Adalberto Cecilio Álvarez Zayas (22 November 1948 – 1 September 2021) was a

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

n pianist, arranger, conductor, and composer.

Biography

Adalberto was born in La Havana on November 22, 1948, but considered himself a native of Camagüey, where he lived his early years. His birth in Havana had been "accidental", as his mother was visiting the capital and gave birth to him there. He began his musical career as a singer, but was admitted to the Escuela Nacional de Artes ( National School of Arts) in Havana for bassoon study. He was enrolled there between 1966 and 1972, and also served as professor of Musical Literature at the Provincial School of Art of Camagüey during the 1970s. He founded the Cuban orchestra Son 14 in 1978, and later disbanded it in the 1980s. In 1984, Álvarez started the group Adalberto Alvarez y su Son, which he directed until his death from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

in 2021, after contracting

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

. Both of these groups have been cited as incredibly influential to the Cuban music scene as a whole. He was one of the first people to publicly acknowledge his practice of

Santería Santería (), also known as Regla de Ocha, Regla Lucumí, or Lucumí, is an African diaspora religions, Afro-Caribbean religion that developed in Cuba during the late 19th century. It arose amid a process of syncretism between the traditional ...

, an Afro-Cuban religion. The genre of his music is son, a style of music that originated in Cuba. He was also deputy to the National Assembly of People's Power between 2013 and 2018 and was elected from Camagüey municipality.

Awards and honors

In 2008, he was awarded a National Music Award. He also received several distinctions which include Distinction for National Culture, Félix Varela Order, and the Cubadisco Award several times.

Adalberto Álvarez y su Son

Adalberto Álvarez y su Son is a band founded in 1984 by Álvarez.

References

External links

Official site
* * 1948 births 2021 deaths Cuban male songwriters People from Camagüey Cuban bandleaders Son cubano singers Male pianists 21st-century male pianists 21st-century Cuban male musicians Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Cuba 21st-century Cuban musicians 20th-century Cuban male musicians 20th-century Cuban pianists National Art Schools (Cuba) alumni {{Cuba-musician-stub