María Isabel Granda Larco (Cotabamba, Apurímac, Perú, 3 September 1920 – Mi… Read Full Bio ↴María Isabel Granda Larco (Cotabamba, Apurímac, Perú, 3 September 1920 – Miami, USA, 1983), better known as Chabuca Granda, was a beloved Peruvian singer and composer. She created and interpreted a vast number of Criollo waltzes with Afro-Peruvian rhythms. Her best known song is "La flor de la canela" (The Best of the Bunch" or "Cinnamon Flower)".

Biography

María Isabel Granda Larco was born on 3 September 1920, in a copper mining area in the region of Apurímac. She began singing at 12 years old, in the school choir at the exclusive girl's school Colegio Sophianum, in San Isidro. At this age she sang as a soprano (an operation later gave her the deep voice for which she is remembered). However, she wasn't well known until after her divorce, a scandal in contemporary Lima's conservative Catholic society.

Early in her career her work was expressive and picturesque – evoking the romantic and beautiful neighborhood of Barranco in Lima, with its grand French houses with impressive entrances and winter gardens. Some of her most famous songs from this period are "Lima de Veras", "La flor de la Canela", "Fina Estampa", "Gracia", "José Antonio", and "Zeñó Manué", to name a few. She broke the conventional rhythmic structure of the waltz, later broke convention with her poetic cadences as well. Later in her career she wrote songs dedicated to the Chilean Violeta Parra and to Javier Heraud, a Peruvian poet who died in 1968.

Towards the end of her career, Chabuca Granda incorporated Afro-Peruvian rhythms into her work. Afro-Peruvian music, while popular, was not considered "high art" due to the prevalent racism and devaluation of Afro-Peruvian culture. She masterfully blended the suggestive and colorful rhythms into her work, enriching Peruvian popular music.

She died of heart problems in a clinic in Miami, in the United States, in 1983. Her voice and compositions are known far from the borders of her country, and her popularity has introduced the world to the fine and sensitive character of Peruvian music.

Chabuca Granda continued to make her presence felt a decade after her death, when Caetano Veloso used her song, "Fina Estampa", as the title track of an album released in 1994, while her song, "Maria Lando", written with Cesar Calvo, provided the North American breakthrough for Peruvian vocalist Susana Baca the following year.

Granda's song "La Flor De La Canela" has become an anthem for the city of Lima. Granda worked with a lengthy list of influential guitarists including Oscar Aviles, Martin Torres, Lucho Gonzalez, Alvaro Lagos, and Felix Casaverde.

Coplas a Fray Martin
Chabuca Granda Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Ahí va Martín y su mula,
ahí va Martín y su mula,
allí se van calle arriba
los dos, Martín y la mula.

Llevan prendidos los ojos,
llevan prendidos los ojos
de herida y hambre de pobres

los dos, Martín y la mula.

Y te vas para volver, Martín,
con la siembra de tus sueños
sombreando el atardecer.

Y se la pasa viviendo,
y se la pasa viviendo
con una mano sembrando
y con la otra barriendo.

Y es la esperanza del pobre
y es el consuelo del rico,
un hombre de tez morena
y el alma como paloma.

Y el alma como paloma,
un hombre de tez morena
entre aceituna y canela
y el alma como palo...

un hombre de tez morena
y el alma como... paloma.

Overall Meaning

The song "Coplas a Fray Martin" by Chabuca Granda tells the story of a man named Martin and his mule who are walking up the street together. Martin and the mule both have a look of injury and hunger in their eyes, symbolizing the struggles that they have faced as impoverished individuals. However, despite this hardship, Martin is going on his way to sow the seeds of his dreams, which will be shaded by the sunset. Throughout the song, Martin is depicted as a man who works hard, with one hand planting and the other sweeping. He is both the hope of the poor and the consolation of the rich, a man with a dark complexion and a soul as gentle as a dove.

The song's powerful use of imagery and metaphor serves to convey the message that even in the face of great difficulty and challenge, one can still hold onto hope and the possibility of a better future. Martin's struggles and perseverance are meant to inspire listeners to keep working towards their dreams, no matter how hard the journey may be.

Line by Line Meaning

Ahí va Martín y su mula,
There goes Martin and his mule,

ahí va Martín y su mula,
there goes Martin and his mule,

allí se van calle arriba
going up the street

los dos, Martín y la mula.
both Martin and the mule.

Llevan prendidos los ojos,
Their eyes are filled with

llevan prendidos los ojos
the hurt and hunger of the poor

de herida y hambre de pobres

los dos, Martín y la mula.
both Martin and the mule.

Y te vas para volver, Martín,
And you leave to come back, Martin,

con la siembra de tus sueños
bringing the seeds of your dreams

sombreando el atardecer.
casting a shadow on the sunset