César "Pupy" Pedroso, Founder of Los Van Van and Director of Los que Son Son, Passes Away

July 18, 2022

This Sunday, César "Pupy" Pedroso, director of the orchestra Pupy y Los que Son Son, passed away in Havana, confirmed by the Instituto Cubano de la Música.

Pupy, a pianist, arranger, and composer, comes from a family of musicians. His father, César "Nene" Pedroso, was a pianist who played with Chapottín and other ensembles; his grandfather Julio was director of the orchestra Cuba; his uncle, known as Pío Escaparate, was a güiro player for Arcaño y sus Maravillas; Víctor Herrera, his brother, is director of Sensación; and Julio Saldívar, his other brother, plays with the orchestra of Osmundo Calzado.

He was a member of the groups Fascinación, Sensación, Revé y el Conjunto Bolero; in 1969 he founded, with Juan Formell, Los Van Van, a group with which he remained until 2001, the year he founded his own group, Pupy y Los que Son Son.

He had significant impact on Cuban musical history as a pianist, arranger, and composer of the legendary charanga Los Van Van for 32 years, a period in which he became responsible for several hit numbers that were decisive in the orchestra's trajectory such as "Hoy se cumplen seis semanas", "El buena gente", "Eso está bueno", "Disco Azúcar", "La fruta", "Ni bombones ni caramelos", "Temba, tumba, timba" and "El negro está cocinando", among others.

With his band, Los que Son Son, Pupy set out to break molds, differentiate himself in sound and constantly reinvent himself.

Among the defining elements that characterize the orchestra are the freshness of its lyrics and the recognition of traditional rhythms such as those from son and salsa, forming a burning mixture that moves even the worst dancer.

Pupy is a creator of a singular and vigorous sound within our current music, with a personal treatment of tumbaos and very modern orchestrations that directed the path toward the new style of Timba. As a composer, César Pedroso has over 150 works to his credit, many of which have been very well received. We will find an excellent sense of humor in his lyrics, fresh and contemporary sonorities, abundant polyrhythms reinforced with batá and magnificent tumbaos on the piano.

Internationally, his songs have also been recorded by Celia Cruz with the song "Azúcar", Adalberto Santiago, Alfredo de la Fe (The charanga violin) and others.

He has performed in diverse and successful presentations abroad, in many of which he has been accompanied by renowned musicians, for example: Giovanni Hidalgo, Danilo Pérez, Papo Luccas, Gonzalito Rubalcaba, Gilberto Santa Rosa, José Alberto "El canario", among other figures.

(With information from Instituto Cubano de la Música)