The group was formed by students at Universidad Técnica del Estado at Santiago, Chile in 1967. In 1973 as they were on tour abroad, General Augusto Pinochet launched a coup d'etat and took power. Having heard of the numerous extra-judicial killings of many fellow artists by Chile's army, they took up residence in Italy, resulting in "the longest tour in history" for Inti-Illimani as they lived in de facto exile. They continued their efforts supporting Chilean democracy internationally; magnitizdat copies of their work continued to be widely distributed in Chile. In September 1988, days after they were no longer banned from Chile, they began touring Chile again. They helped organize the voting down of the referendum that would have re-elected Pinochet. Recently, they were actually supported by Chile as representatives of Chilean culture.
In the past the group was musically led by Horacio Salinas and politically led by Jorge Coulon. However, in 2001 there was a controversial split of the group, which started when three key members left the group (José Seves, Horacio Durán and Horacio Salinas). They were replaced by Manuel Meriño (from Entrama), Cristián González and Juan Flores. Due to the importance of departed members, many called into question the ability of the remainder to carry on the Inti-Illimani name. Meanwhile, the three departed members started their own group they call Inti-Histórico. From 2005 there are two groups:
Inti-Illimani New (Coulon brothers)
Inti-Illimani Histórico (José Seves, Horacio Durán and Horacio Salinas)
Membership
In August 1967 Inti-Illimani's earliest membership consisted of:
Horacio Durán
Max Berrú
Jorge Coulon
Luis Espinoza
Oscar Guzmán
Ciro Retamal
Pedro Yáñez
In 1968 Inti-Illimani's membership consisted of:
Horacio Salinas (Musical director and main composer)
Horacio Durán
Max Berrú
Jorge Coulon
Ernesto Perez de Arce
Current line-up of the "Inti-Illimani Nuevo":
Jorge Coulon
Christian González
Daniel Cantillana
Juan Flores
Efren Viera
Marcelo Coulon
Manuel Meriño
César Jara
Current line-up of the "Inti-Histórico":
Horacio Salinas
Horacio Durán
José Seves
Jorge Ball
Fernando Julio
Camilo Salinas
Danilo Donoso
Other members in the history of the group:
Ernesto Pérez de Arce
Homero Altamirano
José Miguel Camus
Renato Freyggang
Pedro Villagra
El surco
Inti-Illimani Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Un lucero de infinita soledad
Y con una canasta le vi regar
Con agua de un arroyo de oscuridad
Ah, malhaya, la siembra se echó a perder
Y el agua del arroyo se echó a correr
Al lucero le gusta la libertad
Y al agua del arroyo la claridad
Y el agua del arroyo te fue a cuidar
En una hora triste quise cantar
Y dentro de mi canto quise gritar
Y dentro de mi grito quise llorar
Pero tan sólo canto para callar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a cantar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a gritar
Si gritando se llora para callar
Y mi vaso sediento no llega al mar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a cantar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a gritar
Y así se fue el lucero a su libertad
Y así se fue el arroyo a su claridad
No me llegó la hora de clarinar.
The song "El surco" by Inti-Illimani is a beautiful piece of music that tells a story of a failed attempt to plant a seed, and the subsequent feeling of hopelessness and despair that comes with it. The opening lines of the song describe the singer observing a lone star growing within an open furrow, and watering it with water from a dark creek. However, despite this care and attention, the seed fails to grow, and the water runs dry. The star prefers freedom, while the water prefers clarity, and neither can help the other.
The next verse moves on to describe the feelings of the singer, who tries to sing to express his emotions, but finds himself only able to produce a sense of quiet desperation instead. He longs for the ability to make himself heard, but cannot overcome the barriers that keep him from achieving his goal. Despite this setback, the singer continues to hold on to the hope that someday he will be able to reach his potential, and that his voice will be heard.
Overall, "El surco" is a poignant and deeply emotional song that speaks to the human experience of hopelessness and the desire to speak out against it. It is a powerful reminder that no matter how bleak things may seem, there is always the possibility of renewal and growth.
Line by Line Meaning
Dentro de un surco abierto vi germinar
I saw a star of infinite loneliness sprout within an open furrow
Y con una canasta le vi regar
I saw it being watered by a basket filled with water from a dark stream
Con agua de un arroyo de oscuridad
With water from a dark stream
Ah, malhaya, la siembra se echó a perder
Oh, curse, the crop was ruined
Y el agua del arroyo se echó a correr
And the water from the stream began to run
Al lucero le gusta la libertad
The star loves freedom
Y al agua del arroyo la claridad
And the water from the stream loves clarity
No dio fruto el lucero, se fue a alumbrar
The star didn't bear fruit and left to shine elsewhere
Y el agua del arroyo te fue a cuidar
And the water from the stream went to take care of you
En una hora triste quise cantar
In a sad hour, I wanted to sing
Y dentro de mi canto quise gritar
And within my song, I wanted to scream
Y dentro de mi grito quise llorar
And within my scream, I wanted to cry
Pero tan sólo canto para callar
But I only sing to silence myself
Si gritando se llora para callar
If we cry while screaming to silence ourselves
Y mi vaso sediento no llega al mar
And my thirsty glass doesn't make it to the sea
Y así se fue el lucero a su libertad
And so the star went to its freedom
Y así se fue el arroyo a su claridad
And so the stream went to its clarity
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a cantar
Oh, curse the hour when I started to sing
No me llegó la hora de clarinar.
I wasn't meant to sing out loud
Contributed by Levi O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Conztanza Quiroz
Letra:menú
El Surco
Inti-Illimani

Dentro de un surco abierto vi germinar
Un lucero de infinita soledad
Y con una canasta le vi regar
Con agua de un arroyo de oscuridad
Ah, malhaya, la siembra se echó a perder
Y el agua del arroyo se echó a correr
Al lucero le gusta la libertad
Y al agua del arroyo la claridad
No dio fruto el lucero, se fue a alumbrar
Y el agua del arroyo te fue a cuidar
En una hora triste quise cantar
Y dentro de mi canto quise gritar
Y dentro de mi grito quise llorar
Pero tan sólo canto para callar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a cantar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a gritar
Si gritando se llora para callar
Y mi vaso sediento no llega al mar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a cantar
Ah, malhaya la hora en que fui a gritar
Y así se fue el lucero a su libertad
Y así se fue el arroyo a su claridad
No me llegó la hora de clarinar.
Wilian
Gracias papa por siempre inculcarme a la buena música, grande intillimani!!! Te amo papa donde quieras que estes ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Lorenzo GL
Que versión más hermosa de El Surco de Chabuca Granda, la mejor que he escuchado. Gracias Inti, gracias Chabuca.
gored od
Lorenzo GL que poco has oído entonces...
Manu DLS
De lejos la mejor versión de la canción de Chabuca, y la guitarra ni que decir, Manuel es crack. Genial!
Liss juguetes, cocina algo más
es una de las versiones mas hermosas gracias inti la neta e crecido escuchando todas estas obras tan magnificas
Ricardo Mart.
Mi Momento en la vida se explican tan bien con esta canción.
Celeste Kenny Pancorbo Guillen
Ricardo Martinez ¿?
Daniela Angulo
La guitarra de Manuel y Daniel cantando. Combinación perfecta! Gracias!!!
Alejandro María Cardoso
Es tan hermosa y profunda esta canción, y tan enorme la interpretación de Inti-Illimani, que me regocijo con tan lindos comentarios abajo. Gracias!
Morgana Drakaina
Es tan bonito, merecen mucho amor <3