Chavela Vargas, Music Icon

Chavela Vargas was a great icon of Mexican music. A figure who has gone through life arousing the admiration of some and the surprise of others. His voice and the sentiment he expressed in each of his performances are a precious legacy for the history of music.

One of the most curious aspects of the life of Chavela Vargas, a Mexican icon, is that her name was not Chavela and she was not born in Mexico. Her real name was María Isabel Anita Carmen de Jesús Vargas Lizano and she was born in San Joaquín de Flores, a small town in the province of Heredia, Costa Rica.

He began his musical career relatively late, at the age of 30. From the start she charmed everyone with her hoarse voice, similar to that of a drunkard. He performed accompanied only by an acoustic guitar.

Chavela Vargas: a difficult childhood

Chavela Vargas was born on April 17, 1919 in Costa Rica. He grew up in a very religious and prejudiced family. She was not like the other girls: there was something strange about her appearance and that was why her parents were ashamed of her. When a guest came, they asked her to hide. This refusal made her feel very sad.

At the age of 8 he started singing and would never stop doing it. Chavela did not play with dolls and was a reserved and lonely child. His parents divorced when he was still very young. Neither of us wanted to take care of this strange girl who sang with her soul. For this reason, he went to live with his uncles and a short time later he fell ill with polio.

At 17, tired of not being loved, she left for Mexico to start a new life. Here she began to sing in nightclubs, in heels and perfectly made up. He would later say he felt “like a transvestite”.

She decided to wear very short hair and wear pants, which were not so common among women at the time, and a poncho during her performances. On the belt, a pistol that left no doubt about the message he wanted to convey to the public.

Chavela Vargas, an icon of Mexican music

José Alfredo Jiménez, a great Mexican composer and performer, was fascinated by his stage presence. They became friends and “party mates”. Chavela Vargas often went on tour with him; it was around this time that his addiction to alcohol began. With Jiménez he performed in clubs and cabarets, but never in large theaters.

He then met the great painter Frida Kahlo, with whom, apparently, he had a romantic relationship. Frida Khalo was not his only lover, however his love affairs always remained in the shadows, because they took place in complete secrecy.

Devastated by the death of José Alfredo Jiménez, Chavela Vargas fell into a deep addiction to alcohol. He decided to retire from the entertainment world and live on the charity of his friends and acquaintances. Two dear friends helped her out of the tunnel, and then went to a country that would be dear to her for a lifetime: Spain.

The end of a life, the beginning of a legend

In Spain, a new phase in the life of Chavela Vargas began, made of fame, success and happiness. For a long time, its guardian angel and promoter was the famous director Pedro Almodóvar, moved by his songs full of pathos .

As soon as he met her in person, they became close friends. We can hear a lot of Vargas songs in the soundtracks of Almodóvar’s films.

Thanks to her friendships in the artistic and bohemian world , in Spain the career and life of Chavela Vargas made a great leap in quality. The singer was a great friend of the singer Joaquín Sabina, of the aforementioned Almodóvar, as well as of Miguel Bosé. In Mexico one of his greatest friends and confidants was Gabriel García Márquez, with whom he dined once a year, wherever they were.

At the age of 80, an intrepid Chavela Vargas jumped with a parachute. At 90, his concerts were still sold out. Finally, at the age of 94, he passed away in Mexico after a tortuous journey to his beloved Spain, to which he had given a final farewell. He died on Sunday, as he wished because he did not want to “ruin anyone’s weekend”.