Ramón Solís Fernández

Universal Flutist Ramón Solís is considered the greatest flutist of his time.

He was born in Sagua La Grande on Intendente Ramírez Street # 89. His parents were Don Ramón and Doña Josefa. He received his first music lessons as a child from Professor Don Oriol Costa y Sureda, who was the teacher of an entire generation of people from Sagua.

When he was not yet 9 years old, he caused great sensation by performing on the piccolo some difficult variations accompanied by an orchestra and written on a motif from Donizetti's Opera "Los Martires" at the inauguration party of the "Hospital de Caridad" in 1864, which led Master Don José Reyes, director of the Fire Department's Band of Music, to predict a brilliant future for that young man.

When the child singer Romeo Dionesi visited Sagua, Ramón participated in his concert, impressing so much that the singer's father wanted to take him to Italy and pay for his musical education. Don José White, the virtuoso Cuban violinist, had the same opinion of him when he was in Sagua and invited him to play a difficult piece of his own creation; at the triumphant conclusion of the concert he invited him, amid the audience's applause, to go with him to France, which prompted the townspeople to support this idea and shortly thereafter the young man departed to Madrid with money collected in Sagua after his magnificent concert.

There he enrolled at the Royal Conservatory of Music and Recitation, and in his first annual exam he won first prize with a Gold Medal among 27 candidates, a fact that led the Great Master of Flute Don Pedro Sarmiento to predict that he would be his successor in the Chair.

On June 13, 1877, a competitive examination was held at the Royal Conservatory of Madrid where King Alfonso XII would grant only two prizes among all the musicians who presented themselves, and in search of this important prize 48 skilled competitors presented themselves playing different instruments such as piano, violin, flute, bassoons, etc. The jury was composed of 20 of the greatest masters, the cream and elite of Europe, among whom was the famous German composer Strauss, Valverdi, Bek, Mureky, Fisher and Barbiery. The solemn act was presided over by the King with his sister the Princess of Asturias.

Ramón was number 39 on the list and it was thought that at this point in the competition the tired jury would already have its 2 winners, but that was not the case, for the jury carefully examined all 48 participants and finally unanimously chose Solís. From this recognition his brilliant career began throughout Europe and America.

Triumphs followed one after another and Paris recognized him as Madrid did; Don Ramón Solís was beginning to be recognized by the most severe critics who did not hesitate to proclaim him as one of the foremost instrumentalists of his time; later the Spanish poet Fernández Schaw summarized it by simply calling him: "THE FIRST FLUTIST IN THE WORLD".

After his presentation at the great "Metropolitan Theater" in New York, a major American newspaper described him as: "Outstanding flutist without peer in New York"; both Europe and America were beginning to delight in the amazing Cuban flutist. In analyzing the "Solís Phenomenon," Don Antonino Fabre, an excellent musician from Sagua, stated: "Ramón, with his 13-key instrument, has achieved performing works that today (1924) no flutist with the modern "Boehm" flute system of finished mechanism could perform with the perfection he could, for in my opinion he had everything a well-balanced flutist needs to have." His music in service of the revolution through benefit concerts earned him a laudatory article from José Martí which was published in the newspaper "La Patria," and he was recognized by Don Juan Gualberto Gómez, Colonel Marcano and General Eusebio Hernández, among other patriots who admired him.

Upon his return to Sagua he performed a concert at the Theater that, packed even in the hallways, applauded him as had never been heard there before, and when the function ended the townspeople carried him on their shoulders to the Hotel Telégrafo where a delicious buffet was served in his honor and the poet Don Mariano Martín offered a toast in verse. After this event, the Mayor Don Manuel González Osma invited him to his house where the townspeople congratulated him and especially his godfather Don Delfín Tomasino y Freixas (former mayor in 1882) who had not abandoned his godson, sending him a monthly allowance to maintain his studies in Spain.

From Sagua he planned his tours throughout Cuba and the World, but he always returned to his beloved homeland to be seen in its streets with other musician friends heading to some party or musical gathering, or to attend the Lyric Section of the "Casino de Artesano" and the "Sociedad Coral"; the Cárdenas society granted him a Silver Medal which he wore on his chest each time he visited that sister town in concerts. All these honors could have been more numerous had he chosen the streets of Madrid, Paris or New York, but with the small Village of Undoso he was content to be happy.

Every illustrious visitor who came to Sagua for a concert always asked for his participation, including the pianist awarded in Milan, Cv. Giovanni Galvani and the light triple from opera María DeClaus in 1881. Besides the first prize from Madrid, he was laureated in Paris, decorated by Don Pedro of Brazil with the "White Rose," and with the "Order of Christ" by the King of Portugal. But the comments of international critics and the applause from packed theaters were his greatest trophy.

Perhaps Heaven had greater need of him, for almost before reaching 37 years of age, on January 10, 1891 his life came to an end to the sorrow of the people of Cuba who were beginning to enjoy his great triumphs, but even more to his people of Sagua who venerated him as an icon. His friend Don Pedro Albarrán, brother of the other genius from Sagua Don Joaquín Albarrán, said to Solís's cadaver still lying in his house, amid tears: "You had talent my unforgettable Ramón, even in knowing how to die at the right time."

The loss was horrible for his town which came out in its entirety to bid him a final goodbye. That day a program at the Casino de Artesanos was suspended to improvise another in honor of the deceased genius with many artists, poets, friends and admirers of the departed, among them: Don Manuel Felipe Ledón, President of the Literature Section, Don Enrique Menéndez, Member of the Board Don Miguel Gutiérrez Morillo, Lawyer and Poet; in the Lyric section Doña Magdalena García Bonet de Secades, Misses América García, Justa Socarrás, the daughters of Don Joaquín V. Lavié and others from the Section. Don Pancho Rosales read some beautiful and moving quintillas to the ill-fated friend which were later placed next to the wreath dedicated to him by the Casino for his tomb, in niche 175 of the Old Cemetery.

Three years later, in 1894, seated on one of the benches in the park facing the side of the church, a group of young men planned to build a tombstone for Solís. Among them and author of the idea was the young Don Antonio Miguel Alcover y Beltrán, only 19 years old, who together with his friends Perdomo, Enrique Santa Cruz and Adolfo Mederos Ortiz, came to the conclusion that a tombstone would be more in line with their economic means, and they immediately set about this noble task. Mr. Roca made the design for them, Don Miguel Valls of Cienfuegos made the tombstone, Don José Victor Andreu displayed it for several days in the window of his hardware store "El Gallito" (Martí 13), Don Emilio Alvarez took the photograph, the worker Don Domingo G. Pinto with foreman Don Leonaldo Pinto placed it for free in the niche, a masonry operation that was begun in the morning of September 23, 1894 and the inauguration the next day had to be suspended due to the great storm that once again flooded the Village of Undoso.

But on November 2, the ceremony was able to be carried out successfully with an act worthy of the honoree, where the orchestra of Don Antonino Fabre with 23 musicians played a "Sacred Intermezzo" which included the melody "A mi madre" one of Don Ramón Solís's last creations, and Don Luis Mesa gave the multitude an emotional speech after young Don Enrique Santa Cruz unveiled the veil. Thus Sagua paid its long-overdue debt to Solís. In 1915, taking advantage of the stay in Sagua of Spanish sculptor Don Restituto del Canto, the bust was erected that we know today next to the Amphitheater (Colón near Clara Barton corner) in Independence Park and on which reads: "Homage to genius, the people of Sagua to its consecrated Artist. 1915."

The street where he was born was called in his time "Intendente Ramírez" and by agreement of the City Council, with its Mayor Alfredo Figueroa, it was changed to "Solís" in memory of the greatest artist that Sagua has produced in all times. Nine years after the column with the master's bust was erected, on February 1, 1924, his birthday, an enormous artistic soirée was celebrated at the Lyceum with the best musicians from Sagua, among them could not be missing its director Don Antonino Fabre with his brilliant children Elvirita and Luisito, Misses Ana M Medina, Esperanza Alfert, Felicia M. Mederos, Josefina Puig, Celia Machado, Dálida Martín, Delia Tabares, Olga Paredes, among others which included the Cuban violinist Doña Marta de la Torre passing through Sagua with her husband the notable pianist Don Anibal Valencia; from Havana the talented composer from Sagua Don Jaime Prats sent to the Committee "Pro-Sagua" a military march titled: "Solís" which was performed by the Orchestra. Speaking at the event were Ramiro Alfert, President of the Pro-Sagua Committee, Dr. Adolfo Rodríguez, and Pepe Aguilera.

Three days later, on February 4, 1924, a plaque was unveiled that was placed on the house where the immortal musician was born in which one could read: "1854-1891, Here was born, lived and died the brilliant Ramón Solís, he loved his people and knew how to honor them by becoming proclaimed and recognized during his glorious career as the First Flutist in the World, the Pro-Sagua Committee,-1-2-1924". On this occasion the vibrant speech came from Don Francisco Rodríguez Díaz, and the Municipal Band performed "A mi madre"...

Source: sagualagrande.blogspot.com