Perhaps the secret of his craft lies in a mix of archaic simplicity and densely packed meaning.Music making (playing an instrument or singing) is a multimodal activity that involves the integration of auditory and sensorimotor processes. A few years later he traveled to Mexico, the epicenter of Latin American showbiz, where he met stars like Cantinflas, tenor Pedro Vargas and movie siren Mara Flix.īut his own star has really risen in his later years, particularly in Spain, where he has just recorded tracks for his new album, Lo Mejor de la Vida (Nonesuch).Ī veritable lifeforce, Compay Segundo shows no signs of slowing the pace with which he sows his earthy, artsy songs all over the world. When he left for Havana in 1934 with fellow artist ico Saquito, his career took off.
He built his strength in his farm youth, and he says, speaking as if these were things he could do today, I know how to plow, yoke oxen, clear fields, plant beans and tubers.Īfter World War II his family moved to Santiago, and Segundo worked as a cigar-maker, an indoor wall painter, even as a hairstylist. When he performs on stage, he jams on his armnico, playing hard, fast riffs. He definitely looks strong enough to handle anything. When asked if he's married, Segundo replies, I have a girlfriend. His grandchildren have formed a group, Herederos del Caney, and they keep asking him for songs. The other stuff, says Segundo, referring to contemporary popular music, has no beautiful lyrics, just common sayings.īut he insists that young people are turning to traditional styles. I don't like noise or strident instrumentations. That's so one can hear the songs clearly, says Segundo, so one can hear the poetry. Segundo's ensemble, Los Muchachos, uses only maracas and bass for rhythm.
Along the way he developed his own style. During his long career he has been associated with legends of Cuban music, like the great bandleader Beny Mor the master of son, Miguel Matamoros and the classic trova artist Sindo Garay.
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