"La Violetera" is a 1914

cuplé The cuplé was a popular risqué Spanish theatre song style in the late years of the 19th century. From 1893–1911 the songs were a feature of the "género ínfimo" (lowest type) cabaret theatre sung by solo female singers, or men in drag, and a ...

song, with the rhythm of a habanera, composed by José Padilla and with lyrics by Eduardo Montesinos, originally performed by Carmen Flores and popularized by Raquel Meller first and by

Sara Montiel María Antonia Abad Fernández MML (10 March 1928 – 8 April 2013), known professionally as Sara Montiel, also Sarita Montiel, was a Spanish actress and singer, who also held Mexican citizenship since 1951. She began her career in the 1940s an ...

later. The instrumental version is also popular as a

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

. In Spanish, a ''Violetera'' is a woman who sells

violets Violet identifies various plant taxa, particularly species in the genus ''Viola'', within which the common violet is the best known member in Eurasia and the common blue violet and common purple violet are the best known members in North America ...

History

The song was composed in 1914 by José Padilla during his stay in Paris as director of the orchestra of the

Casino de Paris The Casino de Paris, located at 16, rue de Clichy, in the 9th arrondissement, is one of the well known music halls of Paris, with a history dating back to the 18th century. Contrary to what the name might suggest, it is a performance venue, not ...

music hall. The lyricist was Eduardo Montesinos. Its premiere took place in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

with a performance by Carmen Flores. It was singer Raquel Meller who popularized the song in Spain and France first, and worldwide later. Sung in French by

Dalida Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti (; 17 January 1933 – 3 May 1987), professionally known as Dalida, was an Italian-French singer and actress born in Egypt. She sang in eleven languages and sold millions of records internationally. Her best known son ...

, it was released in 1956 in the first high quality release of the song on vinyl. It was included on her 1956 EP ''La violetera / Le torrent / Gitane / Fado'' that reached #10 on 1956 French charts and remained there for 14 weeks. It was included also on her first album '' Son nom est Dalida'' in 1957. The 1958

blockbuster Blockbuster or Block Buster may refer to: *Blockbuster (entertainment) a term coined for an extremely successful movie, from which most other uses are derived. Corporations * Blockbuster (retailer), a defunct video and game rental chain ** Bl ...

musical film ''

The Violet Seller ''The Violet Seller'', better known under its Spanish title ''La Violetera'', is a 1958 Spanish-Italian historical jukebox musical film produced by Benito Perojo, directed by Luis César Amadori and starring Sara Montiel, Raf Vallone, Frank Vi ...

'', by

Luis César Amadori Luis César Amadori (28 May 1902 in Pescara, Abruzzi, Italy – 5 June 1977 in Buenos Aires) was an Italian - Argentine film director and screenwriter and one of the most influential directors in the Cinema of Argentina of the classic era. ...

, was inspired by the song. The version of "La Violetera" performed by

in the film, with arrangement by composer Gregorio García Segura and recorded by

Hispavox Hispavox S.A. was a major Spanish record company founded on June 27, 1953, that run independently until 1985 when it was acquired by EMI. Their studios were located in Madrid, and were known among fans as Sonido Torrelaguna. EMI owned the Hispa ...

, also became worldwide famous. The

film soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

was released in different vinyl editions in Spain, Italy, Portugal, France, Greece, Israel, Japan, Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Canada and the United States. It received a Gold Record award for the number of records sold. The song is also in the repertoire of singers such as

Montserrat Caballé Montserrat Caballé i Folch or Folc (full name: María de Montserrat Bibiana Concepción Caballé i Folch (, , ; (12 April 1933 – 6 October 2018), known simply as Montserrat Caballé, was a Catalan Spanish operatic soprano. She sang a wide v ...

Gigliola Cinquetti Gigliola Cinquetti (; born Giliola Cinquetti on 20 December 1947) is an Italian singer, songwriter, and television presenter. Life and career Gigliola Cinquetti was born into a wealthy family in Verona. From the ages of 9 to 13, she studied and ...

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( el, Ιωάννα "Νάνα" Μούσχουρη ) (born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer. Over the span of her career, she has released over 200 albums in at least twelve languages, including Greek, French, English, Ger ...

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (born December 12, 1937), known professionally as Connie Francis, is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Called the “First Lady of Rock & Roll” ...

and

Mieczysław Fogg Mieczysław Fogg (born Mieczysław Fogiel; 30 May 1901, Warsaw3 September 1990, Warsaw) was a Polish singer and artist. His popularity started well before World War II and continued well into the 1980s. He had a characteristic way of staying v ...

. Other films using "La Violetera" in its soundtrack include ''

City Lights ''City Lights'' is a 1931 American silent romantic comedy film written, produced, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin. The story follows the misadventures of Chaplin's Tramp as he falls in love with a blind girl (Virginia Cherrill) and ...

'' (1931) by

Charles Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

with himself and

Virginia Cherrill Virginia Cherrill (April 12, 1908 – November 14, 1996) was an American actress best known for her role as the blind flower girl in Charlie Chaplin's ''City Lights'' (1931). Early life Virginia Cherrill was born on a farm in rural Carthag ...

; '' All Night Long'' (1981) by

Jean-Claude Tramont Jean-Claude Tramont (May 5, 1930 - December 27, 1996) was a Belgian writer, producer and director best known for his marriage to famous Hollywood agent Sue Mengers and the film ''All Night Long (1981 film), All Night Long'' (1981).Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...

and Gene Hackman; '' Scent of a Woman'' (1992) by

Martin Brest Martin Brest (born August 8, 1951) is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Education Brest was born in the Bronx, New York, and graduated from Stuyvesant High School in 1969, from New York University's School of the Arts in ...

with

Al Pacino Alfredo James Pacino (; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he has received numerous accolades: including an Academy Award, two Tony Awards, and two Primetime Emmy ...

and

Chris O'Donnell Christopher Eugene O'Donnell (born June 26, 1970) is an American actor and former model. He played Charlie Sims in '' Scent of a Woman'', Chris Reece in ''School Ties'', D'Artagnan in ''The Three Musketeers'', Jack Foley in the drama film '' C ...

; '' In the Mood for Love'' (2000) by

Wong Kar Wai Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1958) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films are characterised by nonlinear narratives, atmospheric music, and vivid cinematography involving bold, saturated colours. A pivotal figure ...

, named "Lan Hua Nu", recorded in 1949 and sung by

Rebecca Pan Rebecca Pan Di-hua (; also Poon Tik-wah, Pan Wan Ching) is a Hong Kong actress and singer. Early life She was born in Shanghai on 29 December 1931 and moved to Hong Kong in 1949. Career Her singing career began in 1957. One of her songs, which ...

; and ''

Rajee En Kanmani ''Rajee En Kanmani'' ( en, Rajee, my darling, italic=yes) is a 1954 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by K. J. Mahadevan and produced by S. S. Vasan. The film stars T. R. Ramachandran and Sriranjani Jr. A remake of Charlie Chap ...

'' (1954), named "Malligai Poo Jathi Rojaa", mixed with "

La Paloma "La Paloma", "The Dove" in English, is a popular Spanish song that has been produced and reinterpreted in diverse cultures, settings, arrangements, and recordings over the last 140 years. The song was written by the Spanish Basque composer Seb ...

" and sung by

R. Balasaraswathi Devi Raavu Balasaraswathi Devi (born 28 August 1928) is an Indian singer and actress who performed from 1930 to the 1960s in Telugu and Tamil cinema. She was the first light music singer on All India Radio and the first playback singer in the Telu ...

Plagiarism and adaptations

In 1926

Anselmo Aieta Anselmo Alfredo Aieta (November 5, 1896 – September 25, 1964) was an Argentine bandoneon musician, composer and occasional actor. Alfredo De Angelis Alfredo De Angelis (2 November 1910, Adrogué — 31 March 1992) was an Argentinian musi ...

wrote a tango to lyrics by Francisco García Jiménez, where the refrain is a straight borrowing of "La Violetera"'s theme. Among the most famous adaptations is the one by

in his 1931 film ''

''. The main theme used as a

leitmotif A leitmotif or leitmotiv () is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of ''idée fixe'' or ''motto-theme''. The spelling ''leitmotif'' is an anglici ...

for the blind flower-seller is the song "La Violetera" ("Who’ll Buy my Violets"). Chaplin was unable to secure the song performer, Raquel Meller, in the lead role, but used the song melody anyway as a major theme. In 1934, Chaplin lost a lawsuit to Padilla (which took place in Paris, where Padilla then lived) for not crediting him. Some modern editions released for video include a new recording by

Carl Davis Carl Davis, (born October 28, 1936) is an American-born conductor and composer who has lived in the United Kingdom since 1961. He has written music for more than 100 television programmes, but is best known for creating music to accompany si ...

Depictions

In 1966, a fountain commemorating singer Raquel Meller, portrayed as a violets seller, was unveiled in

. In 1991, a statue of a violets seller, named ''La Violetera'', by sculptor Santiago de Santiago, commemorating composer José Padilla, was unveiled in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

. Since 2003, the statue is located at Las Vistillas gardens in Madrid. Monumento a La Violetera

File:047 Font de Raquel Meller, Nou de la Rambla - Paral·lel.jpg, Raquel Meller fountain (1966), portrayed as a violets seller. Nou de la Rambla street,

. File:Monumento a la Violetera.jpg, ''La Violetera'' (1991) by sculptor Santiago de Santiago. Las Vistillas gardens,

References

External links

''La Violetera'' (song) at the Internet Archive

{{DEFAULTSORT:Violetera, La 1914 songs Spanish music Spanish songs Film music