Disc 3 Side A (13 tracks, 29’50”)
Rezos. Fernando Hernández15, Inés Sotomayor, and Domingo Hernández.
Moyuba Orisha. Moyuba Ogún. Rezos. Inés Sotomayor prays in Lucumí to her orishas, and to her muertos (ancestors), natural parents, godfather, and godmother, whose names should be mentioned in every ceremony, and from whom one inevitably requests permission to perform any ritual.
Moyuba Olodumare. Domingo Hernández “salutes” Olodumare (the heavens, God), his muertos, and his orishas.[1]
Songs for Osáin. He also intones two songs for the god Osáin. Domingo Hernández is a notable “olósain” in the town of Jovellanos, an expert in the medicinal and magical virtues of plants, and he is responsible for harvesting them in el monte — a delicate operation which should not be executed by anyone unaware of the secrets contained within it — when an Asiento (initiation) or other important ceremony is celebrated.
DF-N: Despite the suggestion in Cabrera’s liner notes that Domingo Hernández performs the extraordinary spoken “salute” (moyuba) alone, the recording clearly documents two recitations by two different voices. In fact, the first recitation is performed by Fernando Hernández, who is then followed by Domingo Hernández. Both individuals are featured prominently in other sections of the collection: Fernando Hernández, the first voice, is clearly recognizable as the lead singer on Discs 9A, 9B, 11B, 12A, and 12B; meanwhile, Domingo Hernández is clearly recognizable as the second voice in the spoken recitation and the lead singer in the following track (“Songs for Osain”). On Disc 9A, Petronila Hernández performs a longer, more elaborate moyuba recitation. See Font-Navarrete [forthcoming]. ↑