Amaury Pérez Vidal

===BODY===
At birth he is baptized before the cameras of CMQ Televisión, becoming the first baptism televised in Latin America. At a little over one year old, he makes his television debut in commercial advertisements and will continue doing them until 1959.

He composes the anthem for his primary school Augusto Cesar Sandino. He begins his work as an actor in the children's programming of Cuban Television. At the end of the 60s he is admitted to a school for young people with behavioral problems.

Through a friend he approaches the poetry of Voltaire and Saint Jhon Perse. He writes his first songs during summer vacation, inspired by the songs of his friend Enrique Núñez Díaz. In the early 70s he discovers Cuban poetry at the home of Isabel Fernández, his classmate. He approaches especially the poetry of José Martí, Nicolás Guillén and the work of poets from later generations. Inspired by their works he begins to set to music the poetry of many of these authors.

He meets Silvio Rodríguez, Pablo Milanés, Sara González, Vicente Feliú, Noel Nicola and other troubadours. He sings two songs: La guitarra, with text by Otto Fernández and Cuando miro tus ojos, with text by Fayad Jamís, at the Teatro Sauto, in the city of Matanzas, as a guest of Silvio Rodríguez.

He sings at the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC), with an audience that included, among others, Nicolás Guillén, Eliseo Diego, Mario Benedetti and Julio Cortázar. He becomes a founding member of the New Troubador Movement.

He composes his first original music for a television drama, directed by Eduardo Moya. He is expelled from his job as a musicalizer of televised political announcements, due to his extravagant attitudes in dress and long hair.

He begins to work at the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (ICAIC) as a boom man and sound assistant for the Sound Experimentation Group of ICAIC.

He sings at the historic Teatro Martí alongside the youngest members of the New Troubador Movement. He records two songs for the album Jornadas de Solidaridad con Chile.

In the mid-70s he records the song "¿Quién sabe más?" for the album "Cuatro de Abril" and it becomes his first national success. Meanwhile, Omara Portuondo, the great Cuban singer, turns his song "Vuela pena" into a success, and Sara González does the same with her two songs: "La guitarra" and "Andes lo que andes".

He composes the now-anthological "Acuérdate de abril". He meets Magdalena García, his first wife. He abandons his work at ICAIC and takes on the fact of living from his songs. He records as a duet with Pablo Milanés the song "Por siempre Puerto Rico", for the independent American label Paredon Records.

He records his first solo album, called "Acuérdate de abril", with arrangements by Miguel Porcel, with the harmonic base of the musicians from the group Irakere. He wins the Grand Prize at the Pop Music Festival in Dresden, Germany, with a German song as well.

Along with the Sound Experimentation Group of ICAIC, Pablo Milanés and Sara González, he carries out a two-month tour through Spain, Poland and Bulgaria. His album "Acuérdate de abril" is released throughout most of Latin America. In the city of Madrid the live album "La Nueva Trova Cubana" is recorded at the Monumental de Madrid.

Back in Havana, he gives his first solo concert, at the important Sala Teatro Hubert de Blanck and carries out his first television special. He interacts with great figures of song in Spain, such as Serrat, Pi de la Serra, María del Mar Bonet, Lluis Llach, Miguel Ríos, Luis Eduardo Aute, Ana Belén, Víctor Manuel and Teddy Bautista, among others.

In the mid-70s he dedicates himself entirely to setting to music and recording his second album called "Versos de José Martí cantados por Amaury Pérez", accompanied by the National Symphonic Orchestra of Cuba. Along with a select group of the new Cuban song he carries out an extensive tour throughout Spain. His conflicts with the press and Cuban criticism begin.

He carries out a tour of Santo Domingo and travels to Mexico, on two occasions, for benefit concerts of solidarity. He begins to work with the group Síntesis. The Chilean choreographer Hilda Rivero premieres in Havana "Acuérdate de Abril for the National Ballet of Cuba" in this occasion, Amaury shares the stage with principal figures of this important dance company that pay him tribute.

In the early 80s he meets Ricardo Eddy Martínez and forms his first accompanying group; they record the album "Aguas", or "No lo van a impedir" (as it was called in Mexico). He signs with the Mexican record label NCL and his aesthetic conflicts with the New Troubador Movement intensify. He is declared Distinguished Guest of the City of Sofia, Bulgaria. Alan, his first son, is born.

He is expelled from the New Cuban Troubador Movement. His musicians emigrate to the USA. It is a very difficult year in Amaury's life and this is reflected negatively in his career, he almost does not write and does not perform publicly.

He participates in the Popular Song Festival of Varadero, again accompanied by the group Síntesis; an album titled "Selección de éxitos" is released with limited distribution. He acts in the film "Leyenda" by director Rogelio París and, during filming, suffers a thrombosis that keeps him in bed for several months.

He resumes his pace of original work, records the album "Abecedario" with bitter and erratic songs. He begins to write songs for the most popular artists in the country. One of them called "Caricias" in the voice of Mirta Medina, is selected as the Pop song of the year in Cuba. His international tours resume. He meets Alberto Cortés. He travels to Venezuela for the first time. His daughter Ariana is born.

He meets Petí, who will be his second and current wife. The most popular stage of his career in Cuba begins. He ventures as a musical comedian, in the work "50 años de amor" written and directed by the prestigious Cuban theater man Nelson Dorr. He travels to Spain, Mexico and Venezuela with the group Síntesis. He records his album "Mitades". He signs with the multinational Polygram. He ends his work with Síntesis and forms a new accompanying group. He makes his first massive concert in Cuba; Pablo Milanés is his special guest.

In the mid-80s he is declared Distinguished Guest of the city of Panama. His international tours and concerts in Cuba continue. He records the album "De vuelta". It is the end of his years of estrangement with the members of the New Troubador Movement.

His TV special also called "De vuelta", directed by Pedraza Ginori, wins the award for best musical program of the year awarded by the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC). For the first time he obtains the unanimous acceptance of national criticism. His name is included in the selective Book of Honor of the Gran Teatro de La Habana, where the most relevant artistic personalities in the world who have performed at that venue are included.

He records the album "Estaciones de vidrio" and it wins the criticism prize and first place in the song category, at the Cuban record competition Cuban Recording and Musical Editions Company (EGREM). His TV special called "Por la carretera", filmed in Mexico and directed again by Pedraza Ginori, wins the award for best Cuban television program of the year. At the end of the 80s he begins to experiment with computing and sequencers in his music. He records his album "Confesiones", the first fully sequenced album recorded in Cuba which receives a nomination for the EGREM record prize.

In the early 90s his father, Amaury Pérez García, a distinguished artistic director of television and of the famous Tropicana Cabaret, dies. Despite the strong emotional impact this had on Amaury's life, he managed to continue his work, in both national and international tours. He writes the music for the television drama "El último tren" directed by Sirio Soto and starring his mother, Consuelo Vidal, a popular actress and entertainer. He ends his recording agreements with Polygram. He hosts the radio programs "Amaury y los demás" and "Como en casa", directed by Federico Wilkins.

He records the album "Encuentros", where he does a duet of his song "Amigos como tu y yo" with Silvio Rodríguez. The song that gives its title to the album obtains first place in Cuba's national hit parade. The album "Encuentros" wins the Criticism Prize, First Prize in the Song Category, and the Best Album Cover Photography Award, at the EGREM record competition. He records "Retrato de Navidad", the first album with Christmas songs made in Cuba in the last 36 years. The album is banned from Cuban radio and TV.

In the mid-90s he records the album "Licencias de otoño", and signs exclusively with EMI. He records along with Luis Eduardo Aute, Vicente Feliú, Anabel López, Carmen Flores, Eme Alfonso and Silvio Rodríguez the song "El escaramujo", by Silvio himself, intended for a project sponsored by UNICEF. He performs the first Christmas concert in Cuba, in 37 years, at the National Theater of Cuba.

He directs a massive spectacle in Tribute to José Martí. He conceives, writes, sets to music and hosts a TV series titled "Muy personal con Amaury Pérez", directed by Joel Valdés, where he interviews prominent figures from Cuban culture and the international sphere. He is chosen as a member of the Cuban-Mexican Cultural Society. He attends the Cervantino Festival in Mexico, invited by José María Vitier, to perform two songs from the "Misa Cubana", a work by this composer.

He makes a special appearance as an actor, in the Cuban-American film "Zafiros, locura azul" by director Manuel Herrera. He travels to Honduras, as an ambassador of goodwill for UNICEF to present the Annual Communication Prize awarded by this organization to media that defend children's rights.

He sang the song "Otro domingo sin sol", as a guest on the album "Un secreto a voces" by Mexican singer-songwriter Alejandro Filio. The compilation album "Amor difícil" is released in Spain and Portugal by the CRIN label. He performs the New Year's Concert at the Teatro Karl Marx in Havana, with great success from the audience. At the end of the 90s he begins recording an album of songs, with texts by Dulce María Loynaz which would be called "Eternidad".

He begins recording his new album initially called "De Amor", but which would later be named "Equilibrio". He sings the "Plegaria a la Virgen del Cobre" during the Mass officiated by John Paul II during his visit to Havana, on January 25, 1998.

In 1999 his website space is formally launched, through which Amaury stays in contact with his fans around the world.

Amaury begins the new millennium with great energy, dividing himself between multiple performances both national and international, principally in Mexico, a country where he is always well received. He continues with the production of new record materials among which stand out "Equilibrio" where he covers the blues genre, "Sólo en Septiembre" an album with multiple musical facets and "Algo en común" where he ventures with great success in the salsa genre.

In 2003 Amaury records the album "Trovador", a work created with his great friend Silvio Rodríguez. That same year and part of 2004 the album was promoted by multiple parts of the American continent and in Spain, receiving very good reviews from critics. On December 31, 2003 he was decorated by the president of Cuba, Fidel Castro, with the Félix Varela Order, the highest official honor for culture on the island. The also founder of the New Cuban Troubador Movement receives a tribute in recognition of his work on the occasion of his 50th birthday.

In 2005 his mother Consuelo Vidal dies, being a terrible blow in Amaury's personal life, thanks to the multiple displays of affection and support from around the world Amaury manages to finish the album "Juglar", an excellent record material with the fusion of troubadour music and other musical genres.

That same year he participated in the concert "Misa cubana a la Virgen del Cobre", at the Basilica of Santa María de Trastevere in Rome, Italy, to celebrate another anniversary of the establishment of relations between Cuba and The Vatican.

In 2006 the album "Los duos" is presented, which compiles all those songs that Amaury has performed alongside several of the most important exponents of Cuban and Latin American song. The musician joined in November 2007 the celebrations for the 35th anniversary of the New Troubador Movement with several concerts among which stood out those given by Vicente Feliú, Sara González, Pablo Milanés and Silvio Rodríguez.

In October 2008 he performed at the Teatro Metropólitan in the Mexican capital, with a show with which he celebrated 30 years of having begun a "romance" with Mexico. That same year he was part of a songbook that was launched on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution, which contains 50 songs from different stages of that event. The compilation was carried out by researcher and musicologist Radamés Giro and the philologist Isabel González, which contains themes by authors such as Amaury Pérez, Silvio Rodríguez, Pablo Milanés, César Portillo de la Luz and Sara González.

In September 2009 Amaury organized and participated in the concert 'Paz sin fronteras', at the Plaza de la Revolución in Havana, Cuba, which brought together one million 150 thousand people. Pérez sang two well-known songs of his own composition ('Amor difícil' and 'Hacerte Venir') and thanked the audience for welcoming the guests. He also returned to Mexico to perform at the Amado Nervo Cultural Festival, in Tepic, Nayarit; where in addition to performing his hits, he shared various anecdotes with the audience.

"Bardo" is the name of his most recent album that he released in November 2009, which also includes a DVD and contains 13 tracks, including 'Yo quería cantar', 'Algo de mujer', 'Y que me quiera', 'Hay que saber', and 'De aquello no se habla'. With this album the trilogy "Trovador, Juglar, Bardo" comes to a close.

During the year 2010, Amaury has dedicated all his artistic talent to the direction and hosting of his most recent television program named 'Con 2 que se quieran', where he has interviewed important figures from Cuban culture and the international sphere, among whom stand out artists such as Jorge Perugorria, Giussepe Tornatore, Carlos Acosta, Frank Fernández, Rosita Fornés, Vicente Feliú, Sara González, Alejandro García Virulo, Adalberto Alvarez and many more.

Amaury at 60: with his Pérez and his Vidal available at: https://www.cubadebate.cu/noticias/2013/12/26/amaury-a-los-60-con-su-perez-y-su-vidal-fotos-y-video/#comment-1174979