专辑简介

Miguel Matamoros had a great love for the guitar which began at the age of eight (He was born on the 8th of May 1894 in the town of Santiago, in the Cuban province of Oriente.), when he commenced taking his first lessons. At the time of undergoing his apprenticeship of the guitar and voice improvement lessons, he was frequently called upon to play serenades whenever there was something to celebrate in his native city, and where in 1912 he actually performed in public at the Heredia theater. He later formed a duo with his friend Trino Martinelli, who took the part of the second voice as well as playing guitar. Miguel, before devoting himself fully as an artist, worked in an extraordinary variety of working situations. At different times he was employed in the repair of telegraph and telephone lines, at the bacardi rum distillery, in a mosaic factory, as a copper miner, in a sawmill, and as chauffeur-driver. His first visit to Havana took place in the year 1922, when he performed in a serenade celebrated at an exclusive social gathering. In 1924 he arrived for the second time in the capital, but this time in the company of the Trio Oriental, of which he was musical director. This trio had been formed by Miguel with himself as first voice and guitar, Alfonso Del Rio as guitar accompanist, and Miguel Bisbé as second voice and claves. At that particular time Del Rio, who was actually a police official in Santiago, was asked by Matamoros for a permit so that he could remain in Havana, but the request was turned down. It was then that a friend suggested he replace Del Rio with Rafael Cueto, and that’s how Cueto first came to know Matamoros. The Trio Oriental performed at both the Albisu and Actualidades theaters, and after its stay in the capital, the trio returned to Santiago. At a party to celebrate Miguel’s birthday on the 8th of May 1925, Rafael Cueto was present and accompanied by his childhood friend, the singer Ciro Rodriguez. Cueto introduced him to Miguel, who then invited Ciro to perform as second voice in one of his own songs that he intended performing during the festivities. Ciro, who already knew some of the works of Matamoros and had actually sung them on occasions, immediately agreed to the request. Miguel was pleasantly surprised by Ciro’s voice and the interpretation he made of the song. From that moment on it could be said that the Trio Matamoros was an established entity. And from that point too their performances as a trio became increasingly frequent, but always, of course, in their free time, for the three of them still carried on in their respective places of work. Finally, in the year 1928, the Trio Matamoros was given the opportunity to make a recording, and the first session took place at the RCA studios in Camden, New Jersey. Their first big success was a 78 rpm that contained El Que Siembra Su Maiz and Olvido, which sold 74,000 copies in Cuba. This constituted the artistic pinnacle for the three, especially for Matamoros, the author and creator of a distinctive interpretative style. Miguel Matamoros, a memorable creator, guitarist and interpreter, passed away on the 15th April 1971 in his native city, Santiago.