Argentine rock as a source of national memory: a collective experience and its validation
Argentine rock as a source of national memory: a collective experience and its validation

Author(s): Jan Jerzy Najdowski
Subject(s): Theory of Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego
Keywords: Argentine rock; national memory; Sui Generis; Luis Alberto Spinetta; Antonin Artaud
Summary/Abstract: This paper is dedicated to Argentine rock as a source of national memory and evaluates its role in validating a collective experience shared by those generations that witnessed its emergence and development, particularly in the late 1960s and the early 1970s, which were a period of severe political instability and institutional violence. The introductory part explains the historical and cultural circumstances of the rise of Argentine rock and summarises the ideas of its most renowned representatives. It is followed by a description of a landmark Argentine rock song published in 1974, ‘Para quién canto yo entonces’, written by Charly García. The current author presents a philological translation of the lyrics from Spanish into English, as the text is a genuine summary of the main concepts and founding principles of Argentine rock. The next section outlines the profile and creation of Luis Alberto Spinetta, who was considered one of the key figures of Spanish-language rock. Subsequently, the lyrics of a song ‘Por’ from 1973 are distributed as an example of Spinetta’s revolutionary attitude towards language and poetic imagery, along with its philological English rendering made by the author of the paper. Both analysed songs retain the collective experience of Argentine listeners without losing their cultural significance over time; especially the song written by Spinetta constitutes an entirely original way of coping with adversities in turbulent times and seeking relief through sharing personal experience with the public

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