Juan Manuel José Bonifacio Víctor de la Caridad Arrondo Suárez

Although he was born in Guanabacoa, he was registered in the neighboring overseas town of Regla, Ciudad de La Habana; but he moved to Guanabacoa at the age of 3 years, to the house located at José Martí # 73. After several moves within this municipality, he finally came to reside at Desamparado # 408.

Erlinda, one of his four sisters, recalls that the boy was super rebellious. His parents enrolled him in a small private school run by teacher Ana María Madan. From a very young age, the young Arrondo had an inclination toward poetry and music. That is why he dedicated his first musical creation to his first little school, titling it Escuelita de barrio, a work recorded by performer Domingo Lugo on commercial records. Subsequently, the bard received advanced lessons from master Fernando de Barrutia.

His sister recounts that Juan's father wanted him to study music, but the young man decided to study Shorthand and Typewriting, which were very valuable teachings in that era. But Juan Arrondo did not separate himself from his musical inclination as it lived present in his subconscious; he launches his first romantic creation titled Estela, sister of a member of the Montecarlo sextette, a group created in 1929 and made up of: Linares (guitar), Colombo (bass) and Arrondo (singer), among others.

At the end of the 1920s, sextettes became popular in the Villa, and with a good modulation of his second voice, Arrondo Suárez joined the following groups: "Brisas de Guanabo", "La Lira de Luyanó" and Unión de Delicias. Also around that time, Juan wrote works such as: Mi soberbia; Palomita; Concha: ¿Qué podemos hacer?; Son de Marianao and La abandonada.

Years pass and in 1938, the intrepid Juan joins the carnival group "Los Guaracheros", where he shows off his skills in this popular genre essential for Cuban town celebrations. According to carnival directors Alpízar and Miguel Rodríguez, who spoke to journalist Andrés Castillo, Juan Arrondo was the most agile and the one who assimilated the steps most quickly.

Starting in the 1940s, Juan Arrondo's songs achieved extraordinary diffusion. He joined sextette of sones, but his main work was as an author. Arrondo became a professional composer, concerned about his music and personally copied it to make it reach various important performers.

Arrondo Suárez's musical production continues on the rise, remembering his first victrola hit of 1943, when the Kubavana ensemble recorded his bolero Mi juramento for RCA Víctor. Later came other numbers such as: De que te sirve saber and Que te importa.

It was in Guanabacoa where he composed his 247 musical works. He died in this municipality on August 16, 1979 at the age of 65. His boleros reached the best Cuban voices, such as "Qué pena me da", "Más daño me hizo tu amor", "Como lo soñó Martí", "Fiebre de ti", "Mi juramento", "Si en un final", "Ese que está allí", which have conquered popular taste.

From a very young age he wrote songs, which his older sister, a pianist, transcribed onto lined paper. Starting in 1929 he began his career; he worked with the septets Montecarlo, Brisas de Guanabacoa, Unión, Delicias and La Lira de Luyanó.

In 1934 he performed on the CMCX radio station in Guanabacoa, forming a duo with trovador Diego Linares; and among his first numbers as a composer also stand out Camino de perdición and Otro año nuevo, in the repertoire of the Senén Suárez Ensemble.

In 1947 he worked as a singer for the Conjunto Romántico on COCO and Radio Progreso. In the mid-1950s he performed at La Bodeguita del Medio with accompanying guitarist Luis Arango; also in the Vedado and St. John's hotels.

His first bolero to transcend internationally was Más daño me hizo tu amor, initially recorded by the Conjunto Colonial, with Nelo Sosa, in October of 1950, and later by Antonio Machín. There are more than thirty recordings of that theme, including the version by Clara y Mario, a success in Cuba and Mexico.

The bard's life continues and in his journey he meets Luis Arango at the Bar Miami, on Santo Domingo and Estrada Palma in 1952. This is how an occasional duo was born that lasted some time. Arrondo at this time, inspired by his muse, creates true works of art such as: Hilo negro; Para no delatarte; Gloria; No puedo creerlo; Fiebre de ti (a gem in the voice of Benny Moré); Alma pervertida; Hojas de traición; Que pena me da (sung by Benny); Firme decisión; Infame; Anillo de compromiso; Vamos a jugar a la verdad and Camino de perdición, recorded by my ensemble.

With Arrondo and my guitar, comments Luís Arango, we traveled almost all the bars of our homeland, such as the "Noria", "El Petit", "La Montañesa", "El bar de Manolo", and even at the "Alianza" table we put out trovador music.

One of Juan Arrondo's most heard melodies in Mexico was Y es verdad, and among the five most listened to recordings of that theme in that country, were those of Juanito Mendoza, not counting the version by the duo Clara y Mario, performed in Cuba.

In the 1970s he strengthened himself more as a creator abroad. He records works in Spain with Antonio Machín, others in Mexico, Venezuela, Santo Domingo, Colombia and other countries.

At the end of that decade, Arrondo Suárez began to be accompanied by trovador Melanio Benítez, with whom he also performs as a duo.

Although his faculties had lost some of their vitality, the romantic Arrondo composes the works No me trates más, Ve a buscar la verdad, No te dejaré más, which according to Benítez, was the last one written by the enamored composer.

Arrondo identified with the struggle his people and colleagues were waging; and in 1958, together with César Portillo de la Luz, Adolfo Guzmán, Candito Ruiz and others, he fights the exploitation of authors and also opposes the North American consortium Peer, a task to which Rosendo Ruiz Quevedo, Giraldo Piloto and Luís Yánez joined. With these precedents he joined the triumphant Revolution.

On January 8, 1959, his bolero Como lo soñó Martí premiered in the voice of Orlando Vallejo and dedicated to the mothers of the fighters of the Rebel Army. He also writes the guajira Para Camilo Cienfuegos. He becomes a winner at the Festival of the Musical Creator with works such as Los pescadores de Varadero, written jointly with Pío Leyva and popularized by the Aragón Orchestra.

He was vice president of the Vanguardia Autoral, which "was created in order to face the Society of Authors" and defend copyright. He carried out arduous work in favor of copyright payment, as part of its board of directors. He led, alongside other Cuban authors, multiple protests against the outrages committed, which were recorded in numerous press articles.

He gave no quarter or rest to place his class in the position that corresponded to it and as Leonardo Depestre said: "He could afford not to be active alongside the most deprived authors, because his situation was always comfortable but he did not do so, on the contrary, he was a very active defender and part of the Cuban authors."

Arrondo was a member of the Society of Authors, Composers and Music Publishers of France, SACEM. 76 / Arte-Astiazaraín

Works
Hilo negro.
Para no delatarte
Gloria
No puedo creerlo
Fiebre de ti
Firme decisión
Anillo de compromiso
Vamos a jugar a la verdad
Esa que está allí, a success in the voice of the late Moraima Secada.
De que te sirve saber and Yo sigo gozando, recorded by Abelardo Barroso
Qué te pasa conmigo and Para mejor ocasión, popularized by Panchito Riset
Fiebre de ti and Qué pena me da, popularized by Benny Moré.

Other works
Alma pervertida
Aquí me encontrarás
Así es Cuba
Boxeo de amor,
Buscando reflexiones,
Camino de perdición,
Cinco años,
Como la quiero
Como lo soñó Martí
Contéstame
De cara al campo
De qué te sirve saber
De qué te vale
Desapareció el montero
Desde aceras opuestas
Diccionario de amor
Dónde, pero dónde
Dos veces
El son de Marianao,
Esa que está allí
Escuelita de Barrio
Es muy posible,
Es por amarte
Estamos en deuda
Estela
Este rubí
Extraña denuncia
Firme decisión
Guanabacoa
Guárdese su propina
He visto
Hubiera querido
La carta del hijo
Llégame hasta el alma
Los pescadores de Varadero (with Pío Leyva)
Más daño me hizo tu amor
Mendigo
Mi juramento
Mi soberbia
Mi tierra cubana y pequeña
No me trates más
No te arrodilles más
No te dejaré jamás
No pongo condición
Otro año nuevo
Palomita,
Para Camilo
Para mejor ocasión
Pero no voy a llorar
Pero por qué
Pero sigue de largo
Pero te equivocas
Pero vete lejos
Principio y fin del amor
Qué cobarde fui
Quédate donde estás
Qué denuncia
Qué encontraste
Qué pena me da
Qué te pasa conmigo
Quién, pero quién
Rebeldía
Romance de Navidad
Se te acabó la guapería
Si en un final
Sincérate
Te prefiero callada
Te regalo esas horas
Tu vida sí me interesa
Un baluarte nuestro
Ya lo sé
Ya no puedo creerlo
Yerba venenosa
Y es verdad
Y hasta luego
Y no te puedo querer
Yo sigo gozando