University of Iowa's Hancher will present Inti-Illimani, a folk music ensemble from Chile, in collaboration with Summer of the Arts from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Friday, May 15, on the Iowa City pedestrian mall, next to the Sheraton Hotel. The free performance will kick off the Summer of the Arts Friday Night Concert Series.
Formed in 1967, Inti-Illimani is a veritable institution in its homeland and throughout Latin America. The band’s first hit song became the anthem of Chile’s unity government, which in 1973 was overthrown by a military coup that led to Augusto Pinochet’s rise to power.
At the time of the coup, the band was on tour in Europe and was unable to return to Chile for 15 years. The members took up residence in Italy, resulting in what they call “the longest tour in history” as they lived in de facto exile. They moved home permanently in 1990 upon the resignation of Pinochet. They have performed frequently in the United States and a dozen other countries and obtained notoriety for their role in Chile’s socio-political history.
The band’s music, based in traditional Latin American roots and incorporating elements of European baroque music, captures the personal colors of the members’ experiences while simultaneously appealing to the universal in all of us. Members of the band play more than 30 wind, string, and percussion instruments, which are combined with a distinctive vocal sound. Their songs describe sacred places, colorful carnivals, daily lives, love lost and found, defeats, and triumphs to make an extraordinary cultural mural. They are perhaps the best internationally known members of the nueva canción (new song) movement.
The concert is the culmination of a weeklong tour of Iowa communities including Okoboji, Maquoketa, and Iowa City. The UI is working with Maquoketa throughout 2014-15 by having faculty and students support arts activities—including film, theater, writing, and visual arts—in that community. Inti-Illimani will be a featured artist, spending two days in Maquoketa, performing in the public schools and participating in public events.
The residency and performance are supported in part by an award from the Iowa Arts Council, as well as by the Hancher Partners and gifts to the Hancher Circle through the UI Foundation.
Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all UI-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, contact the Hancher Box Office in advance at 319-335-1158.