Julito Rodríguez Reyes (October 5, 1925 - July 27, 2013) was a Puerto Rican

bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It h ...

singer,

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

ist &

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

. Born in

Santurce, Puerto Rico Santurce (, meaning Saint George from Basque language, Basque ''Santurtzi'') is the largest and most populated Barrios of San Juan, Puerto Rico, barrio of the Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan, the cap ...

, Rodriguez was acknowledged to be a

child prodigy A child prodigy is, technically, a child under the age of 10 who produces meaningful work in some domain at the level of an adult expert. The term is also applied more broadly to describe young people who are extraordinarily talented in some f ...

in music, becoming interested in this topic since his early childhood. His father encouraged him to study the

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

and soon, he joined the ''Banda Hatuey'' as a substitute. After moving across the island to Ponce, a town located in the south coast, he organized the "Orquesta Hatuey de Ponce". Julito Rodriguez got his first guitar as a present from his mother. He returned to San Juan in 1946, to study at the Universidad de Puerto Rico, there he joined the ROTC band directed by

Rafael Alers Rafael Alers (October 16, 1903 – March 20, 1978) was a musician, composer, bandleader and the first Puerto Rican to compose the music score for a Hollywood feature film. Early years Rafael Alers Gerena ) was born in the city of Aguadilla, Puer ...

. By 1947, Rodriguez had found a new musical passion in the "trio" music. His first "trio" was named "Los Romanceros". The group enjoyed considerable success until 1950, when Rodriguez decided to join the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

during the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

. Rafael Hernández helped Rodriguez decide to join the world famous trio,

Los Panchos Originally, Trio Los Panchos were a '' trío romántico'' formed in New York City in 1944 by Alfredo Gil, Chucho Navarro, and the Puerto Rican Hernando Avilés. The trio became one of the leading exporters of the bolero and the romantic balla ...

, in 1952. With Los Panchos, Rodriguez's fame expanded beyond Puerto Rico and the rest of Latin America, as the group made several tours that also included Spain, Portugal, Italy and even

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

in the Middle East. Julito Rodriguez became an idol in Mexico as well, recording 122 songs as a member of Los Panchos in that country. Many years later, Manuel "Chuchu" Hernandez continues to carry his legacy in the SGM arena. Rodriguez, as a composer, wrote one of the

classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of Masterpiece, lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or Literary merit, highest quality, class, or rank – something that Exemplification, exemplifies its ...

s of the Latin American bolero

repertory A repertory theatre, also called repertory, rep, true rep or stock, which are also called producing theatres, is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom ...

: ''Mar y cielo'' (Sea and Sky). -''...el mar y el cielo, se ven igual de azules, y en la distancia, parece que se unen...''-. Julito Rodríguez was succeeded at Los Panchos by Johnny Albino. Nevertheless, he continued active in trio music, forming the "Trio Los Primos" group. In 1961, this group became the first Puerto Rican trio to perform at

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Radio City Music Hall Radio City Music Hall (also known as Radio City) is an entertainment venue and Theater (structure), theater at 1260 Sixth Avenue (Manhattan), Avenue of the Americas, within Rockefeller Center, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York C ...

. The group later changed its name to "Julito Rodriguez and his Trio". Julito Rodiguez and his Trio was composed of Junior Nazario, best second voice on Puerto Rico, and Rafael Scharron. Scharron is considered the best "requinto," first guitar of Puerto Rico. Julito Rodriguez and his Trio stayed together for more than 16 years. Julito Rodriguez, Junior Nazario and Rafael Scharron are considered one of the best trios of Puerto Rico. Together they participated in movies and traveled all over the world representing the beautiful island of Puerto Rico and entertaining thousands with beautiful music. By 1975, Rodriguez had once again moved on, this time around to form "Los Tres Grandes" ("The Three Great Ones"), alongside ''Tato Díaz'' and ''Miguel Alcaide''. The

trio Trio may refer to: Music Groups * Trio (music), an ensemble of three performers, or a composition for such an ensemble ** Jazz trio, pianist, double bassist, drummer ** Minuet and trio, a form in classical music ** String trio, a group of three ...

recorded nine LP albums, and remained together until 1983, after which Rodriguez returned to a more private life. Rodriguez and Albino were joined in 2000 during a series of concerts, to commemorate their respective eras as members of Los Panchos. Rodriguez died in his home in

Hato Rey, Puerto Rico Hato Rey ( Spanish for ''king’s cattle farm''), often considered the central business district of Puerto Rico, is a highly urbanized financial, commercial, and residential district in San Juan, the capital municipality of the archipelago a ...

, at age 87 in on July 27, 2013, due to health complications. He was buried at the

Puerto Rico National Cemetery Puerto Rico National Cemetery is a United States national cemetery located in the city of Bayamón, Puerto Rico, Bayamón, in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It encompasses of land, and at the end of 2005, had 44,722 interments. Until 2021, it ...

Bayamón, Puerto Rico Bayamón (, ) is a Bayamón barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in Puerto Rico. Located on the northeastern coastal plain, it is bounded by Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, Guaynabo to the east, Toa Alta, Puerto Rico, Toa A ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Julito 1925 births 2013 deaths Burials at Puerto Rico National Cemetery Musicians from Santurce, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican male composers Puerto Rican guitarists 20th-century Puerto Rican male singers 20th-century Puerto Rican singers Puerto Rican male singer-songwriters Singers from San Juan, Puerto Rico

See also

References