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
Lamento del Indio
Inti-Illimani Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
las cosechas y su amor,
dan al indio en este mundo
alegría en su dolor.
Por donde quiera que vaya
toca triste el rondador
porque en su alma hay sólo pena,
In the song Lamento del Indio by Inti-Illimani, the lyrics speak of the joy and pain that the indigenous people of South America (also known as Indians or Indios) experience in their lives. The first two lines mention plowing, sowing, harvesting, and love, all things that bring happiness and fulfillment to the lives of the Indios. However, this happiness is juxtaposed against the pain that they experience, which is reflected in the mournful notes played by the rondador (a traditional Andean instrument).
The lyrics suggest that the Indios carry a great burden of sadness and suffering, which is felt deeply in their souls. Despite the physical toils they endure, they remain shackled by the emotional weight of their hardship. The rounder in the song serves as a lament for the indigenous people, expressing the mournful melodies of their struggles through its musical notes.
Line by Line Meaning
Los arados, los sembríos
The plows, the sowings / the harvests and their love
las cosechas y su amor,
the harvests and their love
dan al indio en este mundo
give the Indian in this world
alegría en su dolor.
joy in his pain.
Por donde quiera que vaya
Wherever he goes
toca triste el rondador
the rondador plays a sad tune
porque en su alma hay sólo pena,
because in his soul there is only sorrow
sufrimiento y gran dolor.
suffering and great pain.
Contributed by Alexis Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Jackson R
Los arados, los sembríos
las cosechas y su amor,
dan al indio en este mundo
alegría en su dolor.
Por donde quiera que vaya
toca triste el rondador
porque en su alma hay sólo pena,
sufrimiento y gran dolor.
DIOMEDES Nuñez Minaya
ESTA ES NUESTRA MÚSICA ECUATORIANA, ORGULLOSAMENTE AUTENTICA. CHILE Y ECUADOR UNIDOS EN UN ABRAZO MUSICAL
francisco antonio yepez cardona
Excelente interpretación de Los arados, Sanjuanito ecuatoriano. La tierra de mi padre. Gracias Inti Illimani.
pedro vpf
Soy brasileño e a mi me encanta la musica foclorica de chile. Simplesmente increíble. A mi me encanta también Violeta Parra y Quilapayun..
Caetano Samaniego
Este tema es del Ecuador. El autor es don Cesar Baquero(+).
Michael Aros
@Caetano Samaniego así es amigo, los intérpretes son inti Illimani de chile
carmen marleny soto
Soy colombiana admiro este grandioso grupo me encanta su musica y toda la musica andina viva Latinoamerica que es mi pais
Kubilay Barış Çelik
Me encanta la música latinoamericana. Ustedes son suertes porque su música folclórica tiene oyentes desde todas las partes del mundo y tiene un carácter universal. ¡Con respeto y amor desde Turquía!
Raul Rivas
Gracias mi hermano....si tenemos suerte...y me alegra mucho que te guste nuestra musica....disfrútala...saludos desde U.S.A
René Agudelo Pinzón
Me alegra que te guste: las melodías asincopadas y los ritmos de nuestras músicas aunque con inspiraciones melancolias... elevan el espíritu !!!
hakki yesillik
tanrı türkiye yi korusun