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)
Si Se Calla El Cantor
Mercedes Sosa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Porque la vida, la vida misma es todo un canto
Si se calla el cantor, muere de espanto
La esperanza, la luz y la alegría
Si se calla el cantor se quedan solos
Los humildes gorriones de los diarios,
Los obreros del puerto se persignan
Que ha de ser de la vida si el que canta
No levanta su voz en las tribunas
Por el que sufre, por el que no hay
Ninguna razón que lo condene a andar sin manta'
Si se calla el cantor muere la rosa
De que sirve la rosa sin el canto
Debe el canto ser luz sobre los campos
Iluminando siempre a los de abajo
Que no calle el cantor porque el silencio
Cobarde apaña la maldad que oprime,
No saben los cantores de agachadas
No callarán jamás de frente al crimen
Que se levanten todas las banderas
Cuando el cantor se plante con su grito
Que mil guitarras desangren en la noche
Una inmortal canción al infinito'
Si se calla el cantor calla la vida
These lyrics of Mercedes Sosa's Si Se Calla El Cantor are a passionate ode to the power of song and the importance of speaking up against oppression. The title translates to "If the singer is silenced" and the opening line makes a bold assertion that if the singer is silenced, life itself becomes silent. The idea is that life is a song, and the singer is its voice. If the singer is silenced, life loses its vibrancy and color.
The next few lines continue to emphasize this message. They say that the singer is the source of hope, light, and happiness. If the singer is silenced, these precious things die along with their voice. The song then turns to describe the impact on the less fortunate. If the singer is silenced, the poor and the workers are left alone without a champion to fight for their rights. The final verse brings the message home, urging singers to never be silenced. When the singer speaks up, flags are raised, guitars are strummed, and an immortal song is created. It's a powerful call to action to never be silent in the face of injustice.
Overall, Si Se Calla El Cantor is an anthem to the power of music to inspire change, to be a voice for the voiceless and to stand up against oppression. It's a reminder that music is not just entertainment, but is often a lifeline for those in need. The song is a beautiful tribute to the importance of speaking up and using your voice to make a difference.
Line by Line Meaning
Si se calla el cantor calla la vida
If the singer remains silent, life remains silent as well - life itself is a song.
Porque la vida, la vida misma es todo un canto
Life, life itself is a complete song.
Si se calla el cantor, muere de espanto
If the singer is silenced, hope, light, and joy disappear.
La esperanza, la luz y la alegría
Hope, light, and joy.
Si se calla el cantor se quedan solos
If the singer stops singing, the poor sparrows in the newspapers and the dockworkers are left alone.
Los humildes gorriones de los diarios,
The poor sparrows in the newspapers.
Los obreros del puerto se persignan
The dockworkers cross themselves.
Quién habrá de luchar por su salario
Who will fight for their salary?
Que ha de ser de la vida si el que canta
What happens to life if the singer doesn't sing?
No levanta su voz en las tribunas
If the singer doesn't raise their voice in the forums.
Por el que sufre,´por el que no hay
For the one who suffers, for the one who has nothing.
Ninguna razón que lo condene a andar sin manta'
No reason to condemn them to wander without a blanket.
Si se calla el cantor muere la rosa
If the singer is silenced, the rose dies.
De que sirve la rosa sin el canto
What's the point of the rose without the song?
Debe el canto ser luz sobre los campos
The song must be light across the fields.
Iluminando siempre a los de abajo
Always illuminating those below.
Que no calle el cantor porque el silencio
The singer must never remain silent because silence supports oppression and wickedness.
Cobarde apaña la maldad que oprime,
Cowardice supports the oppression and wickedness that exists in the world.
No saben los cantores de agachadas
Singers don't understand hiding in fear.
No callarán jamás de frente al crimen
They will never remain silent when confronted with crime.
Que se levanten todas las banderas
All flags must be raised.
Cuando el cantor se plante con su grito
When the singer takes a stand with their voice.
Que mil guitarras desangren en la noche
A thousand guitars will bleed at night.
Una inmortal canción al infinito'
An immortal song to infinity.
Lyrics © Unison Rights S.L., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Eraclio Catalino Rodriguez
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind