Latin American History Commons^™

Music Is Power: Nueva Cancion’S Push For An Indigenous Identity, Jason Garcia

History in the Making

The emergence of Nueva Cancion musicians during 1960’s Chile, such as Victor Jara and Inti-Illimani, played an important role in propelling the left wing revolutionary movements that supported Salvador Allende’s presidential victory in 1970, making him the first democratically elected Socialist in the Western Hemisphere. Although there is much scholarly literature that deals with the social and political aspects of Nueva Cancion, historians have failed to recognize how indigeneity played a crucial role in the shaping the identity that Nueva Cancion musicians embodied through their music. With the power of music, Nueva Cancion became a militant song movement that represented …