Clotilde Mela Rosa Luciano, better known as Rosita Melo (July 9, 1897 – August 12, 1981), was an
Argentine
Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
-
Uruguayan
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
pianist, composer and poet. She is the author of the famous ''
vals criollo
The vals criollo ( en, Creole waltz), or Peruvian waltz ( es, vals peruano), is an adaptation of the European waltz brought to the Americas during colonial times by Spain. In the Viceroyalty of Peru, the waltz was gradually adapted to the likings ...
'' (Creole Waltz) ''"Desde el alma"'' for which she is known as the first widely recognized female
Rioplatense Hispanic composer in the world.
Family life
Rosita Melo was born in
Montevideo
Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...
on July 9, 1897, as the youngest child of
Italian immigrants Michele Mela and Rosa Luciano de Mela, from
Rionero in Vulture
Rionero in Vulture ( aae, Arrionero) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Potenza, in the southern Italian region of Basilicata. It is located on the slopes of Monte Vulture in the northern part of the region. The village was founded and ...
,
Basilicata
it, Lucano (man) it, Lucana (woman)
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.
She was baptized at the cathedral of Montevideo. Shortly after, the family migrated to Argentina in 1900. They settled in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
when Rosita was three years old. On February 23, 1922, she married the young poet and writer Victor Piuma Vélez who would write the lyrics for all her compositions.
Musical influence
Melo showed a great talent for music. At the age of four, she could already play the piano by ear. Once in primary school, she never gave up her music studies.
She later studied piano in Buenos Aires and ultimately became a professor of piano and concert at the prestigious Thibaud-Piazzini
conservatory.
Works
Throughout her life, she created a body of work that includes
tango,
waltz
The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position.
History
There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...
, classical and Creole (''
vals criollo
The vals criollo ( en, Creole waltz), or Peruvian waltz ( es, vals peruano), is an adaptation of the European waltz brought to the Americas during colonial times by Spain. In the Viceroyalty of Peru, the waltz was gradually adapted to the likings ...
'') waltzes,
pasodobles,
polkas
Polka is a dance and genre of dance music originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though associated with Czech culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the Americas.
History
Etymology
The term ...
and
marches. Among them: "Oración", "Tatita" and "Aquel entonces" as well as the waltzes "Yo te adoro", "Por el camino", "Una lágrima para papá", "Cuando de ti ya lejos" and "Aquellos catorce años".
[http://danzadetango.com/articulos-03.html ]
The poems of Melo were published in newspapers and cultural magazines of her time. Her poems were published in the book "Antología de poetas jóvenes" ("Anthology of Young Poets") alongside those of
Alfonsina Storni and other famous contemporary poets. She gave many concerts of both
classical and
popular music
Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...
in different cultural centers in Buenos Aires, earning medals and awards.
She was appointed as a representative of music in a ceremony held at the
Teatro Colón
The Teatro Colón (Spanish: ''Columbus Theatre'') is the main opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is considered one of the ten best opera houses in the world by National Geographic. According to a survey carried out by the acousti ...
in Buenos Aires.
Desde el Alma
In 1911, at the age of 14, Melo composed her first and now world-famous Boston-style ''vals criollo'' ''"Desde el Alma"'' (''"From the Soul"'').
Other sources date the composition between 1911 and 1917. Melo is quoted saying it was the work of an adolescent. The waltz's theme is dedicated to the love of a mother. Vélez would write the first set of lyrics for it, years later.
By 1921,
Roberto Firpo
Roberto Firpo (May 10, 1884June 14, 1969) was an Argentine tango pianist, composer, and leader. Firpo was among the first innovators of the classic tango music genre. He was the establisher of the piano in the tango orchestra.
Firpo was born ...
had recorded four instrumental waltzes of Melo.
In 1948,
Homero Manzi
Homero Nicolás Manzione Prestera, better known as Homero Manzi (November 1, 1907 – May 3, 1951) was an Argentine tango lyricist, author of various famous tangos.
He was born on November 1 of 1907 in Añatuya (province of Santiago del Estero), ...
wanted to include the waltz in the movie ''"Pobre mi madre querida"'', but with different lyrics rewritten by himself which would be sung by
Hugo del Carril.
Vélez and Melo initially opposed the idea, and requested that if Manzi wrote new lyrics, Vélez's name should be included as co-author. Manzi ultimately agreed, the lyrics became famous and the waltz, already a classic by the time, became universally famous.
Manzi's lyrics remain the most famous ones and are often reinterpreted in different versions of the song when performed by other musicians:
Death
After her husband passed away in 1976, Melo died in Buenos Aires on August 12, 1981 and was buried at the "Rincón de las Personalidades" ("Corner of Personalities") in the
Chacarita Cemetery
Cementerio de la Chacarita in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is known as the National Cemetery and is the largest in Argentina.
Location
The cemetery is in the barrio or district of Chacarita, in the western part of Buenos Aires. Its main entrance i ...
there. Her two daughters had a monument erected in her memory there.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melo, Rosita
1897 births
1981 deaths
Argentine women poets
People from Montevideo
Argentine people of Lucanian descent
Tango musicians
Argentine composers
Burials at La Chacarita Cemetery
20th-century composers
20th-century Argentine poets
20th-century Argentine women writers
Uruguayan emigrants to Argentina
Argentine women composers