Alberto Zayas | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Alberto Zayas Govín |
| Also known as | El Melodioso |
| Born | (1908-02-14)February 14, 1908 Pueblo Nuevo,Matanzas,Cuba |
| Died | 1983 (aged 74–75) Guanabacoa,Havana,Cuba |
| Genres | Guaguancó (Cuban rumba),conga,Santería music,Abakuá music,son cubano |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, Afro-Cuban percussion |
| Years active | 1922–1983 |
| Labels | Panart, Impresora Cubana de Discos |
| Formerly of | Grupo Afrocubano Lulú Yonkori |
Alberto Zayas Govín[nb 1] (February 14, 1908 – 1983) was aCuban rumba singer and songwriter who founded one of the first recorded rumba ensembles, Grupo Afrocubano Lulú Yonkori. He is considered one of the most importantguaguancó vocalists/composers in the history of rumba.[2]
Alberto Zayas Govín was born in the Pueblo Nuevo neighborhood ofMatanzas on February 14, 1908.[3][4] When he was one year old his family moved toHavana. At age 14 he lived inEl Cerro district of Havana and sang incoros de clave, the precursor ensembles of theguaguancó. There he earned the nickname "El Melodioso" (The Melodious One).[3] In 1925 he moved toGuanabacoa, another district of Havana.[3] According to several accounts, Zayas played with several son ensembles such asSexteto Habanero and Sexteto Boloña, before focusing on rumba and other Afro-Cuban genres.[4][5]
Zayas became a collaborator of ethnomusicologistFernando Ortiz and in 1941 he invited anthropologistHarold Courlander to anAbakuá ceremony in Guanabacoa.[6] This meeting yielded part of the 10 hours of recorded material that are kept at the Archives of Traditional Music (Indiana University), some of which were released byFolkways Records in 1951 under the titleCult Music of Cuba.[7]
The first folkloric guaguancó to get popular through jukebox recordings was "El vive bien" by the conjunto of Alberto Zayas, based in Guanabacoa. This recording and the consumer interest that it generated led to the national promotion of the Grupo Guaguancó Matancero, later known as theMuñequitos de Matanzas.
During the 1950s, his ensemble, Grupo Afrocubano Lulú Yonkori, featured lead singers Roberto Maza and Carlos Embale, backing vocalists Adriano Rodríguez, Bienvenido León, Mercedes Romay and Juanita Romay, and percussionists Giraldo Rodríguez and Gerardo Valdés among others.[4] They recorded four LPs forPanart, which have been called "some of the first authentic rumba recordings in Cuban history" by ethnomusicologist Ivor Miller (University of Calabar).[9] The first one wasGuaguancó afro-cubano (1956), which featured the hit "El vive bien", penned by Zayas.[1] It was followed byEl guaguansón (1957), credited to "Alfredito Zayas y su Grupo Folklórico". The next record wasAfro-frenetic. Tambores de Cuba (1958), and in July 1959 the band released a conga albumCongas y comparsas del carnaval habanero (Side-B included recordings by Carlos Barbería).[1] In 1961, Impresora Cubana de Discos released two tracks by Zayas' ensemble withPacho Alonso on lead vocals.[5]
Zayas would continue his career in theatre shows and radio broadcasts, and he toured abroad as director of the Grupo Folklórico Cubano.[4] Zayas died in 1983 in Guanabacoa.[4]
