444 results where found for «The Man Who Transformed into an Animal»


Alfonsina and the Sea (Alfonsina y el mar)

Music piece by:
Félix Luna (lyrics) and Ariel Ramírez (music). Popularised by Mercedes Sosa.
Testimony by:
Sergio Vesely
Experience in:
Villa Grimaldi, January 1975
« It was not easy to endure being locked up in one of Villa Grimaldi’s miserable cells, which resembled vertical coffins. It was even harder in the high temperatures of the summer months of the Andes foothills in Peñalolén. I was inside one of those cells, blindfolded, my feet and hands in chains. »
[...]
« All of a sudden, I heard the metal gate that separated us from the rest of the facility unexpectedly open and the guard asking who was singing. To avoid collective punishment, I knocked on the door from inside my “coffin cell” and identified myself as the singer. The guard, who I could not see, opened the cell door and stood in front of me. 'Nice song', he said. 'Sing it again'. »
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Beloved Friend (Amado amigo)

Music piece by:
Sergio Vesely
Testimony by:
Sergio Vesely
« This song, written in my cell at the Puchuncaví Prison Camp, speaks to a friend and fellow prisoner; it could be any one of the thousands behind bars. »
[...]
« Paper boat (barco de papel): We had a habit of wishing farewell to our comrades who were released or about to be transferred to other prisons. People who were not fortunate enough to be included in the group would gather around those who were about to leave, a ritual that sometimes included singing Julio Numhausser’s beautiful song 'El barco de papel'. The first verse goes like this: 'Se va el barco de papel por el mar de la esperanza, llevando un montón de sueños y los niños no lo alcanzan. Se va, se va y no volverá. Se va, se va a la libertad.' (The paper boat sails to a sea of hope, carrying dreams and children can’t reach it. There it goes, there it goes, and it will never return. There it goes, there it goes to freedom.). »
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Poet of Destiny (Poeta del destino)

Music piece by:
Sergio Vesely
Testimony by:
Sergio Vesely
Experience in:
« This song is a tribute to Miguel Enríquez, Secretary-General of the MIR, who was gunned down by a commando of the dictatorship’s secret police on 5 October 1974. »
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Coplas of El Yopo (Coplas de El Yopo)

Music piece by:
Unknown. Traditional Venezuelan song. Popularised in Chile by Isabel and Ángel Parra
Testimony by:
Carlos Muñoz
Experience in:
« A comrade whose last name was Saavedra (if I recall correctly) sung this song passionately. This song earned him the nickname of ‘El Yopo’ (also ‘Chopo’), as is usual in popular culture. »
[...]
« The song was well-known in Chile, as sung by Ángel and Isabel Parra, who called it 'Décimas del folklore venezolano' or 'Coplas Venezolanas'. It was one of the most popular songs in prison and was performed at many of our musical events. It was also sung at Ritoque and Puchuncaví. »
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Free (Libre)

Music piece by:
José Luis Armenteros and Pablo Herrero, popularised by Nino Bravo.
Testimony by:
Paicavi Painemal
Experience in:
« I’m from Chol Chol, part of the Coihue community. I was arrested along with 12 other people and they took us to the Second Police Station of Temuco. »
[...]
« There were prisoners who were stronger. Other prisoners were weaker. I’m made of steel and I endured. That’s why I’m here. »
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Three White Lilies (Tres blancos lirios)

Music piece by:
Unknown composer. This song probably relates to European early-years pedagogy.
Testimony by:
Domingo Lizama
Experience in:
« They arrested me at my workplace in October 1973 . I was 31 years old and worked as a porter at a logging business in Chumpullo, near Valdivia. »
[...]
« The teacher had to leave because we sang 'Tres blancos lirios' ('Three White Lilies'), a children’s song which spoke about an unhappy horse rider who destroyed a garden. Really, the song said that the squaddies had broken the garden. After the teacher left, the choir dismantled. »
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The Wall (La muralla)

Music piece by:
Nicolás Guillén (lyrics) and Quilapayún (music)
Testimony by:
Domingo Lizama
« In prison, there was a guy who played the guitar. He cheered up the afternoons in the cell. We all sang with him. »
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Sinner, come to sweet Jesus (Pecador, ven al dulce Jesús)

Music piece by:
Unknown
Testimony by:
anonymous
Experience in:
« One time, a group of male and female evangelicals came to Teja Island to preach. They were taken to the visitors’ yard. »
[...]
« Something very funny happened that stayed with me for the rest of my life. After the music finished one of the evangelicals asked: 'Who wants to receive Jesus Christ as their saviour?' One prisoner replied: 'but what if they put us in prison again?' »
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Let’s Break the Morning (Rompamos la mañana)

Music piece by:
René “Popeye” Cárdenas Eugenin
Testimony by:
María Soledad Ruiz Ovando
Experience in:
« Music was very important for us (my mother Sylvia, my sister Alejandra and myself) while my dad, Daniel Ruiz Oyarzo, 'el Negro Ruiz', was imprisoned during the dictatorship, when Alejandra was seven and I was four. »
[...]
« That’s how we decided that we’d teach the song to my son, who at the time was 12 or 13 years old, and also a family friend (Ximenota). »
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The Salamander (La salamanca)

Music piece by:
Arturo Dávalos
Testimony by:
Luis Cifuentes Seves
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Chacabuco, January - February 1974
« A salamanca is a type of salamander that lives in caves in northern Argentina. By extension, it also represents the cave. In this song, the lyricist turns the salamanca into a place where a coven of witches gathers. »
[...]
« Under the direction of Ernesto Parra, all ten members of the group who appear in the photograph took part. Their aim was to preserve the songs of Ángel Parra, composed while he was a prisoner in the camp, along with songs by other artists. »
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