Regina and Juan Salva: First Recordings of the Mapuche Songs on Phonograph Cylinders (1905 and 1907)

Authors

  • Margarita Canio Llanquinao Universidad Católica de Temuco
  • Gabriel Pozo Menares Universidad Católica de Temuco

Abstract

Two Mapuche persons Regina and Juan Salva were captured during the so called “Campaña del Desierto” (the Desert Campaign)(1878-1885) in Argentina. They were taken to La Plata city where the scholar Robert Lehmann-Nitsche recorded on wax cylinder some of their songs and dialogs.Two of these recordings are considered in this document. The texts in Mapudungun (the Mapuche language) were transcribed and then translated into Spanish. The purpose is to make widely known one of the most important sound archives of the history of the Mapuche people and mankind.

Keywords:

sound archvives, wax cylinders, Mapuche songs, oral memory