St James and the Music for his Cult in the Baroque Viceroyalty of Peru; [Saint Jacques et la musique pour son culte dans la vice-royauté du Pérou baroque]; [Santiago e a música para o seu culto no vicerreinado do Perú barroco]

Picone P. · Ad Limina (2026) · DOI: 10.61890/adlimina/17.1.2026/04

Resumen

This article provides an introduction to the study of music dedicated to the cult of St James the Apostle in Baroque Peru. It examines the saint’s presence from the early days of Spanish colonisation, his imprint on the collective imagination of the Andean peoples, the ensuing phenomenon of religious syncretism, and the precise ways in which his worship was expressed musically. Drawing on the analysis of primary sources, archival records, and chronicles of the Conquest, the findings presented herein offer a musicological synthesis from both a synchronic and a diachronic perspective. Furthermore, they provide a set of practical tools designed to aid the research of musicologists and specialists in Andean colonial history.