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Mention the name Mercedes Sosa and many people will remember her just as much for her social activism as for her music. The Argentinean folk singer, known for songs such as “Gracias a la Vida” and “Balderrama” (otherwise known as “that song from that movie about Ché with Benicio Del Toro in it”), passed away in 2009 after a long battle with endocrine and respiratory issues. Now D.C.’s own Coral Cantigas is paying tribute to her work and her legacy as a voice for native peoples throughout the Americas and their issues.
The local chorus, whose mission is to increase “awareness and appreciation of the many rich styles of Latino choral music, and promotes diversity by uniting communities through the joyful and transformative power of music,” will be performing a cross-section of Sosa’s songs at the National Museum of the American Indian. The works will be drawn from all eras of her career and will include some of the songs Coral Cantigas performed this spring at the Bradley Hills Presbyterian Church in Bethesda.
Sunday, August 1 at 3 p.m. at the American Indian Museum, 4th St. & Independence Ave. SW. Free. (202) 633-1000.