Horacio Salinas

Multi-instrumentalist, composer, and music director of Andes folk group Inti Illimani, Horacio Salinas has brought the traditional music of Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Argentina to the international stage. A chemical engineering student at Santiago Technical University, in the mid-'60s, Salinas turned to music after meeting other musically inclined students who formed Inti Illimani in August 1967. Since joining the group, in October 1967, Salinas has played an essential role in their musical evolution. While touring with Inti Illimani in Europe, Salinas found his and the band's passports revoked following the uprising that resulted in Chilean president Salvador Allende being deposed. For the next 14 years, he and fellow band members based their operations in Rome, Italy, while touring around the globe. Returning to Chile to perform a much-heralded concert in 1998, Salinas and Inti Illimani moved home permanently in 1990. ~ Craig Harris, Rovi