María Cristina Gómez Rabito de González was a 20th-century harpist whose
Paraguayan harp
The Paraguayan harp is the national instrument of Paraguay, and similar instruments are used elsewhere in South America, particularly Venezuela.
It is a diatonic harp with 32, 36, 38 or 40, 42 or 46 strings, made from tropical wood, pine and c ...
music won national and international recognition.
[Falleció María Cristina Gómez, ''UltimaHora.com'', http://www.ultimahora.com/fallecio-maria-cristina-gomez-n1080147.html, sábado 22 de abril de 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.][Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
Born in
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
, Gómez Rabito began playing the harp when she was 6 years old, and started playing professionally at the age of 7, becoming known as "La Princesita del Arpa India" ("The Little Princess of the Indian Harp").
[Falleció María Cristina Gómez, ''UltimaHora.com'', http://www.ultimahora.com/fallecio-maria-cristina-gomez-n1080147.html, sábado 22 de abril de 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.][Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018. In 1968, she formed a
musical duo
A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform Instrumental music, instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely ...
with
Enrique Samaniego
Enrique Samaniego was a mid-20th century harpist and composer whose Paraguayan harp music achieved national and international recognition.Luis Szaran: ''Diccionario de la Música en el Paraguay''. Edición de la Jesuitenmission Nürnberg, Alemania ...
, with whom she recorded the album ''Arpegios Guaraníes''.
[Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018. Also in 1968 she became the first professor of
the Arpa Paraguaya at the Conservatorio Municipal de Música de Asunción, now the Instituto Municipal de Arte (IMA).
[Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018.[Falleció María Cristina Gómez, ''UltimaHora.com'', http://www.ultimahora.com/fallecio-maria-cristina-gomez-n1080147.html, sábado 22 de abril de 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.][Tributo a Maria Cristina Gomez Rabito , Digno Homenaje a Destacada Arpista, http://www.abc.com.py/espectaculos/digno-homenaje-a-destacada-arpista-1157242.html, 22 de Marzo de 2009. Retrieved 15 April 2018.]
In 1969 she joined the Orquesta Sinfónica de la Ciudad de Asunción (OSCA), performing under the batons of the two great directors Don Remberto Giménez and Carlos Villagra.
[Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018. In the same year, she also joined the Orquesta Folclórica Municipal conducted by Maestro César Medina.
[Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018. In 1972 she joined the Cuarteto de Cuerdas del Centro Cultural Paraguayo Americano, performing for a long time in the famous "Tren Musical" ("Musical Train") playing venues along the central railroad of Paraguay from
Asunción
Asunción (, , , Guarani: Paraguay) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay.
The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of ...
to
Encarnación.
[Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
Gómez Rabito died at the age of 68 in 2017.
[Falleció María Cristina Gómez, ''UltimaHora.com'', http://www.ultimahora.com/fallecio-maria-cristina-gomez-n1080147.html, sábado 22 de abril de 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.]
Honors and awards
In 1964, representing Paraguay, Gómez Rabito won the First Prize of the first Festival Nacional del Folclore in
Santiago de Chile
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...
.
[Falleció María Cristina Gómez, ''UltimaHora.com'', http://www.ultimahora.com/fallecio-maria-cristina-gomez-n1080147.html, sábado 22 de abril de 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.][Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018. In 1967, again representing Paraguay, she won First Prize in the first Festival Latinoamericano de la Canción Universitaria in
Santiago de Chile
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...
.
[Falleció María Cristina Gómez, ''UltimaHora.com'', http://www.ultimahora.com/fallecio-maria-cristina-gomez-n1080147.html, sábado 22 de abril de 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.][Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018. In 1972, she was honored for her life work at the
Festival del Lago Ypacaraí and the third Festival Mundial del Arpa.
[Falleció María Cristina Gómez, ''UltimaHora.com'', http://www.ultimahora.com/fallecio-maria-cristina-gomez-n1080147.html, sábado 22 de abril de 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2018.][Último adiós a “La princesita del Arpa India”, '']La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'', 21 de abril de 2017, https://www.lanacion.com.py/espectaculo/2017/04/21/ultimo-adios-a-la-princesita-del-arpa-india/. Retrieved 15 April 2018.[Tributo a Maria Cristina Gomez Rabito , Digno Homenaje a Destacada Arpista, http://www.abc.com.py/espectaculos/digno-homenaje-a-destacada-arpista-1157242.html, 22 de Marzo de 2009. Retrieved 15 April 2018.]
References
External linksDiscography for María Cristina Gómez
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gómez Rabito, María Cristina
2017 deaths
Paraguayan harpists
Paraguayan women musicians
Women harpists
20th-century women musicians
21st-century women musicians