Inti-Illimani is a Chilean music group founded in 1967. It is a folk ensemble linked to the "cultivated" (having studied music) current of the "new Latin American song" . Their name mixes Quechuan ("Inti" = sun) and Aymara ("Illimani" = the name of a Bolivian mountain in the Andes).
Inti Illimani is a group formed in 1967 by three students of the Universidad Técnica del Estado. It is part of the movement called " nueva canción chilena " (a new Chilean song), which consists of a revival of Chilean folk music, in adding sounds from different Latin American countries and with a clear engagement with left-wing socio-political movements. They are influenced by Violeta Parra. Inti-Illimani was founded by Pedro Yañez, who left the group in 1968.
During his tour of Europe in 1973 took place the coup d'état of Pinochet. Inti Illimani, banned from residency in Chile, then remains in exile in Italy for 15 years, while touring around the world.
The 1986 concert in Mendoza attracts many Chileans crossing the Argentine border on this occasion.
The return to Chile took place with the end of the dictatorship in 1988.
