Gracias a la Vida (charity song)
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"Gracias a la vida" ( Spanish for "''Thanks to life''") is a song written, composed and performed by Chilean
Violeta Parra Violeta del Carmen Parra Sandoval (; 4 October 1917 – 5 February 1967) was a Chilean composer, singer-songwriter, folklorist, ethnomusicologist and visual artist. She pioneered the Nueva Canción Chilena (The Chilean New Song), a renewal and ...
, one of the artists who was part of the movement and musical genre known as the Nueva Canción Chilena. Parra composed "Gracias a la vida" in
La Paz La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Bolivia, Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the List of Bolivian cities ...
in 1966. It was included on ''Las Últimas Composiciones'', the last album Parra published before committing
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
in 1967. The song is one of Parra's most renowned. It is performed throughout the world and remains one of the most covered Latin American songs in history.


Critical reception

The song "Gracias a la vida" was considered as a "humanist hymn" by Marisol García, a journalist specialized in Chilean popular music and creator of the website ''MusicaPopular''. In 2009 the former president Michelle Bachelet expressed her "affection and admiration" for
Mercedes Sosa Haydée Mercedes Sosa (; 9 July 1935
at BrainyHistory.com
– 4 October 2009), sometimes known as ' ...
and "Gracias a la vida" with the following phrase: «As you know today, "Gracias a la vida" is a song of ours, but also a universal one. Note that there are many artists from many countries who have recorded it and made it famous and one of those voices, perhaps the most vigorous in Latin America, is that of
Mercedes Sosa Haydée Mercedes Sosa (; 9 July 1935
at BrainyHistory.com
– 4 October 2009), sometimes known as ' ...
». In 2013 was inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame.


Covers

The 1971 version performed by
Mercedes Sosa Haydée Mercedes Sosa (; 9 July 1935
at BrainyHistory.com
– 4 October 2009), sometimes known as ' ...
and included in her album ''Homenaje a Violeta Parra'' spread the song within the
Spanish-speaking Hispanophone and Hispanic refers to anything relating to the Spanish language (the Hispanosphere). In a cultural, rather than merely linguistic sense, the notion of "Hispanophone" goes further than the above definition. The Hispanic culture is th ...
world. Joan Baez popularized the song in the United States in 1974 by including it on her album of the same name, and continued to perform the song in concert in various countries. Italian singer-songwriter Gabriella Ferri covered the song in her 1974 album ''Remedios'', making it popular with the Italian public.


Voces Unidas por Chile version

In 2010, "Gracias a la Vida" was recorded by the
supergroup Supergroup or super group may refer to: * Supergroup (music), a music group formed by artists who are already notable or respected in their fields * Supergroup (physics), a generalization of groups, used in the study of supersymmetry * Supergroup ...
''Voces Unidas por Chile''. It was produced by Chilean producer Humberto Gatica, and released in May 12, one week before another charity single for the event, " Que Cante la Vida", performed by various artists too including
Alex Ubago Alex is a given name. It can refer to a shortened version of Alexander, Alexandra, Alexis. People Multiple * Alex Brown (disambiguation), multiple people * Alex Gordon (disambiguation), multiple people * Alex Harris (disambiguation), multiple ...
, Belinda,
Carlos Baute Carlos Roberto Baute Jiménez (born March 8, 1974, in Caracas, Venezuela), best known simply as Carlos Baute, is a Venezuelan singer-songwriter and television host. His music is mostly in the Latin pop genre, with some ballads and Bachata. ...
,
Aleks Syntek Raúl Alejandro Escajadillo Peña (born 29 September 1969), known by his stage name, Aleks Syntek, is a Mexican singer and songwriter. He has earned nine nominations for the Latin Grammy Awards, a Grammy nomination, five nominations for the MT ...
, Luis Fonsi, among others. The project by Beto Cuevas, former vocalist of the group La Ley, consisted of recording a version of "Gracias a la Vida" to help the victims of the 2010 earthquake, was produced by the Chilean compatriot Humberto Gatica, they also included artists such as: Colombians Shakira and
Juanes file:Juanes ZMF 2015 jm49108.jpg, Juanes at the Zelt Musik Festival 2015 in Freiburg, Germany file:Juanes ZMF 2015 jm49211.jpg, Juanes at the Zelt Musik Festival 2015 in Freiburg, Germany Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez (born 9 August 19 ...
, Dominican Juan Luis Guerra, Mexican
Fernando Olvera José Fernando Emilio "Fher" Olvera Sierra (born 8 December 1959) is a Mexican rock musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the secondary guitarist, composer, and lead singer for the Mexican rock band Maná, the most successful Latin Am ...
(Fher) Spanish
Alejandro Sanz Alejandro Sánchez Pizarro, better known as Alejandro Sanz (; born 18 December 1968), is a Spanish musician, singer and composer. Sanz has won 22 Latin Grammy Awards and four Grammy Awards. He has received the Latin Grammy for Latin Grammy Awar ...
and
Miguel Bosé Luis Miguel González Bosé (born 3 April 1956), usually known as Miguel Bosé, is a Spanish pop new wave singer and actor. Early life Bosé was born in San Fernando Hospital in Panama City, Panama, the son of Italian actress Lucia Bosè (19 ...
, Italian
Laura Pausini Laura Pausini (; born 16 May 1974) is an Italian singer. She rose to fame in 1993, winning the newcomer artists' section of the 43rd Sanremo Music Festival with her debut single "La solitudine", which became an Italian standard and an internat ...
, and Canadian Michael Bublé. "We are committed to the Chilean people, which is facing a big problem" said the former vocalist of
Maná Maná () is a Mexican pop rock band. The band is considered one of the best-selling Latin music artists and the most successful Latin American band of all time with over 40 million records sold worldwide. The group's current lineup consists o ...
in a video with statements of all participating artists and images of the tragedy. Bosé said in its segment "Anything that has to be done for that country, I will always do it."
Laura Pausini Laura Pausini (; born 16 May 1974) is an Italian singer. She rose to fame in 1993, winning the newcomer artists' section of the 43rd Sanremo Music Festival with her debut single "La solitudine", which became an Italian standard and an internat ...
, referring to the earthquake in the area of
Abruzzo Abruzzo (, , ; nap, label=Neapolitan language, Abruzzese Neapolitan, Abbrùzze , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; nap, label=Sabino dialect, Aquilano, Abbrùzzu; #History, historically Abruzzi) is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy wi ...
said "Last year, my land, Italy, experienced a similar tragedy to which Chile is experiencing". Warner Music edit the song internationally in both physical and digital format, being May 4, 2010, the predestined date where it was going to be published. The profits from their sale went to ''
Habitat for Humanity Habitat for Humanity International (HFHI), generally referred to as Habitat for Humanity or Habitat, is a US non-governmental, and nonprofit organization which was founded in 1976 by couple Millard and Linda Fuller. Habitat for Humanity is a Ch ...
'', which works to provide housing to families in need in various countries, including Chile.


References


External links

*
Gracias a la vida گراسیاس آلا ویدا (+ translation into twelve languages)Gracias a la vida
from BBC Radio 4's series "Soul Music" {{authority control Spanish-language songs Chilean folk songs Chilean songs 1966 songs Violeta Parra songs Latin Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients RCA Victor singles Nueva canción