“They’re Stealing Our Music”: The Argentinísima Controversy, National Culture Boundaries, and the Rise of a Bolivian Nationalist Discourse

Abstract

The Bolivian perception that foreigners often misrepresent the true national origin of many local folkloric musical expressions has long been prevalent. This article examines the conditions within which that perception initially became widespread, by discussing the uproar that ensued in 1973 in response to Jaime Torres’s performance in the film Argentinísima. I argue that this Bolivian reaction was linked not only to local nationalist apprehensions over Argentine musical folklorists’ Andean-inspired repertoire but also to urban Bolivian musicians’ assimilation of Argentine folkloric-popular music practices. My goals are to offer a critical analysis of the Argentinísima controversy and to illuminate the historical context within which Bolivia’s presently ubiquitous nationalist discourse concerning transnational musical appropriation arose.