From Venezuelan Llanera Music to American Bluegrass: ‘Nuevo South Train’ Explores Musical Crossroads
Written by Angel Romero for World Music Central
6.4.23
Larry & Joe – Nuevo South Train (self-release, 2023)
“Nuevo South Train” is an alluring collaboration between Venezuelan musician Larry Bellorín and American banjo player Joe [Troop]. The two artists met in the Durham-Raleigh area of North Carolina. Together, they skillfully combine engaging Venezuelan music traditions such as llanera music (music of the plains), orquidea, tonada, joropo oriental, and bambuco as well as salsa with American bluegrass.
Although Larry Bellorín is a muti-instrumentalist, his main instrument is the harp, which is widely used in música llanera. He plays a wide range of traditional Venezuelan genres. I was familiar with all of them except orquídea. The orquídea rhythm is one of the most recently created rhythms and genres of traditional Venezuelan music, written and performed in 4/4 time signature with a rhythmic and cadenced hand movement.
The creator of the orquídea rhythm, as we know it, is Venezuelan harp player Hugo Blanco. According to him, the rhythm is strongly influenced by the musical sounds he heard in his youth from dance and tropical groups, as well as genres such as son, guaracha, Dominican merengue, boleros, among others. The result is a seductive rhythm that can be considered a mix of son cubano/charanga, cumbia, and flamenco rumba.
Joe Troop has been involved in various projects where he successfully intertwined bluegrass with Hispanic American music, specially the music of Argentina. Despite their disparate backgrounds and experiences, both men currently reside in the Triangle area (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill) of North Carolina and are highly skilled multi-instrumentalists and singer-songwriters.
Their shared objective is to highlight the universality of music, irrespective of national boundaries. As a duo, they perform a delightful synthesis of Venezuelan and Appalachian folk music, employing instruments such as harp, banjo, Venezuelan cuatro, fiddle, maracas, guitar, upright bass, and any others they see fit to include in their performances.
Their repertoire presents a unique combination of their respective musical heritages and traditions, featuring Latin music classics like ‘Caballo Viejo’ and ‘Moliendo Café’ together with traditional material as well as originals. Furthermore, their storytelling highlights the ways in which music and social movements intersect. “Nuevo South Train” elegantly introduces the listener to a wide range of genres such as música llanera, orquídea, bossa nova, bluegrass, joropo oriental, bambuco, salsa, rumba, and gospel.
Larry Bellorín, a legendary figure in llanera music, hails from Monagas, Venezuela, while Joe Troop, a Grammy-nominated bluegrass and old time musician, comes from North Carolina. Unfortunately, Larry was compelled to flee his homeland and now finds himself seeking asylum in North Carolina, where he supports himself through construction work. Joe, on the other hand, spent a decade in South America but was unexpectedly stranded in his native region during the pandemic.
Musicians: Joe Troop on banjo, vocals, fiddle; Larry Bellorín on harp, vocals, upright bass, cuatro, maracas; Charlie Hunter on guitar; Nelson Echandía on bass; and Brevan Hampden on percussion.
