Vincente González Rubiera (27 October 1908 – 29 September 1987), better known as Guyún, was an influential

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n guitarist, harmonist and teacher, who tapped into

classical guitar technique In classical guitar, the right hand is developed in such a way that it can sustain two, three, and four voice harmonies while also paying special attention to tone production. The index (i), middle (m), and ring (a) fingers are generally used to ...

s to revive the accompaniment of the

trova ''Trova'' is a style of Cuban popular music originating in the 19th century. Trova was created by itinerant musicians known as ''trovadores'' who travelled around Cuba's Oriente province, especially Santiago de Cuba, and earned their living by s ...

. He achieved the finest transcriptions for guitar. Born on 27 October 1908 in

Santiago de Cuba Santiago de Cuba is the second-largest city in Cuba and the capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province. It lies in the southeastern area of the island, some southeast of the Cuban capital of Havana. The municipality extends over , and contains t ...

, Guyún originally came to Havana to study medicine, but finding the university shut under

Gerardo Machado Gerardo Machado y Morales (28 September 1869 – 29 March 1939) was a general of the Cuban War of Independence and President of Cuba from 1925 to 1933. Machado entered the presidency with widespread popularity and support from the major polit ...

, he started playing the guitar to earn a living. He started studying guitar under

Sindo Garay Sindo Garay (born Antonio Gumersindo Garay García; Santiago de Cuba, 12 April 1867 – Havana, 17 July 1968) was a Cuban trova musician. He was taught by Pepe Sánchez. Garay was one of the ''four greats of the trova''. He was of Spanish a ...

, and later understudied Severino López, who had an excellent classical training in the Tárrega– Pujol tradition in Spain. Guyún developed a modern concept of harmony, and a way to apply classical technique to popular Cuban music. He became more adventurous, yet still in Cuban vein, and in 1938 stopped performing to devote himself to teaching the guitar. This bore fruit, and two generations of Cuban guitarists bear witness to his influence. He wrote a valuable book, ''La guitarra: su técnica y armonía'', and two unpublished works: ''Diccionario de acordes'' and ''Un nuevo panorama de la modulación y su técnica''. He was highly praised by

Andrés Segovia Andrés Segovia Torres, 1st Marquis of Salobreña (21 February 1893 – 2 June 1987) was a Spanish virtuoso classical guitarist. Many professional classical guitarists were students of Segovia or their students. Segovia's contribution to the m ...

, on a visit to Cuba, and held various teaching posts. One of his students was the great tresero

Niño Rivera Andrés Echevarría Callava (April 18, 1919 – January 27, 1996), better known as Niño Rivera, was a renowned Cuban Tres (musical instrument), tres player, songwriter and arranger. Early in his career he played with the Sexteto Boloña and Sextet ...

(Andrés Echevarría).Orovio, Helio 2004. ''Cuban music from A to Z''. Revised by Sue Steward. A biographical dictionary of Cuban music, artists, composers, groups and terms. Duke University, Durham NC; Tumi, Bath. p99 Guyún died 29 September 1987 in Havana.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guyun 1908 births 1987 deaths Cuban guitarists Cuban male guitarists Cuban composers Male composers 20th-century composers People from Santiago de Cuba Musicians from Havana 20th-century guitarists 20th-century male musicians Cuban male musicians