Enrique "Mono" Villegas (3 August 1913 – 11 July 1986) was an Argentine jazz pianist and composer.
Life and career
Born in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
into an aristocratic family, Villegas studied piano under the guidance of the composer
Alberto Williams
Alberto Williams (23 November 1862 – 17 June 1952) was an Argentine composer, pianist, pedagogue, and conductor.
Life and work
Alberto Williams was born in Buenos Aires, in 1862. His maternal grandfather, Amancio Jacinto Alcorta, had been ...
.
Trained in classical music, he soon abandoned this genre to embrace jazz.
He held his first concert at the
Teatro Odeón
The '' Odeon Theater'' (''Teatro Odeón'' in Spanish) was a theater in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was built by Don Emilio Bieckert in the end of the 19th century. In July 1896, it hosted the first ever film screening in Argentina. It was demol ...
at 19 years old, and performed his first composition, ''Jazzeta'', in 1941.
After forming some ensambles (notably the Santa Anita Sextet and Los Punteros) and collaborating to several recordings, he recorded the first album under his name in 1952.
In the mid-1950s he was put under contract by
and moved to
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
; after two albums he decided to terminate the contract due to artistic disagreements with the label.
He then toured extensively in Europe, United States and Latin America for eight years, before coming back in Buenos Aires where he formed two trio ensambles, first with Jorge López Ruiz and Eduardo Casalla, and then with Alfredo Remus and Néstor Astarita, and recorded several albums.
The first jazz pianist to perform at famed
Teatro Colón
The Teatro Colón () is a historic opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is considered one of the ten best opera houses in the world by National Geographic. According to a survey carried out by the acoustics expert Leo Beranek among leadin ...
,
he died from complications due to a hip broken in a car accident.
Discography
* ''Folklore + Villegas'' - 1952 (MUSIC-HALL - LD 70.237)
* ''Introducing Villegas'' - 1956 (Columbia, B-787)
* ''Very, Very, Villegas'' - 1957 (Columbia - CL-877)
* ''En cuerpo y alma'' - 1966 (Trova TL1 - RP music)
* ''Metamorfosis'' - Los 24 preludios de Chopin - 1967 (Trova TL8 - RP music)
* ''Tributo a Monk'' - 1967 (Trova TL12 - RP music)
* ''Porgy & Bess'' - 1968 (Trova TL 19 - RP music)
* ''Encuentro - Enrique Villegas / Paul Gonçalves / Willie Cook'' - 1968 (Trova TL22 - RP music)
* ''Baladas de amor'' - 1968 (Trova TL29 - RP music)
* ''60 años 3-8-73'' - 1973 (Trova XT80064 - RP music)
* ''Inspiración'' - 1975 (Cabal – LPL 9006)
* ''Tributo a Jerome Kern'' - 1977 (Aleluya Records 17000 - RP music)
References
External links
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1913 births
1986 deaths
Musicians from Buenos Aires
Argentine jazz pianists
Argentine composers
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