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Arrival Story: Guillermo Bordarampe

By Jeremy Rosenberg
September 1, 2011
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KCET Departures asks, "What's your or your family's Los Angeles arrival story?"

Today, we hear from musician and music and folklore promoter Guillermo Bordarampe.

"I was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on December 4, 1951.

"At the time Argentina was undergoing many changes and it has continued to undergo changes ever since. I did my schooling there in a neighborhood of the Buenos Aires suburbs called Ciudad Jardin, El Palomar. The Air Force has a base right there and Colegio Militar de la Nacion is right there too.

"During our escuela secundaria (combination of Jr. High and High School) years along with a couple of friends we decided to put together a music band, that later on became very popular, under the name Arco Iris. It was a sort of South American Pink Floyd.

"The three basic friends and members of the band ended up moving to L.A. in the late `70s, when Argentina was going through one of the darkest pages of its history.

"The two friends, Gustavo Santaolalla and Ara Tokatlian, are still here -- Gustavo in Echo Park, Ara in Lake Arrowhead and I live in Silver Lake.

"I still do music and have a recording studio, plus I do interpreting in the Courts. Gustavo has had and still has a very successful career as a producer (Juanes, Cafe Tacuba, Julieta Venegas, etc.), as a composer of music for films (won two Oscars for the music of Brokeback Mountain and Babel) and has a great vineyard in Mendoza, Argentina.

"The reason we moved here was mainly the political situation and uncertainty in Argentina at the time. I came with Ara Tokatlian in August 1977. We stayed in Long Island, New York for about 6 months, but after the first winter decided that place was not for us and came as far as we could.

"Here in L.A. we put the band Arco Iris together again with local musicians and toured and played all over the place. I split in 1982 and put together a music and dance company from Peru, INCA, the Peruvian Ensemble, and have been playing and recording with them ever since.

"I also produce shows at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre. We [had one] Saturday August 20, called Fiesta Argentina 2011."

-- Guillermo Bordarampe
(as emailed to Jeremy Rosenberg)

Photo: Courtesy Guillermo Bordarampe. Members of the band, Arco Iris, from right to left: Horacio Gianello, Gustavo Santaolalla, Ara Tokatlian and Guillermo Bordarampe.

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