Augusto Algueró Dasca (23 February 1934 – 16 January 2011) was a Spanish composer,

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 orchestra ...

and

music director A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the ...

. He wrote more than 500 songs and about 200 musical scores for films and television.

Career

Algueró was born in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ...

, and studied both music and medicine. Among his most famous songs are "Penélope", which was performed by

Joan Manuel Serrat Joan Manuel Serrat i Teresa (; born 27 December 1943) is a Spanish musician, singer and composer. He is considered one of the most important figures of modern, popular music in both the Spanish and Catalan languages. Serrat's lyrical style ...

, as well as "Noelia" by Nino Bravo, "Tómbola" by Marisol and "La chica yé-yé" by Concha Velasco. He wrote the in the Eurovision Song Contest at the , " Estando contigo" by Conchita Bautista. He was the musical director of the , which was held in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), an ...

, and also conducted "

Catherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

", sung by Romuald Figuier, representing and "

Vivo Cantando "Vivo cantando" (; "I Live Singing") is a song recorded by Spanish singer Salomé. The song was written by María José de Cerato and Aniano Alcalde, and it was produced by Augusto Algueró. It is best known as the at the Eurovision Song Conte ...

", sung by Salomé, representing . "Vivo Cantando" tied for first place with other three songs with 18 points. This win marked Spain's second win in the contest and the first time that a country had won two years in a row. At the he conducted the Spanish entry, "

Gwendolyne "Gwendolyne" (), sometimes spelt "Gwendoline", is a song composed and recorded by Spanish singer Julio Iglesias, co-written by Leo Johns. It is best known as the entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1970, held in Amsterdam. The single was a ...

" sung by

Julio Iglesias Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva (; born 23 September 1943) is a Spanish singer, songwriter and former professional footballer. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially successful Spanish singer in the world and one of the top record ...

. He wrote and conducted the Spanish entry at the , " Amanece" sung by Jaime Morey. He was also the musical director of the

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

OTI Festival OTI Festival ( es, Festival OTI de la Canción, pt, Festival OTI da Canção), often known simply as La OTI, was an international song competition, organised annually between 1972 and 2000 by the Organización de Televisión Iberoamericana (OTI) ...

, which was held in Madrid in 1972, and also conducted "Niña", sung by Marisol, representing

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

, "Busco mi destino", sung by Rona, representing

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, "Sabes que aquí estamos América", sung by Victor Heredia, representing

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...

, "Glória Glória Aleluia", sung by Tonicha, representing

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal: :* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...

, "Oh señor", sung by Basilio, representing

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 ...

and "Siempre habrá en la luna una sonrisa", sung by Fernando Casado, representing 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 ...

. He conducted at the interval act an orchestral medley of two of his songs, "Penélope" and "Te Quiero, Te Quiero". Algueró died at his home in

Torremolinos Torremolinos () is a municipality in Andalusia, southern Spain, west of Málaga. A poor fishing village before the growth in tourism began in the late 1950s, Torremolinos was the first of the Costa del Sol resorts to be developed and is still t ...

, at the age of 76, after suffering a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

Selected filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alguero, Augusto 1934 births 2011 deaths Musicians from Barcelona Spanish pop musicians Eurovision Song Contest conductors 20th-century Spanish musicians Spanish conductors (music) Male conductors (music) Spanish composers Spanish male composers 20th-century conductors (music) 20th-century Spanish male musicians