Violeta Parra facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Violeta Parra
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Violeta del Carmen Parra Sandoval |
| Born | 4 October 1917 San Fabián de Alico or San Carlos, Chile |
| Died | 5 February 1967 (aged 49) Santiago, Chile |
| Genres | Folk, experimental, nueva canción, cueca |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, Visual arts |
| Instruments | Vocals, Guitar, Charango, Cuatro, Percussion, Harp |
| Years active | 1939–1967 |
| Labels | EMI-Odeon Alerce Warner Music Group (all posthumous) |
| Associated acts | Víctor Jara, Quilapayún, Inti-Illimani, Patricio Manns, Illapu, Ángel Parra, Isabel Parra, Roberto Parra, Sergio Ortega, Margot Loyola, Pablo Neruda, Nicanor Parra, Soledad Bravo, Daniel Viglietti, Mercedes Sosa, Joan Baez, Holly Near, Elis Regina, Dean Reed, Silvio Rodríguez |
Violeta del Carmen Parra Sandoval (Spanish pronunciation: [bjoˈleta ˈpara]) was a famous Chilean artist. She was born on October 4, 1917, and passed away on February 5, 1967. Violeta was a talented singer, songwriter, and visual artist. She also studied and collected traditional folk music.
Violeta Parra was a pioneer of the Nueva Canción Chilena. This was a new style of Chilean folk music that became popular far beyond Chile. Because of her importance, her birthday (October 4) is now "Chilean Musicians' Day." In 2011, a movie about her life, called Violeta Went to Heaven, was released.
Violeta Parra's Life
Early Years and Family
Violeta Parra was born on October 4, 1917. There is some debate about her exact birthplace. Her birth certificate says she was born in San Carlos, a small town in southern Chile. However, the Violeta Parra Foundation and Museum say she was born in San Fabián de Alico.
She grew up in a large, artistic family, but they were poor. Her father, Nicanor Parra Alarcón, was a music teacher. Her mother, Clarisa Sandoval Navarrete, was a seamstress who sang and played guitar. She taught Violeta and her siblings many traditional folk songs.
Violeta had famous brothers, including the poet Nicanor Parra and folklorist Roberto Parra Sandoval. Her children, Ángel Parra and Isabel Parra, also became important musicians. They helped develop the Nueva Canción Chilena style. Many of their children have also continued the family's artistic traditions.
Violeta's family moved often during her childhood to find work. They lived in Santiago, Lautaro, and Chillán. In Chillán, Violeta started singing and playing guitar with her siblings. She also began writing her own traditional Chilean music. After her father died in 1929, Violeta and her siblings had to work to support their family. In 1932, she moved to Santiago to study.
Starting Her Music Career
Violeta and her family members performed in nightclubs. They sang popular songs like boleros and rancheras. In 1934, she met Luis Cereceda, a train driver. They married four years later and had two children, Isabel and Ángel.
Her husband was involved in a progressive movement. Violeta also joined this movement and took part in political campaigns. She began singing Spanish songs and performed in restaurants and theaters. She even performed with her children, Isabel and Angel.
In 1948, Violeta and Luis Cereceda separated. Violeta and her sister Hilda started singing together as "The Parra Sisters." They recorded some of their music. In 1949, Violeta married Luis Arce and had another daughter, Carmen Luisa. She continued performing in circuses and toured Argentina.
Becoming a Folklorist
In 1952, Violeta's brother Nicanor encouraged her to collect Chilean folk music. She traveled all over the country to find and record traditional songs. She stopped singing old songs and started writing her own music based on these folk traditions.
Violeta gave concerts at universities and taught folklore courses. Her songs "Que Pena Siente el Alma" and "Casamiento de Negros" became very popular. A farmer named Don Isaiah Angulo taught her to play the guitarrón chileno, a special Chilean guitar with 25 strings.
She also met the famous poet Pablo Neruda, who later dedicated a poem to her. From 1954, Violeta hosted a very popular radio show called Sing Violeta Parra. She recorded the show in places where folk music was performed.
First Trip to Europe
In 1955, Violeta was invited to a festival in Warsaw, Poland. After that, she moved to Paris, France, and performed in nightclubs. She met many European artists and thinkers. She recorded her collection of Chilean folklore at a museum in Paris. She also traveled to London to record music for EMI-Odeon and the BBC radio. In 1956, she recorded 16 songs for a French music label.
In 1957, Violeta returned to Chile. She recorded her first album, Violeta Parra and her Guitar. It included three of her own songs. She released more albums in the following years. In 1960, she started the National Museum of Folkloric Art in Concepción. During this time, she also wrote many décimas, which are a type of Latin American poetry.
Violeta continued to give concerts and travel around Chile. She researched and recorded traditional festivals. She also wrote a book called Cantos Folklóricos Chilenos about her research. She wrote her autobiography in verse, called Décimas autobiográficas.
Violeta also became very interested in art. She started creating ceramics, paintings, and arpillera embroidery. In 1959, she showed her oil paintings and arpilleras in art exhibitions in Santiago.
On her birthday in 1960, she met Gilbert Favre, a Swiss musician. They became a couple. In 1961, she traveled to Argentina, where she showed her paintings, appeared on TV, and gave concerts.
Second Trip to Europe
In 1962, Violeta returned to Santiago. She traveled to Finland with her children, Isabel and Angel, for another festival. After visiting the Soviet Union, Germany, and Italy, Violeta moved back to Paris. She performed with her children in clubs, theaters, and on radio and TV.
She lived with Gilbert Favre in Geneva, Switzerland. She gave concerts and showed her art there too. In 1963, she recorded revolutionary songs in Paris. She also wrote a book called Popular Poetry of the Andes. She started playing new instruments like the Venezuelan cuatro and the Bolivian charango.
In 1964, Violeta had a special art exhibition at the Museum of Decorative Arts of the Louvre in Paris. She was the first Latin American artist to have a solo show there. In 1965, a book of her poetry was published in Paris. Swiss television also made a documentary about her art.
Returning to South America
In 1965, Violeta and Gilbert Favre returned to South America. Violeta recorded new music that included the Venezuelan cuatro and Bolivian charango. She released an album called Remembering Chile (a Chilean in Paris). Soon after, Violeta and Gilbert broke up because he wanted to live in Bolivia.
Violeta then focused on creating a cultural center called "La Peña de Los Parra." It was a large tent where she and her children performed music. They also lived on the same land. This center became a place for art and community. She also performed on national television and radio.
In 1966, she released the album La Carpa de La Reina. She traveled to Bolivia to visit Gilbert Favre and performed there. She brought groups from the Altiplano region back to Chile to perform in her tent and on TV. She also gave concerts in southern Chile. With her children, she recorded her last album, The Last Compositions of Violeta Parra.
"Gracias a la Vida"
Violeta Parra wrote her famous song "Gracias a la Vida" ("Thanks to Life") in 1966. This song became very popular throughout Latin America. Famous singers like Mercedes Sosa and Joan Baez helped make it known worldwide. It is one of the most covered Latin American songs ever.
The song was released on her last album, Las Últimas Composiciones, in 1966. It talks about appreciating all the things life gives us.
- Gracias a la vida que me ha dado tanto
- Me dio dos luceros que cuando los abro
- Perfecto distingo lo negro del blanco
- Y en el alto cielo su fondo estrellado
- Y en las multitudes el hombre que yo amo
Translated into English:
- Thanks to life, which has given me so much
- It gave me two bright stars that when I open them,
- I perfectly distinguish the black from white
- And in the sky above, her starry backdrop
- And within the multitudes the man I love
"Volver a los Diecisiete"
Another highly regarded song by Violeta Parra is "Volver a los Diecisiete" ("Being Seventeen Again"). This song celebrates youth and life. It has a thoughtful and sometimes sad mood, which makes it unique. Like much of the Nueva Canción style, Violeta's music was deeply connected to traditional folk songs.
Legacy
Violeta Parra passed away in 1967. Many memorials were held for her in Chile and other countries. She inspired many Latin American artists, like Victor Jara. She also sparked new interest in Chilean folklore through the "Nueva Cancion Chilena" movement.
In 1992, the Violeta Parra Foundation was created by her children. Its goal is to collect and share her unpublished works. In 1997, her visual art was shown at the Museum of Decorative Arts of the Louvre Museum in Paris.
In 2007, her 90th birthday was celebrated with an exhibition of her art. On October 4, 2015, the Violeta Parra Museum opened in Santiago, Chile. On October 4, 2017, Google honored her 100th birthday with a special Google Doodle.
Film About Violeta Parra
Violeta Went to Heaven (Spanish: Violeta se fue a los cielos) is a Chilean movie from 2011. It tells the story of Violeta Parra's life. Andrés Wood directed the film, which is based on a book written by her son, Ángel Parra. The movie won an award at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.
Discography
Studio Albums
- Chants et danses du chili Vol. 1 (1956)
- Chants et danses du chili. Vol. 2 (1956)
- Violeta Parra, Canto y guitarra. El Folklore de Chile, Vol. I (1956)
- Violeta Parra, acompañada de guitarra. El Folklore de Chile, Vol. II (1958)
- La cueca presentada por Violeta Parra: El Folklore de Chile, Vol. III. (1958)
- La tonada presentada por Violeta Parra: El Folklore de Chile, Vol. IV. (1958)
- Toda Violeta Parra: El Folklore de Chile, Vol. VIII (1960)
- Violeta Parra, guitare et chant: Chants et danses du Chili. (1963)
- Recordandeo a Chile (Una Chilena en París). (1965)
- Carpa de la Reina (1966)
- Las últimas composiciones de Violeta Parra (1967)
Albums Released After Her Death
- Violeta Parra y sus canciones reencontradas en París (1971)
- Canciones de Violeta Parra (1971)
- Le Chili de Violeta Parra (1974)
- Un río de sangre (1975)
- Presente / Ausente (1975)
- Décimas (1976)
- Chants & rythmes du Chili (1991)
- El hombre con su razón (1992)
- Décimas y Centésimas (1993)
- El folklore y la pasión (1994)
- Haciendo Historia: La jardinera y su canto (1997)
- Violeta Parra: Antología (1998)
- Canciones reencontradas en París (1999)
- Composiciones para guitarra (1999)
- Violeta Parra – En Ginebra, En Vivo, 1965 (1999)
- Violeta Parra: Cantos Campesinos (1999)
Images for kids
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Violeta Parra in the 1960s
See also
In Spanish: Violeta Parra para niños
