Alfonso "Tito" Auger Vega (born 3 March 1968, in Vega Alta,

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 ...

) is a Puerto Rican musician best known for being the lead singer of the

Rock en Español Rock en español () is a term used widely in the English-speaking world to refer to any kind of rock music featuring Spanish vocals. Compared to English-speaking bands, very few acts reached worldwide success or between Spanish-speaking countri ...

band

Fiel a la Vega Fiel a La Vega is a Rock en Español band from Puerto Rico formed in 1994. The band consisted of members Tito Auger and Ricky Laureano (vocals and guitars), who come from the northern city of Vega Alta, Puerto Rico, along with brothers Pedro and ...

. Auger is also the band's main

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

, together with

Ricky Laureano Ricky Laureano (born August 3, 1969) is a Puerto Rican musician most known for being the guitarist and one of the main songwriters of the Rock en Español band Fiel a la Vega. Biography Ricky Laureano met Tito Auger in the late 80s. Together ...

Biography

Early years and schooling

Auger was born in

Hato Rey, Puerto Rico Hato Rey is a former barrio located in the northwest part of the dissolved municipality of Río Piedras, Puerto Rico, Río Piedras. It now stretches over three Barrios of Puerto Rico, barrios, of the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico, San J ...

, and grew up in the town of Vega Alta. He is the son of Alfonso Auger Cabrera and Olga Vega Colón. Auger studied in the ''Nuestra Señora del Rosario'' school in

Vega Baja Vega Baja (, ) is a town and municipality located on the coast of north central Puerto Rico. It is north of Morovis, east of Manatí, and west of Vega Alta. Vega Baja is spread over 13 barrios. The population of the municipality was 54,414 at ...

. He followed his studies at the Universidad del Sagrado Corazón in San Juan where he received a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

Communication Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

s in 1990. As a young man, he migrated to

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

in the hope of becoming a rock star.

Interest in music

Auger started in music when he was 15 years old, playing the guitar. When he was 18, he was invited by some childhood friends (Emilio and Jorge Arraiza among them) to play in a band called ''Crossroads''. The band performed mostly in the local area of Vega Alta and

playing mostly

cover song In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of popular American artists of the time like

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...

REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The ...

, and others. At that time, he also started writing. His first song was in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and was titled "Neverending Wait". Shortly after, Auger met

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

. Together they formed another band called ''Farenheitt''. The band recorded a single with the first writing collaborations of Auger and Laureano. Their first songs were titled "Maryann" and "I'd Been Looking". His music and style have been termed

latin rock Latin rock is a term to describe a subgenre blending traditional sounds and elements of Latin American and Hispanic Caribbean folk with rock music. However, it is widely used in the English-language media to refer any kind of rock music featurin ...

and urban trova.

With Fiel a la Vega

After returning to Puerto Rico, Auger and Laureano reunited with friends Jorge and Pedro Arraiza, with whom they had played before and formed

. The band quickly achieved great success in the island releasing several radio hits and winning several awards. As of 2007, the band has released four studio albums. In 2001, Auger and Laureano took time away from their band to create "Cancion para Vieques" (Song to Vieques), to protest the United States occupation of the Puerto Rican island of

Vieques Vieques (; ), officially Isla de Vieques, is an island and municipality of Puerto Rico, in the northeastern Caribbean, part of an island grouping sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands. Vieques is part of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, ...

Other collaborations

Aside of the band, Auger has contributed to other artists both performing and writing songs. Recently, he collaborated with popular Puerto Rican folk singer, Roy Brown, and

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

folk musician Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...

Tao Rodríguez-Seeger Tao Rodríguez-Seeger (born 1972) is an American contemporary folk musician. A founder of The Mammals, he is the grandson of folk musician Pete Seeger. He plays banjo, guitar, harmonica and sings in English and Spanish. Biography Rodríguez-See ...

(from

The Mammals The Mammals are a contemporary folk rock band based in the Hudson Valley area of New York, in the United States. The band tours internationally and consists of founding members and principal songwriters Mike Merenda (guitar, banjo) and Ruth Un ...

), in an album called '' Que Vaya Bien''. The group toured the island together promoting a song called "El Banquete de los Sánchez" written by Brown, and based on a poem by

Luis Rafael Sánchez Dr. Luis Rafael Sánchez, a.k.a. "Wico" Sánchez (November 17, 1936) is a Puerto Rican essayist, novelist, and short-story author who is widely considered one of the island's most outstanding contemporary playwrights. Possibly his best known play ...

. Brown is one of Fiel a la Vega's main influences and they had performed together previously. Brown's most famous song, "

Boricua en la Luna "Boricua en la Luna" is originally a poem by Juan Antonio Corretjer. Puerto Rican singer/songwriter Roy Brown popularized it by adapting it to song. It was first featured on the album '' Árboles'', from Brown and Cuban singer Silvio Rodríguez ...

", has been covered by the band and is a staple in the band's live set.''Fiel a la Vega evidencia su compromiso social durante concierto.''
Primera Hora. 17 December 2010

References

External links

Fiel a la Vega Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Auger, Tito 1968 births Living people Puerto Rican guitarists Fiel a la Vega members People from Vega Alta, Puerto Rico 20th-century American guitarists 21st-century American guitarists Universidad del Sagrado Corazón alumni