Guillermo Portabales
Guillermo Portabales ( José Guillermo Quesada del Catillo ) (born April 6, 1911 in Rodas , in today's Cienfuegos province ; † October 25, 1970 ) was a Cuban singer and guitarist who played the Guajira style from the 1930s to the 1960s popularized. It is very popular all over Latin America .
At the age of eleven, he began working as a printer assistant in the province of Cienfuegos .
In 1928 he made his radio debut. Portabales started out with a variety of styles in his repertoire, including Canción , Tango , Bolero and Son , until he discovered that his listeners liked his guajiras the most. Therefore, he refined this style and shaped the Salon Guajira , in whose texts he described the life of the Guajiros , the rural population. Portabales sang and played guitar, accompanied by bass and percussion . In his guajiras elements of the traditional son mix with bolero.
Portabales played in Eastern Cuba until he was invited to Puerto Rico in 1936 . He stayed there for several years, singing in clubs and for the radio. In 1939 he married the Puerto Rican Arah Mina López, a journalist who accompanied him on trips to Colombia , Venezuela , Ecuador , Peru , Panama , New York and Tampa in Florida.
In 1940 Portabales returned to Havana to play with the Trio Matamoros . He toured the United States and stayed in Barranquilla , Colombia , for an extended period .
In 1953, Portabales finally settled in Puerto Rico. In 1970 he died in a car accident.
His greatest successes were El Carretero, Cuando salí de Cuba and Al Vaivén de mi Carreta.
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| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Portabales, Guillermo |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | José Guillermo Quesada del Catillo (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Cuban singer and guitarist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 6, 1911 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Rodas , in the former Las Villas district |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 25, 1970 |