You may not know his name, but you have probably heard his music. Since the 1960s, percussionist Alex Acuña has performed and recorded with Paul McCartney, U2, Whitney Houston, Ella Fitzgerald

Artist Aymar Ccopacatty knits, weaves, braids, and collages with recycled plastic bags that he collects mostly from his homeland of Peru.

The 2015 Folklife Festival concluded on Sunday with the completion of the Q’eswachaka Bridge, a second Festival Community Day celebration of Peruvian culture in the United States, and a late-night dance party for all the participants back at the hotel!

Heavy rain shortened our Independence Day programming at the Folklife Festival, but visitors who braved the weather were able to see music, dance, and crafts traditions from across Peru.

The Ballumbrosio family and other members of the Afro-Peruvian group Tutuma invite visitors to join in this celebration as they provide the soundtrack: guitars, various percussion, a rattling quijada donkey jawbone, and infectious group vocals.

The Folklife Festival grounds filled to the brim on this federal holiday, as thousands of tourists and D.C. residents got an intimate view of some of Peru’s cultural heritage and continued a nonstop schedule of artisan workshops and lively performances.

Of the many animals significant to Peruvian traditional culture, one is especially celebrated in the Andes: the alpaca. Smaller than their llama cousins, alpacas are too small to use as pack animals

Here is a short guide to a few of the activities and performances that have been especially popular with kids in the Perú: Pachamama program

With their glittering multicolored costumes, ear-splitting whip cracks, expressive masks, and a marching song you’re sure to get stuck in your head, the Fiesta de la Virgen del Carmen procession has been a crowd favorite at the Folklife Festival.

The first week of the Festival closed with our first of two Community Days, as we welcomed Peruvians living in the United States to share their adaptations of cultural traditions.