Chilean poet and folk singer
Born: 23rd September 1932 Lonquén, Chile
He was murdered shortly after Pinochet’s coup on September 11th 1973. His wife
Joan Jara campaigned for justice for her husband and others murdered by the Pinochet regime and established the Victor Jara Foundation to perpetuate his music and values.
Considered one of the most influential Latin American artists of the 20th century. After singing in a University Chorus, his musical career started in 1957 when he met
Violeta Parra who encouraged him to write his own songs. He joined
Conjunto Cuncumen, a folk band that published an album that year of the same name where Victor sang Se me ha escapado un suspiro. On their second album Villancicos Chilenos (1958) he sang Doña María te ruego and Décimas por el nacimiento. At this time he also started working as a theatre director. On their third album, Una Geografía Musical de Chile (1962) he wrote/sang Paloma quiero contarte/Canción del minero. In 1965, he started his solo career with a single: Paloma quiero contarte/La beata. From 1966 to 1969 he was also musical director of
Quilapayún.
Original discography:
* Victor Jara [AKA Canto a lo Humano] (1967, Demon)
* Víctor Jara [AKA Desde Lonquén hasta siempre] (1967, Odeon)
* Canciones folklóricas de América (with Quilapayún) (1968, Odeon)
* Pongo en tus manos abiertas [AKA Te recuerdo Amanda] (1969, DICAP)
* Canto Libre (1970, Odeon)
* El derecho de vivir en paz (1971, DICAP)
* La población (1972, DICAP)
* Canto por travesura (1973, DICAP)
Some songs were released as singles in 1972/73 and other unreleased songs were later issued with different names as Manifiesto, Víctor Jara: Presente and Canciones Póstumas.