Nayo Ulloa

Nayo Ulloa was born in Trujillo, Peru, and raised in Lima. Nayo grew up in Comas, an economically depressed but vital area of Lima. Comas is located about 10 miles north of Lima, and it is populated primarily by immigrants coming from all over Peru looking for a better life in the capital city.

Nayo Ulloa attended primary and secondary school in Comas. Later as a young man, he attended the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, majoring in Language and Literature.

In 1981, Nayo immigrated to the United States when he was invited to perform and teach Peruvian music. He taught music at the Community Music Center in San Francisco as well as other private music schools.

Nayo's interest in music started at a young age. As a child, he stared singing and participating in school performances. At age 10, his father, Jorge Ulloa, bought him his first guitar and at age 13, and Nayo started playing the kena (Peruvian flute).

Ulloa did not receive formal musical training, but he was fortunate to meet several accomplished Peruvian musicians that took him as a pupil. He studied the kena with Freddy Flores and Alejandro Vivanco and studied music theory and harmony with Jaime Diaz Orihuela.

During his residence in the United State, Nayo took additional music lesson in harmony with Professor Albo Damante and voice lesson with bass-baritone David Tigner. From 1988 to 1992 Nayo trained and studied opera, performing several roles with San Francisco regional opera companies as well as vocal recitals.

David Tigner, well known for his specialty in sacred music, called Nayo "a true tenor in possession of a full operatic vocal range."

— Courtesy Calabash Music