El Condor Pasa Jun 2026

For nearly six decades, the song remained a cherished cultural treasure within Peru and among folk music enthusiasts. That changed in 1965. The American folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel were performing at the Théâtre de l'Est Parisien in France. Sharing the bill with them was a group called Los Incas, who performed "El Condor Pasa."

At the turn of the 20th century, Peruvian indigenous communities (Quechuas) were being exploited in the Cerro de Pasco mining region by foreign-owned corporations. Alomía Robles, a lover of indigenous culture, traveled deep into the Andes to collect folk melodies. El Condor Pasa

The melody was originally composed in 1913 by the Peruvian ethnomusicologist . It was not a standalone song but an orchestral piece from a zarzuela (a Spanish-style musical play) of the same name. For nearly six decades, the song remained a

: In the play's climax, the flight of the condor symbolizes the hard-won freedom and victory of the workers. Sharing the bill with them was a group