Casa Amadeo, antigua Casa Hernández is the oldest, continuously-occupied Latin

music store A music store or musical instrument store is a retail business that sells musical instruments and related equipment and accessories. Some music stores sell additional services, such as music lessons, music instrument or equipment rental, or re ...

in New York City, and the Bronx, having opened in 1941. ''See also:'' Casa Amadeo is located in a historic apartment building located in the Longwood section of

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, New York. Designed by James F. Meehan, the apartment building was built in 1905 and named ''The Manhaset''. The building is a six-story,

Neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range ...

style building with commercial storefronts on the first floor. The lower two stories are faced with rusticated stone and the upper floors in red brick. It features a projecting entrance porch flanked by Corinthian order columns. The building is managed by local grassroots organization Banana Kelly, which has rehabilitated and maintained buildings in Longwood since the 1970s.

History

The first Puerto Rican owned music store in New York City, ''Almacenes Hernández'' was founded by Victoria Hernández and her brother Rafael Hernández at 1724 Madison Avenue in 1927. Almacenes Hernández was sold to record producer Luis Cuevas in 1939. The second music store founded by the siblings, Casa Hernández, was founded in 1941. It was sold in 1969 to musician and composer Miguel Angel "Mike" Amadeo, who renamed it ''Casa Amadeo, antigua Casa Hernández''. Mike Amadeo still owns and operates the music store. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 2001.

Miguel Angel Amadeo

Miguel Angel Amadeo, better known as "Mike" Amadeo, is a Puerto Rican musician and owner of the Casa Amadeo music store in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. Amadeo, born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico is the son of composer Alberto "Titi" Amadeo, a musician who played with Cuban bandleader

Desi Arnaz Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban-born American actor, bandleader, and film and television producer. He played Ricky Ricardo on the American television sitcom '' I Love Lucy'', in which he c ...

for

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

. He is the uncle of Grammy Award-nominated musician

Tito Nieves Humberto "Tito" Nieves (born June 4, 1959; also known "El Pavarotti de la Salsa") is a Puerto Rican musician who became one of the leading salsa singers of the 1980s and the early 1990s. Born in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico, and raised in the Unite ...

. Mike Amadeo is a prolific composer, with nearly 300 songs to his credit, performed by artists such as Celia Cruz,

Danny Rivera Danny Rivera (born 27 February 1945) is a singer and songwriter born in San Juan whose career spans nearly 50 years. He is well known in Puerto Rico for his political activism. In 2008, Rivera acquired Dominican Republic citizenship. After 12 ye ...

, and Cheito Gonzalez. In 1954 Amadeo took a trip to Puerto Rico. While there he met pianist

Rafael Ithier Rafael Ithier Natal (born August 29, 1926) is a Puerto Rican salsa musician and the founder of the highly successful orchestra El Gran Combo. Ithier was born in Río Piedras, now a part of the municipality of San Juan. In 2016, Ithier celebrate ...

, who was working for bandleader

Rafael Cortijo Rafael Antonio Cortijo (December 11, 1928 – October 3, 1982) was a Puerto Rican musician, orchestra leader, composer and percussion instrument craftsman. Early Career As a child, Cortijo became interested in Caribbean music and enjoyed th ...

. When Cortijo's group fell apart, Ithier formed

El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico, commonly known as El Gran Combo, is a Puerto Rican salsa orchestra based in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2012, it was often considered Puerto Rico's most successful musical group. The ...

, and Amadeo began contributing music to the Gran Combo, including Amadeo's best known song - ''Que Me Lo Den en Vida '' (''Give it to Me in Life''). Back in New York City, Amadeo joined Alegre Records, and associated with the first generation of

Nuyorican Nuyorican is a portmanteau of the terms "New York" and "Puerto Rican" and refers to the members or culture of the Puerto Ricans located in or around New York City, or of their descendants (especially those raised or currently living in the N ...

musicians including

Johnny Pacheco Juan Pablo Knipping Pacheco (25 March 1935 – 15 February 2021), known as Johnny Pacheco, was a Dominican musician, arranger, composer, bandleader, and record producer who in the 1970s became one of the leading exponents of salsa as well in t ...

, Ray Barretto and the brothers

Eddie Palmieri Eddie Palmieri (born December 15, 1936) is an American Grammy Award-winning pianist, bandleader, musician, and composer of Puerto Rican ancestry. He is the founder of the bands La Perfecta, La Perfecta II, and Harlem River Drive. Early life Pal ...

, and

Charlie Palmieri Carlos Manuel "Charlie" Palmieri (November 21, 1927 – September 12, 1988) was an American bandleader and musical director of salsa music. He was known as the "Giant of the Keyboards". Early years Palmieri's parents migrated to New York from Po ...

. With his long residency, and personal connections to the Latin music community, Mike Amadeo is known as a community historian. For his contributions to Puerto Rican music and the Bronx, Mike Amadeo has been honored by the National Puerto Rican Day Parade in 2008, a Hostos Center for the Arts & Culture concert in 2005, and by the

Bronx Council on the Arts The Bronx Council on the Arts (established 1962), is an art based culture agency that has grown to become the official cultural agency of the Bronx, New York City. It provides a “lifeline” to more than 4,800 artists and over 250 arts and comm ...

in 2010. In 2014, the corner of Logwood Avenue and Prospect Avenue was renamed ''Miguel Angel "Mike" Amadeo Way''.

References

External links

Archived version of the Casa Amadeo website

FaceBook page

NY Daily News article - South Bronx store Casa Amadeo remains the go to spot for Latin music fans

* ttp://www1.nyc.gov/site/media/shows/neighborhood-slice.page?id=2906?pg=8 Neighborhood Slice Season 1: Ep. 6 - South Bronx, The Bronx
National Register of Historic Places - Bronx County, New York
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York Residential buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in New York City 1941 establishments in New York City Residential buildings in the Bronx National Register of Historic Places in the Bronx Longwood, Bronx Puerto Rican culture in New York City Music organizations based in Puerto Rico 20th-century American composers Companies based in the Bronx