Samy and Sandra Sandoval are a brother and sister

musical duo A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, ...

from

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

. They perform típico, a form of traditional Panamanian music and Panamanian-style

cumbia Cumbia refers to a number of musical rhythms and folk dance traditions of Latin America, generally involving musical and cultural elements from American Indigenous peoples, enslaved Africans during colonial times, and Europeans. Examples include: ...

. They have been praised as ''patrónes de la cumbia'' ("masters of cumbia"), and are very popular in Panama.

Early lives and career

Samy was born on 15 February 1968, and Sandra was born on 10 April 1970, to Luis and Dolores Sandoval in Chitré, in the

Herrera Province Herrera () is a province in Panama. Named after General Tomás Herrera, the province was founded on January 18, 1915 from a division of the Los Santos province. The capital city of Herrera is Chitré, which is located near the province's coast ...

. At age eight, Samy began to play the accordion, and after listening to songs at home, Sandra began singing. When Samy was eleven and Sandra nine, the two began performing on stage in their native Herrera Province. They slowly gained popularity through performances in other provinces, such as Coclé, Chiriquí,

Veraguas Veraguas () is a province of Panama, located in the centre-west of the country. The capital is the city of Santiago de Veraguas. It is the only Panamanian province to border both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It covers an area of 10,587.6&nb ...

, and Los Santos. By age eleven, Samy had entered and won a number of music and talent contests, though the limited number of fans of típico music in turn limited the duo's popularity. They then made several appearances on Panamanian television networks, such as

RTVE The Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española, S.A. (; ), known as Radiotelevisión Española or RTVE, is the state-owned public corporation that assumed in 2007 the indirect management of the Spanish public radio and television service know ...

and Channel 11, in order to reach a larger audience. At ages fifteen and thirteen, Samy and Sandra began to travel with their band, ''Ritmo Montañero'' ("Mountaineer Rhythm"). They became popular with young, middle-class audiences, and their popularity began to surpass that of many other típico stars. Samy and Sandra Sandoval are often credited as having been the first to expose the general public to típico, pindín, and other Panamanian folk musical styles. Their rise in popularity was attributed to Sandra's voice, dance ability, and enthusiasm, as well as Samy's skill at playing the accordion.

Musical hits

The Sandovals' successful songs include "Brindemos por lo nuestro" ("Toast to Ourselves"), "La mujer superficial" ("Superficial Woman"), "Oiga el viejo pá jodé," and "Lo que no da se deja" ("What is ungiving ought to be abandoned"). In 1994, at the Encuentro de Accordeones ("Meeting of Accordions") festival they became popular with the song "La gallina fina" ("The Fine Hen"), which they also performed on the soundtrack for the 2001 movie ''

The Tailor of Panama ''The Tailor of Panama'' is a 1996 novel by British writer John le Carré. A 2001 film was released based on the novel. Plot Harry Pendel is a British expatriate living in Panama City and running his own successful bespoke tailoring busines ...

''. They have released a total of fifteen albums, sold more than 30,000 records, and have had a

platinum album Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

. They have recorded a duet with

Gilberto Santa Rosa Gilberto Santa Rosa Cortés, nicknamed "El Caballero de la Salsa" (The Gentleman of Salsa) (born August 21, 1962), is a Puerto Rican bandleader and singer of salsa and bolero. He is a six time Grammy Award winner and has sold over three million ...

, who considered them some of the best performers of tipíca.

Other works

The Sandovals' life stories have been the topic of television shows such as ''Los compadres'', ''Aires de mi tierra'', ''Hecho en Panamá'', and ''De Mujeres''. They also had a small regular role in the television comedy series ''Los Vergaras''. Recently, they have appeared on

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and includes ...

's ''

Sábado Gigante Saturday is the day of the week between Friday and Sunday. No later than the 2nd century, the Romans named Saturday ("Saturn's Day") for the planet Saturn, which controlled the first hour of that day, according to Vettius Valens. The day's ...

'', and in El Festival de la Calle 8. A quote by Sandra, "No hay mujer fea, sino mujer sin plata" ("There are no ugly women, only women without money"), is now a popular phrase amongst many Panamanians. Samy and Sandra frequently appear at Las Fiestas del Rey Momo. They have performed throughout the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

, and given concerts in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, performing to audiences of more than 70,000. They have also performed for the Monegasque royalty. They were the subject of biography, ''Samy and Sandra: The Story'', written by Sergio Pérez Saavedra, and a DVD by the same title. It was well received by fans.

Personal lives

Both Samy and Sandra have completed formal education. Samy has a degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...

; he met his wife Iraida at university. After dating for five years they married on the

14 February Events Pre-1600 * 748 – Abbasid Revolution: The Hashimi rebels under Abu Muslim Khorasani take Merv, capital of the Umayyad province Khorasan, marking the consolidation of the Abbasid revolt. * 842 – Charles the Bald and Louis t ...

1994. They have two sons, aged twelve and eight. Sandra completed a degree in law and practised as an attorney intermittently. She later decided to devote her time entirely to entertaining and her family. In February 2008, Sandra gave birth to her first child, a boy, whom she named Luis Esteban.

References

External links

Samy and Sandra Sandoval
on Myspace {{DEFAULTSORT:Sandoval, Samy and Sandra 1968 births 1970 births Panamanian women lawyers 20th-century Panamanian lawyers Panamanian musical groups People from Chitré Sibling musical duos Living people 20th-century women lawyers