Victor Jara

Today I will talk about Victor Jara. I not really sure that Victor Jara was the most important Chilean of all time, but certainly his legacy is very relevant for the history of our country.

Victor was a Chilean teacher, theater director, poet, singer-songwriter, and political activist. He was recognized in the field of music and played a central role among neo-folkloric musicians who formed the “Nueva Canción Chilena” movement under the Salvador Allende administration. After the Chilean coup of 11 September 1973, he was detained, tortured and finally shot to death by machine gun fire. The contrast between the themes of his melodies, on love, peace and social justice and the cruel way in which he was killed transformed Victor into a symbol of fight for human rights and justice across Latin America and the whole world      

Victor Jara was an active part of the Nueva Canción movement, performing songs that talk fervently about controversial topics of the day such as imperialism, poverty and human rights. Jara published his first recordings in 1966. His songs was a combination of traditional folk music along with left political activism. From this period, some of his most renowned songs are “Plegaria A Un Labrador” and “Te Recuerdo Amanda”. Unlike the music that had dominated previously, Jara’s music, along with other musicians and bands of the movement, was deeply rooted in the indigenous cultures of Chile and this spirit, the sounds of the lower-classes.