Lou Pérez (June 21, 1928 – May 27, 2005) was an American

flautist The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

, violinist, bandleader, composer and

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

. He was one of the most influential and popular charanga musicians in the 1960s and 1970s, and his music was used in the film ''

Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romantic drama dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tells the story of Frances "Baby" Houseman ...

''.

Early life

He was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, to parents from

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

and

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 ...

.Biography by Max Salazar at Allmusic.com
Retrieved 6 February 2013 At the age of four, he moved with his father to Manzanillo, Cuba, and then to

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, returning to New York when he was nine years old.Herencia Latina, ''Ha Muerto Lou Pérez''
(in Spanish). Retrieved 6 February 2013 He studied music, first playing the

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

before moving to the saxophone, flute, and percussion.

Career

As a young musician, he was involved in the bands of Gilberto Valdés, Noro Morales, Belisario López and others, before forming his own band at the height of the ''charanga'' craze in New York in the early-1960s. Before mentioning his soloist career, let's point out from a 2004 interview where he discussed he used to play the violin. Plus on the very same interview, one can appreciate a photo showcasing Lou playing the piano as well on the far left with a light color coat and black tuxedo pants. He had several successful album releases, including ''Para La Fiesta Voy'' (1961), ''Bon Bon de Chocolate!'' (1962), ''Tamboleo'' (1964), ''Of Latin Extraction'' (1966), ''Barrio'' (1972), ''Fantasia Africana'' (1975), and ''Nuestra Herencia'' (1976).Fidel's Eyeglasses, ''Lou Perez'', 28 April 2009
Retrieved 5 February 2013 In all, he recorded 15 albums, and also recorded music for films and commercials. His song "De Todo un Poco", from his 1977 album of the same name, was used on the soundtrack to the hit movie ''Dirty Dancing'' in 1987, and his earlier albums became collectors' items.

Death

He died at the age of 76, from injuries he sustained when he was hit by a car while crossing a street in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. ElWatusi eNewsletter No.8, 12 August 2010
. Retrieved 6 February 2013

References

1928 births 2005 deaths American flautists Musicians from New York (state) American bandleaders 20th-century American musicians American people of Cuban descent American people of Puerto Rican descent American expatriates in Cuba 20th-century flautists {{US-musician-stub