Victor Jara and the Nueva Canción Movement
Chilean Nueva Canción, or “new song,” was a musical and political movement that brought folkloric culture back to life alongside anti-cultural imperialism and totalitarianism views (Titon). This genre arose in the wake of political violence in 1960s Latin America. Countries such as Chile and Argentina in particular faced totalitarian regimes, assassinations, and political revolutions, which led to calls for social change. Nueva Canción artists often used metaphoric lyrics to convey political messages, carrying on the “Latin American tradition of praising in song individuals…whom some might consider to be outlaws by others to be heroes” (Titon).
Victor Jara was one of the most notable figures of the Chilean Nueva Canción movement. Artists like Jara and Violeta Parra “rallied against functionaries, bureaucrats, and politicians” through their music (Titon).
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Jara’s 1969 song, “Plegaria a un labrador” or “Public prayer to a Worker,” advocates for workers’ rights. The song includes lyrics such as, “Deliver us from the master who keeps us in misery,” and “Give us the strength and the courage to struggle,” which evoke feelings of unity against oppression (Titon).
Distinguishing features of Nueva Canción include the utilization of moth minor and major scales, cueca, and “sesquialtera metrical rhythm,” which juxtaposes 2/4 and 6/8 meter with each other (Titon).
Jara’s song “El Aparecido” or “The apparition,” uses “cueca,” also known as traditional Chilean rhythm (Titon). The song mythologizes the story of Argentinian revolutionary Che Guevara. The instrumental is intense and the tension of the song builds as it progresses. Lyrics such as “Look at how he has been crucified by the spite of the mighty” and “Son of resistance, he is followed by twenty plus twenty” show the political message of the song.
Many Nueva Canción artists expressed their support of Salvador Allende, the democratically-elected Marxist president of Chile, in their music (Gasparotto). However, after the overthrow of Allende, Nueva Canción music was banned. The ensemble Inti-Illimani were exiled for years before eventually being allowed to return to their homeland. Even charango, a folk instrument common in the genre, was prohibited (Titon).
In the aftermath of the 1973 coup, Victor Jara was tragically assassinated by the military for his outspoken leftist views. After his murder, Jara became a symbol of the totalitarian regime’s repression (Wright). With this coup, the Nueva Canción movement ended, as surviving musicians of the movement were forced to distance themselves from leftist politics (Gasparotto).
References:
Gasparotto, M. (2011). Curating la Nueva Canción: Capturing the evolution of a genre and movement. Rutgers University Libraries. https://scholar.archive.org/work/ousyuennirgxvntkyzz5ltc6dy
“El Aparecido.” YouTube, 5 July 2009, https://youtu.be/ILOGjVUEhP8?si=jXvPgMnyGB3XuZzr. Accessed 15 Dec. 2023.
“Plegaria a Un Labrador.” YouTube, 20 Dec. 2014, https://youtu.be/jmUnNbAKPNE?si=fujBJKHfU71N1aTd. Accessed 15 Dec. 2023.
Titon, Jeff Todd. “Chapter 9: South America/Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru.” Worlds of Music: An Introduction to the Music of the World’s Peoples, Cengage Learning, Boston, MA, 2018.
Wright, Carolyne. “Review of ‘An Unfinished Song: The Life of Victor Jara’ by Carolyne Wright.” The Iowa Review, vol. 17, no. 1, 1987, pp. 180–186, https://doi.org/10.17077/0021-065x.3486.
“Victor Jara – El Aparecido Lyrics + English Translation.” Victor Jara – El Aparecido Lyrics + English Translation, lyricstranslate.com/en/el-aparecido-appeared-one.html. Accessed 15 Dec. 2023.
“Víctor Jara.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 12 Nov. 2023, www.britannica.com/biography/Victor-Jara.