Yupanqui was born Héctor Roberto Chavero Haram in Pergamino (Buenos Aires Province), in the Argentine pampas, about 200 kilometers away from Buenos Aires. His family moved to Tucumán when he was ten. In a bow to two legendary Incan kings, he adopted the stage name Atahualpa Yupanqui, which became famous the world over.
In his early years, Yupanqui travelled extensively through the northwest of Argentina and the Altiplano studying the indigenous culture. He also became radicalized and joined the Communist Party of Argentina. In 1931, he took part in the failed uprising of the Kennedy brothers and was forced to seek refuge in Uruguay. He returned to Argentina in 1934.
In 1935, Yupanqui paid his first visit to Buenos Aires; his compositions were growing in popularity, and he was invited to perform on the radio. Shortly thereafter, he made the acquaintance of pianist Antonieta Paula Pepin Fitzpatrick, nicknamed "Nenette", who became his lifelong companion and musical collaborator under the pseudonym "Pablo Del Cerro".
Because of his Communist Party affiliation (which lasted until 1952), his work suffered from censorship during Juan Perón's presidency; he was detained and incarcerated several times. He left for Europe in 1949. Édith Piaf invited him to perform in Paris in June of that year. He subsequently toured extensively throughout Europe.
In 1952, Yupanqui returned to Buenos Aires. He broke with the Communist Party, which made it easier for him to book radio performances.
Recognition of Yupanqui's ethnographic work became widespread during the 1960s, and nueva canción artists such as Mercedes Sosa recorded his compositions and made him popular among the younger musicians, who referred to him as Don Ata.
Yupanqui alternated between houses in Buenos Aires and Cerro Colorado, Córdoba province. During 1963-1964, he toured Colombia, Japan, Morocco, Egypt, Israel, and Italy. In 1967, he toured Spain, and settled in Paris. He returned regularly to Argentina, but these visits became less frequent when the military dictatorship of Jorge Videla came to power in 1976.
Yupanqui died in Nimes, France in 1992 at the age of 84; he was buried in the Cerro Colorado Cementery.
Zambita de los Pobres
Atahualpa Yupanqui Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hasta la villa bajando voy
Y se queda mi rancho,
Como diciendo "qué sólo estoy".
Bajo de un algarrobo
Esta zambita siento cantar
Y el rasguido parece
Zambita de los pobres,
Flor de los valles, luz de amistad,
Alajito es tu canto,
En los domingos del tucumán.
Cariñito del cerro,
Mi criolla buena, ¿dónde andará?
Hoy te canto la zamba
De tus domingos, palomitay.
Empochada de niebla,
Fuiste camino de la ciudad.
Mi zambita te espera,
Criollita linda, "vení, bailá".
The lyrics of Atahualpa Yupanqui's song Zambita De Los Pobres speak of the singer's feelings about Sundays and visiting the village. The persona in the song feels isolated in his run-down cabin while the village is buzzing with activity during the weekend. He listens to a zambita being played under an algarrobo tree and the sound and rhythm of the song invite him to come and dance. The zambita is portrayed as the music of the poor, the light of friendship, and the flower of the valleys. The persona is nostalgic for a love interest, Cariñito del Cerro, who he imagines used to go out dancing to zamba music in Tucuman but has since left the hills, leaving the roads misty and feeling lonely. However, the zambita remains and awaits the return of the criollita, and this song is a tribute to the music that brings people together, brings joy, and gives a voice to the poor.
Line by Line Meaning
Cuando llega el domingo,
When Sunday comes around,
Hasta la villa bajando voy
I go down to the shantytown,
Y se queda mi rancho,
And my humble abode remains behind,
Como diciendo "qué sólo estoy".
As if saying "how alone I am".
Bajo de un algarrobo
Beneath an alder tree,
Esta zambita siento cantar
I hear this zambita being sung,
Y el rasguido parece
And the strumming seems to say
Que me dijera "vení, bailá".
"Come, dance with me".
Zambita de los pobres,
Zambita of the poor,
Flor de los valles, luz de amistad,
Flower of the valleys, light of friendship,
Alajito es tu canto,
Your song is beautiful,
En los domingos del tucumán.
On the Sundays of Tucumán.
Cariñito del cerro,
Sweetheart of the hills,
Mi criolla buena, ¿dónde andará?
My lovely girl, where are you now?
Hoy te canto la zamba
Today I sing this zamba for you,
De tus domingos, palomitay.
Of your Sundays, my dove.
Empochada de niebla,
Shrouded in fog,
Fuiste camino de la ciudad.
You were the way to the city.
Mi zambita te espera,
My zambita awaits you,
Criollita linda, "vení, bailá".
Lovely country girl, "come, dance with me".
Writer(s): A. Yupanqui
Contributed by Lillian I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
silvia maceira
Gracias por difundirlo. En ese sonido de guitarra y en ese fraseo se adivina nuestra identidad y el mundo que amamos, latinoamérica iberoamérica, américa del sur.