Valentín Trujillo Sánchez (born May 2, 1933), also known as "Maestro Valentín" or "Tío Valentín", is a Chilean pianist and arranger of popular music. He is known for his participation in television programs, including "

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 na ...

Early years

Trujillo was born in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

in 1933. His father was a miner and his mother a teacher. His older brother, Fernando Trujillo, was a popular singer of boleros, rancheras, and corridos. Trujillo began to play piano at age three. He entered the Conservatorio Nacional de Música at age seven and continued to study there until 1952. In 2004, he recorded the album ''Jazz de Salón'' with Cristián Cuturrufo. Three years later, he recorded the album ''Un año más'' with Ángel Parra Trío.

Musical career

Trujillo released his first solo album, ''Un piano con alma'', in 1958. In 1960, he received the award for "Best Accompanying Orchestra Director". In 1962, he was hired as the conductor of the television program, "

" on Canal 13. He continued in that role until the program was suspended in 1974 by the military dictatorship. The program was then renewed on an international basis, and Trujillo moved to

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

where the production resumed. He also participated in the television program, "

El Mundo del Profesor Rossa ''El Mundo del Profesor Rossa'' ( panish Languagefor The World of Professor Rossa) was a Chilean children's television show centering on a professor named "Professor Rossa" ( Iván Arenas), who taught about Chilean national animals, mountains and ...

" for several years until 1998. In 2013, a biography of Trujillo, ''Valentín Trujillo: Una vida en la música'', was written by Darío Oses.

Politics

He has been affiliated with left politics for his entire life. He participated in the album ''X la CUT'' in 1968, published by the Juventudes Comunistas, and was a leader of the musicians' union. In March 2017, he signed for the Communist Party of Chile.

Awards and honors

Trujillo won the

Viña del Mar International Song Festival , image = , caption =Overture to the closing night of LI Viña del Mar International Song Festival (2010) , location =Viña del Mar, Chile , years_active =1960-present , founders = , dates =3rd week of February , ...

on several occasions. He has also received honors from the Sociedad de Críticos de Miami in 1992 and from the Chilean government in 2000 for career achievement. In 2010, he was honored at the Viña del Mar Festival with three prizes, a silver torch, a gold torch, and a gold seagull. In May 2016, he was named illustrious son of the city of Santiago.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Un piano con alma'' (1958,

EMI Odeon Odeon Records is a record label founded in 1903 by Max Straus and Heinrich Zuntz of the International Talking Machine Company in Berlin, Germany. The label's name and logo come from the Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe in Paris. History Straus an ...

) * ''Ritmos veraniegos'' (1960, EMI Odeon) * ''Sáquela a bailar'' (1964, EMI Odeon) * ''Bailando sencillito'' (1969, EMI Odeon) * ''Valentín Trujillo'' (1990,

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

) * ''Sí... soy chileno'' (2001) * ''Jazz de salón'' (2004) * ''Villancicos'' (2005, Perseguidor Records) * ''Valentín y Pedro Amat Trujillo'' (2006, Oveja Negra) * ''Un año más'' (2007) * ''Íntimo'' (2011 - Edición independiente) * ''Desde el alma'' (2012 - Oveja Negra) * ''90... y qué'' (2015 - Edición independiente) * ''Piel de América vol. 1'' (2015 - Edición independiente) * ''Valentín Trujillo & Consuelo Schuster'' (2015 - Edición independiente)

Live and EP

* ''Piano y ritmo EP'' (1956, EMI Odeon) * ''Al piano'' (2004, Sello Azul)

Collaborations

* ''X la CUT'' (1968, Dicap) * ''Aprender es compartir'' (2009 - Edición independiente) * ''Otra cosa es con guitarra'' (2011 -

Chancho en Piedra Chancho en Piedra is a Chilean funk rock band, considered influential in the popularization of alternative rock in Latin America. They are commonly described as similar to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but are also known for their unique sound and g ...

)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trujillo, Valentín 1933 births Living people Chilean male musicians Chilean jazz musicians Chilean pianists Male pianists Communist Party of Chile politicians