Testimonies

Testimonies are sorted by publication date, showing the newest first.
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What Will the Holy Father Say (Qué dirá el Santo Padre)

Music piece by:
Violeta Parra
Testimony by:
María Cecilia Marchant Rubilar
Experience in:
Cárcel de Mujeres Buen Pastor, La Serena, September 1973 - January 1974
Tags:
« We sang songs that were popular at the time. We’d sing 'What will the Holy Father say', especially the part that says 'What will the Holy Father who lives in Rome say ... they are slitting the throat of his dove...' quite often, for example when someone was taken off to Regimiento Arica, which was a torture centre. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 02 January 2016

We Shall Prevail (Venceremos)

Music piece by:
Claudio Iturra (lyrics) and Sergio Ortega (music)
Testimony by:
María Cecilia Marchant Rubilar
Experience in:
Cárcel de Mujeres Buen Pastor, La Serena, September 1973 - January 1974
Tags:
« I was studying to be a chemistry teacher at the University of Chile in La Serena. I was 21 years old when I was arrested. I think I was picked up due to a specific fact. I was regularly sent copies of the El Rebelde newspaper by train, in order to distribute them in parts of Region IV. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 02 January 2016

Today I Sing for the Sake of Singing (Hoy canto por cantar)

Music piece by:
Nydia Caro and Ricardo Ceratto
Testimony by:
Ángeles Álvarez Cárdenas
Experience in:
Villa Grimaldi, 6 - 15 January 1975
Tags:
« At that time, many prisoners were subjected to extreme torture in the interrogations. Some managed to get through those processes alright, while others broke down. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 02 December 2015

St John Passion (Pasión según San Juan)

Music piece by:
Ángel Parra; text from the Gospel of Luke
Testimony by:
Luis Cifuentes Seves
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Chacabuco, January - February 1974
Tags:
« This song is the third track on the cassette recorded in the Chacabuco concentration camp by the band Los de Chacabuco, formed by Ángel Parra and conducted by him until his release. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 13 November 2015

Chacabuco Mass (Misa chacabucana)

Music piece by:
Ángel Parra and Ariel Ramírez
Testimony by:
Luis Cifuentes Seves
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Chacabuco, January - February 1974
Tags:
« This song is the second track on the cassette recorded in the Chacabuco prison camp by the band Los de Chacabuco, formed by Ángel Parra and led by him until his release. At the time that the cassette was recorded, Ángel had already been freed and Ernesto Parra had become the group's conductor. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 13 November 2015

Blue Eyes (Ojos azules)

Music piece by:
attributed to Gilberto Rojas Enríquez (Bolivia), Manuel Casazola Huancco (Perú), and the Andean oral tradition. Popularised in Chile by Violeta Parra and her children Isabel and Ángel Parra.
Testimony by:
Luis Cifuentes Seves
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Chacabuco, January – February 1974
Tags:
« This is the last track on the cassette recorded by the band Los de Chacabuco in the concentration camp; it was digitised in 2015. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 13 November 2015

Christmas Oratorio According to St. Luke (Oratorio de Navidad según San Lucas)

Music piece by:
Gospel According to St. Luke (lyrics), Ángel Parra (music)
Testimony by:
Luis Cifuentes Seves
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Chacabuco, January - February 1974
Tags:
« This is the first song on the cassette recorded at the Chacabuco camp by the band Los de Chacabuco, created by Ángel Parra and conducted by him until his release. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 12 November 2015

La Adelita

Music piece by:
Unknown
Testimony by:
Luis Cifuentes Seves
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Chacabuco, January – February 1974
Tags:
« This is another song that was performed by the band Los de Chacabuco and was sung in the prisoners’ weekly show. It’s a very old Mexican song that was popular in Chile. »
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Published on: 11 November 2015

Barlovento

Music piece by:
Eduardo Serrano
Testimony by:
Luis Cifuentes Seves
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Chacabuco, January – February 1974
Tags:
« This is one of the songs the band Los de Chacabuco arranged and performed at the weekly show authorised by the military. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 11 November 2015

Prayer So You Don't Forget Me (Oración para que no me olvides)

Music piece by:
Óscar Castro (words) and Ariel Arancibia González (music)
Testimony by:
Rosalía Martínez
Experience in:
Campamento de Prisioneros Cuatro Álamos, November - December 1974
Tags:
« When Katia Chornik contacted me a few years ago asking me to provide my testimony about my musical experience in prison, I thought I didn’t have much to say. »
[Read full testimony]

Published on: 08 November 2015