Santo Domingo (República Dominicana), 1957
By Ángel G. Quintero Rivera
He belongs to a generation of Dominican singers and songwriters who, starting in the early 1980s, set out to rediscover the richness of their country’s folklore. With a solid musical education—he studied jazz at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston—he renewed the folk tradition, especially merengue, giving it a fresh vibe and great international popularity and recognition. With his group 440, he achieved extraordinary vocal arrangements that harmonically enriched Dominican popular music since their first production—En soplando (1984). His songs also improved lyrically with each album, reaching the level of the most sophisticated creations of the Nueva Canción or Nueva Trova movements. They combine love themes with sharp social criticism, aligning with the utopian tradition of salsa. The compositions “Ojalá que Llueva Café” and “Visa para un Sueño” have already become classics in this regard.
Indeed, part of the enrichment he brought to merengue involved incorporating salsa rhythms, as well as elements from jazz and rock. He also revolutionized romantic song through bachata, a Dominican genre descended from the popular café bolero. On the album Bachata Rosa (1990), Juan Luis Guerra collaborated with the great pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba. His biggest hit on this album was the surreal and highly suggestive composition “Burbujas de amor.” He also dignified the musical tradition of the Anglophone Antilles, especially in the Creole migration within his country, notably with the songs “Woman del Callao” and “Guavaberry.”
From his album Ni es lo mismo ni es igual, his excellent critical description of underdeveloped medical services stands out in the merengue “El Niágara en bicicleta.” In recent years, he has also produced important compositions in the “Christian music” genre.
In 2007, he won five Latin Grammy Awards. In 2008, he was named a UNESCO Artist for Peace. And in 2010, he won three more Latin Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year.
