Gustavo Adolfo Palma
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Gustavo Adolfo Palma (31 August 1920 – 1 December 2009) was a
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
n singer, actor, and
lyric tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below mi ...
between 1936 and 1970, nicknamed "the Tenor of Central America" by Guatemalan radio personality José Flamenco y Cotero.


Early years

Palma's parents were lawyer Cecilio Palma y Palma and Piedad Recinos. When he was seven years old, his family moved to
Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...
. He soon began to sing in aficionado programs at the Abril Theater.


Career

Gustavo Adolfo Palma made his debut as a professional singer in 1936 with weekly songs on the broadcast radio station TGX. He was a regular singer on the radio during the golden age of Guatemala's state radio station at the age of seventeen. At the age of 20, he was trained in singing by Martha Bolaños de Prado, a noted music teacher who led several singers to great success at that time. In 1944, Palma participated in the contest "Trip to Mexico," promoted by
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
's state radio station XEW, which was looking for "the Voice of Latin America"; Palma won first place and was awarded with a professional career in Mexico, where he signed a contract with XEW, shared the music scene with
Jorge Negrete Jorge Alberto Negrete Moreno (; 30 November 1911 – 5 December 1953) was a Mexican singer and actor. He specialized in the musical genre of ranchera. His posthumous album "Fiesta Mexicana Volumen II" has been ranked by critics at No. 163 on t ...
, and was accompanied by some of the best broadcast
orchestras An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
. Returning to Guatemala in October 1944, he shared a stage with
Pedro Vargas Pedro Vargas Mata (29 April 1906 – 30 October 1989) was a Mexican tenor and actor, from the golden age of Mexican cinema, participating in more than 70 films. He was known as the "Nightingale of the Americas", "Song Samurai" or "Continental ...
, in the glamorous Salon
Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...
, located in 6ª Avenue and 11 Street of zone 1 and in 1947, he shared a stage with
Pedro Infante Pedro Infante Cruz (; 18 November 1917 – 15 April 1957) was a Mexican ranchera singer and actor whose career spanned the golden age of Mexican cinema. Infante was born in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, and raised in nearby Guamúchil. He died on 15 Apri ...
in Mansion Victoria of the City of Guatemala. In 1955, he acted in the film "El Cristo Negro" (the Black Christ) with the actors Raúl Martinez and
Rosa Carmina Rosa Carmina Riverón Jiménez (born November 19, 1929) is a Cuban-Mexican actress and dancer. She was discovered in Cuba by the Spanish filmmaker Juan Orol, and made her debut in Mexican cinema in Orol's film ''A Woman from the East'' in 1946. ...
. The movie filmed in Guatemala and directed and produced by Jose Baviera, of
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
nationality Nationality is the legal status of belonging to a particular nation, defined as a group of people organized in one country, under one legal jurisdiction, or as a group of people who are united on the basis of culture. In international law, n ...
. This one forms part of the List of Guatemalan films. In 1956, he was named "most wanted artist", by popular vote, in a contest promoted by the newspaper ''Mundo Libre'', a testimony to the public's esteem. He recorded with several recording houses of Mexico, as well as "
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...
" and "
Musart Records Discos Musart, known as Musart Records in English, is a Mexican record label founded in 1948 in Mexico City. It is headquartered in Miami, FL and is a leading independent producer, publisher and distributor of Latin music, managing over 72,000 cop ...
". He recorded other
Central American Central America is a Subregion#North America, subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Ce ...
discography seals. In 1964, he participated in the Central American Festival of the Song, in
El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...
, obtaining a prize for his song "Tonight, my Love", composed by Marco Tulio Cordón. In 1970, he was the guest of honor in the First Festival of the Central American and
Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
Song in
Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
. The event was carried out 23, 24 and 25 October . Palma interpreted the song "Contigo" ("With You") of his own inspiration, accompanied by an
orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
conducted by maestro Jorge Sarmiento. In this event he again shared the stage with
Pedro Vargas Pedro Vargas Mata (29 April 1906 – 30 October 1989) was a Mexican tenor and actor, from the golden age of Mexican cinema, participating in more than 70 films. He was known as the "Nightingale of the Americas", "Song Samurai" or "Continental ...
. Palma was artistically versatile, acting in television, radio, night clubs and theaters across the entire Republic. In Guatemala, he was accompanied by famous orchestras led by conductors such as Miguel Sandoval. In 1982, he was the protagonist of the festival "Broadway '82" performed in the Teatro Nacional of Guatemala, where he shared the stage with a then unknown
Ricardo Arjona Edgar Ricardo Arjona Morales (born 19 January 1964), known as Ricardo Arjona (), is a Guatemalan singer and songwriter. He is one of the most successful and best-selling Latin American artists of all time, with more than 20 million records sold ...
. Palma also composed of some romantic songs and in 1976, he was the main protagonist of the photo soap opera called "Maria", acting with other Guatemalan singers, among them Elizabeth of Guatemala. In September 2005 he received a tribute, during the 75 the commemorative acts of anniversary of the . His last recording, called "Yesterday, Today and Always," was released in 1971.


See also

*
Music of Guatemala The music of Guatemala is diverse. Music is played all over the country. Towns also have wind and percussion bands that play during the lent and Easter-week processions as well as on other occasions. The marimba is an important instrument in Gua ...


Notes and references


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External links


Gustavo Adolfo Palma: ContigoGustavo Adolfo Palma: El caminante del MayabGustavo Adolfo Palma: Historia de amorGustavo Adolfo Palma: Mi amor es un gitanoGustavo Adolfo Palma: Españolerías
{{DEFAULTSORT:Palma, Gustavo Adolfo Guatemalan male singer-songwriters Guatemalan singer-songwriters Guatemalan male singers Tenors 1920 births 2009 deaths People from Jutiapa Department 20th-century Guatemalan male actors 20th-century male singers