La Paloma

Common card · No. 405446

"La Paloma", "The Dove" in English, is a popular Spanish song that has been produced and reinterpreted in diverse cultures, settings, arrangements, and recordings. The song was written by the Spanish Basque composer Sebastián Iradier (previously Yradier) around 1860 after a visit to Cuba. Iradier was to die in obscurity within a few years, never to learn how popular his song would become. It is one of the first written examples of Afro-Cuban "Habanera" rhythm to achieve wide popularity. In 1879, the song was registered at the copyright office in Madrid as a "Canción Americana con acompañamiento de Piano". Very quickly, "La Paloma" became popular outside of Spain, particularly in Mexico, and soon spread around the world. In many places, including Afghanistan, Cuba, Colombia, Hawaii, the Philippines, Germany, Romania, Venezuela, Zanzibar, and Goa it gained the status of a quasi-folk song. Over the years, the popularity of "La Paloma" has surged and receded periodically, but never subsided...

Read on Wikipedia · Image Sebastián Iradier, Public domain