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Alberto Villalón Morales

Alberto Villalón Morales (Santiago de Cuba, 7 June 1882 – Havana, 16 July 1955) was one of the greatest musicians in the Cuban trova style.

He was the only one of the 'four greats' of the trova to come from a well-to-do family. Villalón and his sister América studied guitar with Pepe Sánchez, the father of the trova movement. Later, he studied classical guitar to achieve a really excellent technique. He composed his first canciones and boleros at fourteen, and moved to Havana in 1900. In 1907 he recorded on Edison cylinders. In 1908 he formed the Cuarteto Villalón with Adolfo Colombo (tenor), Claudio García (baritone), Emilio Reinoso (mandolin), and Alberto Villalón (guitar). Colombo and García were regular members of the Teatro Alhambra company; Colombo was the most recorded singer of the age.

A difference between Villalón and the other early trovadors was in his guitar technique. With his training he preferred picking (punteado) instead of strumming (rasgueado), which had been the main technique previously. This gave him a wider range of harmonic possibilities and a characteristic style. He had a second career in 1927 when he became a founding member of the Septeto Nacional de Ignacio Piñeiro. Alberto brought into the septet Juan de la Cruz and Benvenido León, who had been playing with him in a trio. The addition of the first really great sonero, Abelardo Barroso (1905 – 1972), made the Nacional the best group in Cuba for its time.

Villalón's career, then, connected the world of trova with the world of son which became central to Cuba's popular music for the rest of the century.

Birth and Death Data: Born June 7, 1882 (Santiago de Cuba), Died July 16, 1955

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1906 - 1940

Roles Represented in DAHR: guitar, composer, lyricist

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 326-331 of 331 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Brunswick 11563-11564 10-in. 10/8/1923 El esclavo Villalon Trio Instrumental trio instrumentalist, guitar  
Edison 896 10-in. 12/11/1911 Matanzas Luisa Bresonier Soprano vocal solo, with orchestra composer, lyricist  
Edison 5404 10-in. 2/21/1917 A Maceo Marcelino Arean ; Adolfo Colombo Male vocal duet, with guitar instrumentalist, guitar  
Edison 10603 10-in. 9/30/1925 Ilusión de mi vida Juan De la Cruz ; Bienvenido León Male vocal duet, with orchestra composer  
Edison 10604 10-in. 9/30/1925 Mi paloma blanca Juan De la Cruz ; Bienvenido León Male vocal duet, with orchestra composer  
Edison 10610 10-in. 10/2/1925 Mi chiquita Juan De la Cruz ; Bienvenido León Male vocal duet, with orchestra composer  
(Results 326-331 of 331 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Villalón Morales, Alberto," accessed April 29, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/113130.

Villalón Morales, Alberto. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 29, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/113130.

"Villalón Morales, Alberto." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 29 April 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/113130

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