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{{short description|Puerto Rican composer}}
⚫
'''Tite Curet Alonso''' ([[February 26]], [[1926]]-[[August 5]], [[2003]]) born in [[Guayama]], [[Puerto Rico]] was a renowned composer of over 2,000 [[Music of Puerto Rico|salsa]] songs.
{{Infobox musical artist
[[Image:TiteCuretAlonso.jpg|right|160px|thumb|'''Tite Curet Alonso''']]
|name = Catalino "Tite" Curet Alonso
Born '''Catalino Curet Alonso''' in the southern town of Guayama, Alonso's mother was a seamtress and his father a [[Spanish language|Spanish]] teacher and [[musician]] in the band of Simon Madera. He was two years old in [[1928]] when his parents divorced and he, his mother and sister moved to Barrio Obrero in [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|Santurce]] with his grandmother. Barrio Obrero is a poor section of Santurce which is part of [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]. Living in Barrio Obrero and his experiences there greatly influenced his music. He was raised by his grandmother and he received his primary and secondary education. In [[1941]] when he was 15 years old, he wrote his first song. Among his childhood friends were [[Rafael Cortijo]], [[Ismael Rivera]] and [[Daniel Santos]].
|image = TiteCuretAlonso.jpg
|image_size = 162
|caption =
|background = non_performing_personnel
|birth_name =
|Also_known_as =
|birth_date = {{Birth date|1926|2|12}}
|birth_place = [[Guayama, Puerto Rico]]
|death_date = {{death date and age|2003|08|05|1926|2|26}}
|death_place = [[Baltimore]], [[Maryland]], US
|origin =
|instrument =
|genre = [[Salsa music|Salsa]]
|occupation = Composer
|years_active =
|label =
|website =
}}


⚫
'''Catalino "Tite" Curet Alonso''' (February 12, 1926 – August 5, 2003) was a Puerto Rican composer of over 2,000 [[Music of Puerto Rico|salsa]] songs.
⚫
After he graduated from high school, he enrolled in the [[University of Puerto Rico]] where he studied journalism and sociology. He worked for the [[United States Postal Service]], a job which he held for more then twenty years. All the while he continued to compose songs. In [[1960]] he moved to [[New York City]] and worked for the newspaper "La Prensa" as a sports journalist. In [[1965]], Alonso met salsa singer [[Joe Quijano]] who recorded Alonoso's ''Efectivamente'' which became a hit. Alonso developed a unique style of his own which is known as "salsa with a conscience". He wrote songs about social and romantic themes which told about the poor blacks and the hardships that they faced. He also focused many of his songs on what he called the beauty of the [[black]] [[Caribbean|caribbeans]].


==Early years==
⚫
Throughout his life, Alonso composed over two thousand songs. Some of the people who have intrepeted his songs are: Joe Quijano, [[Cheo Feliciano]], [[Celia Cruz]], [[La Lupe]], [[Willie Colon]], [[Tito Rodriguez]], [[Olga Guillot]], [[Hector Lavoe]], [[Ray Barretto]], [[Tony Croatto]], [[Ruben Blades]], [[Tito Puente]], [[Ismael Miranda]], [[Roberto Roena]], [[Bobby Valentin]], [[Marvin Santiago]], [[Willie Rosario]], [[Chucho Avellanet]], [[Andy Montañez]], [[Rafael Cortijo]], [[Tommy Olivencia]] and [[Frankie Ruiz]]. His song ''Las Caras Linda (De Me Gente Negra)'' (The Beautifel Faces (Of My Black People) recorded by Ismael Rivera, is considered by many as a classic.
Curet Alonso (birth name: '''Catalino Curet Alonso'''<ref group=note>{{family name hatnote|'''Curet'''|'''Alonso'''|lang=Spanish}}</ref>) was born in [[Guayama]], a town located in the southern region of [[Puerto Rico]]. Curet Alonso's mother was a seamstress and his father a [[Spanish language]] teacher and musician who played in the band of Simón Madera.<ref name="PRPOP">{{Cite web|url=https://prpop.org/biografias/tite-curet-alonso/|title=Tite Curet Alonso – Fundación Nacional para la Cultura Popular &#124; San Juan, Puerto Rico|access-date=2020-01-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170707102546/http://prpop.org/biografias/tite-curet-alonso/|archive-date=2017-07-07|url-status=live}}</ref> He was two years old in 1928, when his parents divorced and together with his mother and sister moved to Barrio Obrero, located in the [[Santurce, Puerto Rico|Santurce]] section of [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]] with his grandmother. His daily life experiences while living in Barrio Obrero greatly influenced his work as a composer. There he was raised by his grandmother and received his primary and secondary education. In 1941, when he was 15 years old, he wrote his first song. Among his childhood friends were [[Rafael Cortijo]], [[Ismael Rivera]], and [[Daniel Santos (singer)|Daniel Santos]].<ref name="MPR">{{cite web |url=http://www.salsaclasica.com/titecuretalonso |title=Bienvenido a esta página dedicada a Tite Curet Alonso |first=Samuel |last=Moraza |website=Salsa Clasica |language=es |access-date=2006-08-20 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160318234126/http://salsaclasica.com/titecuretalonso/ |archive-date=2016-03-18 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="L">{{Cite web|url=https://letralia.com/98/|title=Letralia, Tierra de Letras - La revista de los escritores hispanoamericanos en Internet|website=letralia.com|access-date=2020-01-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920105324/http://www.letralia.com/98/|archive-date=2016-09-20|url-status=live}}</ref>


==Career as a song composer==
⚫
Alonso married and had a daughter. The marriage didn't last and they were separated. In [[1985]], he met Norma Salazar with whom he lived with for the rest of his life. Despite the fact that the songs he wrote sold milliones of records, his royalties were minimal. According to his family Alonso was tricked into signing contracts which favored the recording studios and not him.
⚫
After he graduated from [[Central High School (San Juan, Puerto Rico)|Central High School]] in Santurce, he enrolled in the [[University of Puerto Rico]] where he studied [[journalism]] and [[sociology]]. He worked for the [[United States Postal Service]], a job which he held for more than twenty years. All the while he continued to compose songs. In 1960, he moved to New York City and worked for the newspaper "Diario/La Prensa" as a sports columnist. In 1965, Curet Alonso met salsa singer [[Joe Quijano]] who recorded Alonso's ''Efectivamente'' which became a hit. Curet Alonso developed a unique style of his own which is known as "salsa with a conscience". He wrote songs about social and romantic themes which told about the situation of the poor [[Afro–Puerto Ricans]] and the hardships that they faced. He also focused many of his songs on what he called the beauty of the black Caribbeans.<ref name="LTCS">{{cite web |url=http://www.herencialatina.com/Cachao/Canciones_Tite/Cancionero_Tite.htm |title=Cancionero Parcial Tite Curet Alonso |date=9 August 2005 |website=Herencia Latina |language=es |access-date=18 December 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061107031657/http://www.herencialatina.com/Cachao/Canciones_Tite/Cancionero_Tite.htm |archive-date=7 November 2006 |url-status=live }}</ref>


⚫
Throughout his life, Curet Alonso composed over two thousand songs. Arguably, about 200 of these were hit songs, and about 50 of these were major salsa hits. Some of the people who have interpreted his songs are: Joe Quijano, [[Iris Chacón]], [[Wilkins Vélez|Wilkins]], [[Cheo Feliciano]], [[Celia Cruz]], [[La Lupe]], [[Willie Colón]], [[Tito Rodríguez]], [[Olga Guillot]], [[Mon Rivera]], [[Héctor Lavoe]], [[Ray Barretto]], [[Tony Croatto]], [[Rubén Blades]], [[Tito Puente]], [[Ismael Miranda]], [[Roberto Roena]], [[Bobby Valentín]], [[Marvin Santiago]], [[Willie Rosario]], [[Chucho Avellanet]], [[Andy Montañez]], [[Rafael Cortijo]], [[Tommy Olivencia]], and [[Frankie Ruiz]]. His song ''Las Caras Lindas (De Mi Gente Negra)'' (The Beautiful Faces (Of My Black People) recorded by [[Ismael Rivera]], is considered by many in Puerto Rico as a classic.<ref name="LTCS"/> In addition to salsa, Curet Alonso also composed samba, [[Airto Moreira]] being one of the interpreters of his work in that genre. ''Samba de Flora,'' interpreted by Airto, is one of many he composed.
Tite Curet Alonso died on August 5, 2003 from a [[heart attack]] in [[Baltimore, Maryland]]. William Nazaret, a [[Venezuelan]] made sure that Alonso's body was transferred to Puerto Rico. In Puerto Rico he was given a heros funeral, first the wake was held at the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture with an honor guard and then at the Capital Building of Puerto Rico in San Juan. Finally he was laid to rest in the Cementery of Santa Maria de Passi in San Juan.

==Later years==
⚫
Curet Alonso married and had a daughter and son. The marriage didn't last long and he and his wife separated. Despite the fact that the songs he wrote sold millions of records, his royalties were minimal. According to his family, Curet Alonso was tricked into signing contracts which favored the recording studios and the publishing company "ACEMLA", and not him.<ref name="MPR"/>

In spite of their great popularity in the hearts of 'salseros' around the world his music was banned from Puerto Rican radio stations for decades by the strong-arm tactics of the music publishing company ACEMLA (Asociación de Compositores y Editores de Música Latinoamericana). ACEMLA sued every venue (radio, TV, CATV, municipalities, hotels, restaurants, etc., and even the Catholic Church) in Puerto Rico and every salsa radio station in New York City for copyright infringement of every song ever written by Curet Alonso, including songs that were already licensed by other publishing companies. In 2009, US Federal Court in San Juan released 695 songs originally licensed to Fania, but the rest of the catalog is still in ACEMLA's hands, and the legal battles continue.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.acemla.com/servicios/Procesos_Legales-6.html|title=ACEMLA: Procesos Legales|access-date=2016-02-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160423021845/http://acemla.com/servicios/Procesos_Legales-6.html|archive-date=2016-04-23|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wapa.tv/noticias/entretenimiento/liberadas-las-canciones-de-tite-curet_20090104164814.html |title=Liberadas las canciones de Tite Curet |agency=Associated Press |website=WAPA.tv |language=es |access-date=2016-02-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160302151559/http://www.wapa.tv/noticias/entretenimiento/liberadas-las-canciones-de-tite-curet_20090104164814.html |archive-date=2016-03-02 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://dialogoupr.com/guerra-judicial-por-las-liricas-de-catalino-curet-2/ |author=Manuel Clavell Carrasquillo |title=Guerra judicial por las líricas de Catalino Curet |date=23 February 2009 |website=DialogoUPR |language=es |access-date=19 February 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160301213825/http://dialogoupr.com/guerra-judicial-por-las-liricas-de-catalino-curet-2/ |archive-date=1 March 2016 |url-status=usurped }}</ref>

==Legacy ==
{{ external media
| float = center
| audio1 = You may listen to {{YouTube|RDdtP1-eU8A|Tite Curet Alonso's "'''Mi Triste Problema'''"}} interpreted by [[Cheo Feliciano|Jose "Cheo Feliciano]]
| audio2 = and to a piano interpretation by [[Luciano Quiñones]] of "'''Tiemblas'''" [http://www.piano-bar.com/pages/tiemblas.htm here]
}}
Tite Curet Alonso died on August 5, 2003, from a [[myocardial infarction|heart attack]] in [[Baltimore, Maryland]]. Richie Viera, a [[Puerto Rican people|Puerto Rican]] and William Nazaret, a [[Venezuela]]n, both friends of Curet Alonso, made sure that his body was transferred to Puerto Rico. In Puerto Rico he was given a [[state funeral]]. First the wake was held at the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture with an honor guard, then at Puerto Rico's Capitol building in San Juan, and then at San Juan City Hall. Finally he was interred in [[Santa Maria Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery]] in Old San Juan. [[Rubén Blades]] suspended some dates from his "farewell" tour (before becoming the Minister of Tourism for [[Panama]]) to attend Curet Alonso's funeral. [[Cheo Feliciano]], one of his closest friends, was one of the many famous pallbearers in attendance.<ref name="MPR"/><ref name="L"/> A posthumous collection of music composed by Tite Curet Alonso, the two-disc ''Alma de Poeta'', was published in 2009.

A life-sized statue honoring Curet Alonso now (literally) sits at San Juan's Plaza de Armas, in Curet Alonso's favorite bench spot.


==See also==
==See also==
⚫
*[[List of Puerto Ricans]]
*[[List of Puerto Ricans of African descent]]
*[[French immigration to Puerto Rico]]
*[[List of Puerto Rican songwriters]]
*[[List of singer-songwriters]]
{{clear}}


==Notes==
⚫
*[[List of famous Puerto Ricans]]
<references group=note/>


==External links==
==References==
{{reflist}}


==External links==
⚫
*[http://www.herencialatina.com/Cachao/Canciones_Tite/Cancionero_Tite.htm "Listing of 600 of Alonso's compositions"]
*[http://www.salsaclasica.com/titecuretalonso Biography, Photos, Lyrics (SalsaClasica.com)]
⚫
*[http://www.herencialatina.com/Cachao/Canciones_Tite/Cancionero_Tite.htm "Listing of 600 of Tite Curet's compositions"]
*[http://www.letralia.com/98/ "Tite Curet Alonso"]
*[http://www.letralia.com/98/ "Tite Curet Alonso"]
*[http://www.piano-bar.com/pages/tiemblas.htm Listen to Alonso's Tiemblas]


{{Authority control}}
⚫
[[Category: 1926 births|Alonso, Tite Curet]]
{{Portal bar|Biography|Music|Latin music|New York City|United States|Puerto Rico}}
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[[Category: 2003 deaths|Alonso, Tite Curet]]

⚫
[[Category: Puerto Rican composers|Alonso, Tite Curet]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curet Alonso, Tite}}
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[[Category:1926 births]]
⚫
[[Category:2003 deaths]]
[[Category:Burials at Santa María Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery]]
[[Category:People from Guayama, Puerto Rico]]
⚫
[[Category:Puerto Rican composers]]
[[Category:Puerto Rican people of African descent]]
[[Category:Salsa music]]
[[Category:Latin music composers]]
[[Category:United States Postal Service people]]

Latest revision as of 07:23, 21 December 2024

Catalino "Tite" Curet Alonso
Background information
Born(1926-02-12)February 12, 1926
Guayama, Puerto Rico
DiedAugust 5, 2003(2003-08-05) (aged 77)
Baltimore, Maryland, US
GenresSalsa
OccupationComposer

Catalino "Tite" Curet Alonso (February 12, 1926 – August 5, 2003) was a Puerto Rican composer of over 2,000 salsa songs.

Early years

[edit]

Curet Alonso (birth name: Catalino Curet Alonso[note 1]) was born in Guayama, a town located in the southern region of Puerto Rico. Curet Alonso's mother was a seamstress and his father a Spanish language teacher and musician who played in the band of Simón Madera.[1] He was two years old in 1928, when his parents divorced and together with his mother and sister moved to Barrio Obrero, located in the Santurce section of San Juan with his grandmother. His daily life experiences while living in Barrio Obrero greatly influenced his work as a composer. There he was raised by his grandmother and received his primary and secondary education. In 1941, when he was 15 years old, he wrote his first song. Among his childhood friends were Rafael Cortijo, Ismael Rivera, and Daniel Santos.[2][3]

Career as a song composer

[edit]

After he graduated from Central High School in Santurce, he enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico where he studied journalism and sociology. He worked for the United States Postal Service, a job which he held for more than twenty years. All the while he continued to compose songs. In 1960, he moved to New York City and worked for the newspaper "Diario/La Prensa" as a sports columnist. In 1965, Curet Alonso met salsa singer Joe Quijano who recorded Alonso's Efectivamente which became a hit. Curet Alonso developed a unique style of his own which is known as "salsa with a conscience". He wrote songs about social and romantic themes which told about the situation of the poor Afro–Puerto Ricans and the hardships that they faced. He also focused many of his songs on what he called the beauty of the black Caribbeans.[4]

Throughout his life, Curet Alonso composed over two thousand songs. Arguably, about 200 of these were hit songs, and about 50 of these were major salsa hits. Some of the people who have interpreted his songs are: Joe Quijano, Iris Chacón, Wilkins, Cheo Feliciano, Celia Cruz, La Lupe, Willie Colón, Tito Rodríguez, Olga Guillot, Mon Rivera, Héctor Lavoe, Ray Barretto, Tony Croatto, Rubén Blades, Tito Puente, Ismael Miranda, Roberto Roena, Bobby Valentín, Marvin Santiago, Willie Rosario, Chucho Avellanet, Andy Montañez, Rafael Cortijo, Tommy Olivencia, and Frankie Ruiz. His song Las Caras Lindas (De Mi Gente Negra) (The Beautiful Faces (Of My Black People) recorded by Ismael Rivera, is considered by many in Puerto Rico as a classic.[4] In addition to salsa, Curet Alonso also composed samba, Airto Moreira being one of the interpreters of his work in that genre. Samba de Flora, interpreted by Airto, is one of many he composed.

Later years

[edit]

Curet Alonso married and had a daughter and son. The marriage didn't last long and he and his wife separated. Despite the fact that the songs he wrote sold millions of records, his royalties were minimal. According to his family, Curet Alonso was tricked into signing contracts which favored the recording studios and the publishing company "ACEMLA", and not him.[2]

In spite of their great popularity in the hearts of 'salseros' around the world his music was banned from Puerto Rican radio stations for decades by the strong-arm tactics of the music publishing company ACEMLA (Asociación de Compositores y Editores de Música Latinoamericana). ACEMLA sued every venue (radio, TV, CATV, municipalities, hotels, restaurants, etc., and even the Catholic Church) in Puerto Rico and every salsa radio station in New York City for copyright infringement of every song ever written by Curet Alonso, including songs that were already licensed by other publishing companies. In 2009, US Federal Court in San Juan released 695 songs originally licensed to Fania, but the rest of the catalog is still in ACEMLA's hands, and the legal battles continue.[5][6][7]

Legacy

[edit]
External audio
audio icon You may listen to Tite Curet Alonso's "Mi Triste Problema" on YouTube interpreted by Jose "Cheo Feliciano
audio icon and to a piano interpretation by Luciano Quiñones of "Tiemblas" here

Tite Curet Alonso died on August 5, 2003, from a heart attack in Baltimore, Maryland. Richie Viera, a Puerto Rican and William Nazaret, a Venezuelan, both friends of Curet Alonso, made sure that his body was transferred to Puerto Rico. In Puerto Rico he was given a state funeral. First the wake was held at the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture with an honor guard, then at Puerto Rico's Capitol building in San Juan, and then at San Juan City Hall. Finally he was interred in Santa Maria Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery in Old San Juan. Rubén Blades suspended some dates from his "farewell" tour (before becoming the Minister of Tourism for Panama) to attend Curet Alonso's funeral. Cheo Feliciano, one of his closest friends, was one of the many famous pallbearers in attendance.[2][3] A posthumous collection of music composed by Tite Curet Alonso, the two-disc Alma de Poeta, was published in 2009.

A life-sized statue honoring Curet Alonso now (literally) sits at San Juan's Plaza de Armas, in Curet Alonso's favorite bench spot.

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^
    In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Curet and the second or maternal family name is Alonso.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Tite Curet Alonso – Fundación Nacional para la Cultura Popular | San Juan, Puerto Rico". Archived from the original on 2017-07-07. Retrieved 2020-01-30.
  2. ^ a b c Moraza, Samuel. "Bienvenido a esta página dedicada a Tite Curet Alonso". Salsa Clasica (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2016-03-18. Retrieved 2006-08-20.
  3. ^ a b "Letralia, Tierra de Letras - La revista de los escritores hispanoamericanos en Internet". letralia.com. Archived from the original on 2016-09-20. Retrieved 2020-01-30.
  4. ^ a b "Cancionero Parcial Tite Curet Alonso". Herencia Latina (in Spanish). 9 August 2005. Archived from the original on 7 November 2006. Retrieved 18 December 2005.
  5. ^ "ACEMLA: Procesos Legales". Archived from the original on 2016-04-23. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
  6. ^ "Liberadas las canciones de Tite Curet". WAPA.tv (in Spanish). Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2016-03-02. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
  7. ^ Manuel Clavell Carrasquillo (23 February 2009). "Guerra judicial por las líricas de Catalino Curet". DialogoUPR (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 1 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
[edit]
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