Sosa was born in Tucumán, a northwestern province of Argentina, of mestizo descent from French and Amerindian (Quechuan) ancestry. In 1950, at age fifteen, she won a singing competition organized by a local radio station and was given a contract to perform for two months.
Sosa and her first husband Manuel Oscar Matus were key players in the mid-60s nueva canción movement (which was called nuevo cancionero in Argentina). Her first record was Canciones con Fundamento (Songs with Fundament), a collection of Argentine folk songs.
In 1967, Sosa toured with great success the United States and Europe. In subsequent years, she performed and recorded extensively, broadening her repertoire to include material from throughout Latin America.
In the early 1970s, Sosa released two concept albums in collaboration with composer Ariel Ramírez and lyricist Félix Luna: Cantata Sudamericana (South American Cantata) and Mujeres Argentinas (Argentine Women). She also recorded a tribute to Chilean poet Violeta Parra.
After the military dictatorship of Jorge Videla came to power, the atmosphere in Argentina grew increasingly oppressive. At a concert in La Plata (Buenos Aires) in 1979, Sosa was searched and arrested on stage, and the attending crowd was arrested. Banned in her own country, she moved to Paris and then to Madrid.
Sosa returned to Argentina in 1982, several months before the military regime collapsed as a result of the Falklands War, and gave a series of concerts at the Opera theater in Buenos Aires, where she invited many of her younger colleagues to share the stage. A double album of recordings from these performances became an instant best seller.
In the following years, Sosa continued to tour both in Argentina and abroad, performing in such venues as the Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall and the Mogador in París.
Sosa's repertoire continued to broaden, and she made recordings in various styles. She collaborated frequently with Argentine musicians such as León Gieco, Charly García, Antonio Tarragó Ros, Rodolfo Mederos and Fito Páez, and other Latin American artists such as Milton Nascimento and Silvio Rodríguez.
Sosa participated in a 2001 production of the Misa Criolla by Ariel Ramírez.
Mercedes Sosa's website(in Spanish)
Cuando Muere El Angelito
Mercedes Sosa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
suelta el violin su llantito
quiere ayudarme a olvidar
la muerte del angelito
Velay si era chiquitito
sin un pecado solito
que Tata Dios se lo ha llevao
Hasta el kakuy del silencio
dolido huyó de las ramas
cuando la caja del alama
por el camino sonaba
Ay, ay, ay, ayayaitay
suelta el violín su llantito
quiere ayudarme a olvidar
la muerte del angelito
Cuando muere el angelito
ay, ay, ay, ayayaitay...
le cantan las alabanzas
será por su alma bendita
Los cirios de los cardones
prenden sus blancos ojitos
azulándose en las alas
que Dios le dió al pobrecito
Y lindo caballo blanco
le va llevando al huahuita
donde arpena rezabailes
pa' la niña Telesita
The song Cuando Muere El Angelito by Mercedes Sosa is a lament for the death of a young child, or "angelito". The opening lines describe the sound of a violin, which is weeping in sympathy with the singer's grief. She asks the violin to help her forget the death of the child, which is a profound and heartbreaking loss. The child is described as innocent and without sin, and now rests in the care of God. The singer wonders what it must be like for the child to be alone without their loved ones, a thought that adds to the sadness of the song.
The second verse of the song speaks of the mourning that accompanies the death of the child. The kakuy bird, known for its mournful call, leaves the trees when it hears the sound of the coffin carrying the child's soul along the road. The chorus repeats, with the weeping violin providing a counterpoint to the lyrics. The third verse speaks of the funeral rites for the angelito. The child is remembered with prayers and praises, and lights are placed on the cactus plants in the desert landscape. Finally, the child is taken to the place where a young girl named Telesita prayed for the dead, represented by the image of a white horse carrying the child's spirit to the afterlife.
Overall, the song Cuando Muere El Angelito is a moving portrayal of grief and mourning for the death of a child. Sosa's rich voice and the mournful sound of the violin create a haunting and beautiful tribute to a young life lost.
Line by Line Meaning
Ay, ay, ay, ayayaitay...
Expressing sadness and grief.
Suelta el violin su llantito
The violin lets out a cry to express sadness and loss.
Quiere ayudarme a olvidar
The violin wants to help forget the death of the little angel.
La muerte del angelito
The death of the little angel.
Velay si era chiquitito
Look and see how small he was.
Sin un pecado solito
Without committing even a single sin.
Que Tata Dios se lo ha llevao
God has taken him away.
Será de verlo solito
It must be lonely for him up there.
Hasta el kakuy del silencio
Even the owl of silence.
Dolido huyó de las ramas
Flew away in sorrow from the branches.
Cuando la caja del alama
When the coffin of the soul.
Por el camino sonaba
Was making its way down the road.
Cuando muere el angelito
When the little angel dies.
Le cantan las alabanzas
Praises are sung for him.
Será por su alma bendita
It must be because of his blessed soul.
Los cirios de los cardones
The candles of the cardones.
Prenden sus blancos ojitos
Light up their white little eyes.
Azulándose en las alas
The blue wings.
Que Dios le dió al pobrecito
That God gave to the poor little one.
Y lindo caballo blanco
And a beautiful white horse.
Le va llevando al huahuita
Carries him to his final resting place.
Donde arpena rezabailes
Where they sing songs to mourn and honor the departed.
Pa' la niña Telesita
For the girl Telesita.
Contributed by Michael L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Martin Luna
"Cuando Muere El Angelito
de Inchausti y Ferreyra
"Ay, ay, ay, ayayaita...
suelta el violín su llantito
quiere ayudarme a olvidar
la muerte del angelito
Velay si era chiquitito
sin un pecado solito
que Tata Dios lo ha llevao
será de verlo bonito.
Hasta el kakuy del silencio
dolido huyó entre las ramas
cuando las cajas del alma
por el camino sonaban
Ay, ay, ay, ayayaita
suelta el violín su llantito
quiere ayudarme a olvidar
la muerte del angelito
Cuando muere el angelito
ay, ay, ay, ayayaita...
le cantan las alabanzas
será por su alma bendita
Los cirios de los cardones
prenden sus blancos ojitos
azulándose en las alas
que Dios le dió al angelito.
Y un lindo caballo blanco
lo va llevando al wawita
donde arpean rezabailes
pa' la niña Telesita
Ay, ay, ay, ayayaita
suelta el violín su llantito
quiere ayudarme a olvidar
la muerte del angelito
Martin Luna
Que chacarera más dura, solo los que perdimos un hijo en esta vida lo sabremos.
Carlos Aguila
"Cuando Muere El Angelito
de Inchausti y Ferreyra
"Ay, ay, ay, ayayaitay...
suelta el violin su llantito
quiere ayudarme a olvidar
la muerte del angelito
Velay si era chiquitito
sin un pecado solito
que Tata Dios se lo ha llevao
será de verlo solito
Hasta el kakuy del silencio
dolido huyó de las ramas
cuando la caja del alama
por el camino sonaba
Ay, ay, ay, ayayaitay
suelta el violín su llantito
quiere ayudarme a olvidar
la muerte del angelito
Cuando muere el angelito
ay, ay, ay, ayayaitay...
le cantan las alabanzas
será por su alma bendita
Los cirios de los cardones
prenden sus blancos ojitos
azulándose en las alas
que Dios le dió al pobrecito
Y lindo caballo blanco
le va llevando al huahuita
donde arpena rezabailes
pa' la niña Telesita
Martin Luna
@malu Prieto Me parece que no, escuche la versión de Raúl Carnota, el compañero puso la letra de otra versión. Son detalles pero bueno, en fin las cosas como son no?
malu Prieto
@Martin Luna se equivocó un poco pero Si lo entendí bien aparte lo busque es Google y era así s
Martin Luna
@malu Prieto Me parece que la versión de la letra que puso el compañero, no es el de la canción.
malu Prieto
Me ayudaste con la tarea 👍👍😂😂
Maria Alejandra Guaymas
Ella