El Cóndor Pasa (song)
In 1913, Peruvian songwriter Daniel Alomía Robles composed "El Cóndor Pasa", and the song was first performed publicly at the Teatro Mazzi in Lima.In 1965, the American pop musician Paul Simon heard for the first time a version of the melody by the band Los Incas in a performance at the Théâtre de l'Est parisien [fr] in Paris in which both were participating.The band's director and founding member Jorge Milchberg [fr], who was collecting royalties for the piece as co-author and arranger, responded erroneously that it was a traditional Peruvian composition.Cash Box said that "Paul Simon's arrangement and lyrics turn a marvelous South American folk melody into a stunning commentary.Many other exceptional covers belong to Peruvian guitar players including: Raúl García Zárate, Manuelcha Prado, and Mario Orozco Cáceres.Famous singers Plácido Domingo, Celia Cruz, Marc Anthony, José Feliciano, and Esther Ofarim also have their own covers of the song.