sextet is that it is a band devoid of egos. For 20 years we have been chasing the music together and I can honestly say our “arguments” about the music are always about how to develop or make an idea better for the audience.

I have such a profound respect for everyone's intuition and talent that I think of the rehearsal process of new music as a way for me to steer everyone around the work I am proposing, accepting when a turn takes things in a different direction.

In a live situation, decisions between band members often work without words. From your experience and the performances of your current tour, what does this process feel like and how does it work?

One of the most common observations about The Afro-Peruvian Sextet’s performance is a dynamic and instant connection between members of the band.

I think it is because there is a criollo dynamic that audiences connect and notice. In criollo music, hand claps and “guapeo” are very common and an intrinsic and important part of the relationship and energy created between musicians with each other and the audience.

This “three way energy” is implicit in Afro-Peruvian jazz music. It’s not just about the musicians.

How has the interaction within the group changed over the years? How do you keep things surprising, playful, and inspiring?

Our interactions have deepened with time, as we’ve come to understand each other's musical language more closely. At this point I don’t write music for a saxophone or a drummer, I write for Laura Andrea and Hugo. The music very much follows and is created with the specifics of each player in mind.

Since Afro-Peruvian jazz music lives on the edge, it almost seems like it keeps us fresh … all we have to do is play! Every night is such a cross-cultural challenge that the surprise is always there.

Conceptually we always look forward, never back.

Have you worked with outside contributors – from session musicians to producers to other songwriters? How did this change, improve, or challenge the established dynamic, and how do you look back on that?

Yes, we’ve collaborated with various contributors, from legendary jazz artists to legends of Afro-Peruvian song. We have worked with labels, producers and just about every kind of publicist.

What has materialized for us as something that keeps it all together is that Afro-Peruvian jazz music has been considered to be changing the history of Latin Jazz. We have been blessed that every collaborator that enters our universe seems to do so out of a deep fascination and genuine interest for what we are trying to do with jazz music and Afro-Peruvian song.

Most bands eventually break up. What makes you stay together? What are essentials for a successful band?

The Afro-Peruvian Sextet has been together for 20 years. We are a true throwback in the sense that in jazz music this is almost unheard of. Maintaining the mission of this band has meant continuing to grow as artists.

I think the reason everyone stays in this unit is because of the incredibly challenging work we do coupled with steady work year in and year out. The main essential for any band to stay together is actually having (or in our case being able to create) work.