The teacher Rafael Solano will turn 90 this Saturday, April 10, and with the career and musical work he has behind him, he deserves all the credit that can be paid to him.
Mentor and inspirer of many interpreters of different generations, and author of emblematic themes not only of the Dominican songbook, but also of the continental, Solano (born in Puerto Plata, in 1931) was the object of an emotional tribute this Thursday morning, from owned by the Ministry of Culture.
“I am very excited and most of all surprised, but nothing about Doña Carmen (Heredia) surprises me, because she has always loved me … she never tells me, but I know,” said the author of “For love”. , apparently moved by surprise and showing his good humor.
The event, which of course included a musical section in which some of his most important songs were performed, took place in the lobby of the aforementioned ministry building, a space very important to Solano’s career, since it was in that place where the First Song Contest was held. was held, in 1968, and where his most transcendental song, “Por amor”, took first place, on the voice of Niní Cáffaro.
Heredia remembered this detail when he used the word to thank the musician’s family for flattering him. “Because he allowed us to celebrate another year of his extraordinary life and artistic career in the Dominican Republic and around the world. Happy Birthday! ”Said the minister, who gave Solano a plaque and a portrait of him, made by the painter Joaquín Sánchez.
The surprise of the activity was the participation of Maridalia Hernández, Niní Cáffaro and Lena Dardelet, who performed ‘In the dark’ and ‘A spring for the world’, the first; “Magic” and “For love”, the second; and “El ten de abril” and Dominicanita “, the third The performers were accompanied on the piano by the pianist Elioenai Medina, and the guitarists Héctor Payán and Emmanuel Peña Silverio.
The documentary of his life
Another 90th birthday gift from the Dominican teacher is to the public. It is the documentary “Solano”, produced by Patricia Solano, daughter of the musician, and filmmaker Juan Basanta, and presented by Urano Films, which has been released on YouTube, so that anyone interested in the life and work of this artist can do it through this audiovisual video.
Created and presented in 2018, it is a work done with grace, and with a deft rhythm, it moves between conversations with the musician, interviewed by the communicator Patricia Solano, as well as testimonials from many of its interpreters, such as Niní Cáffaro, Luchy Vicioso, Fernando Casado, Adalgisa Pantaleón, Marco Antonio Múñiz, Los Solmeños: Nandy Rivas and Horacio Pichardo, instrumentalists like Guillo Carías, Armando Beltré or Tito Delgado, and personalities like Pedro Delgado Malagón and Ellis Pérez.
On the other hand, you can enjoy the songs in voices of the likes of Víctor Víctor, Fernando Villalona and Janio Lora.
A visual journey, beautifully photographed, through the life of one of the glories of national music, and in which he moves through the spaces in which he developed his art, which accurately captures the historical moment that Rafael had to travel.