Humberto Rodríguez Silva (August 14, 1908 – April 3, 1952) was a Cuban songwriter and judge. He composed many popular afros and

guarachas The guaracha () is a genre of music that originated in Cuba, of rapid tempo and comic or picaresque lyrics. The word has been used in this sense at least since the late 18th and early 19th century. Guarachas were played and sung in Cuban musica ...

such as "La negra Cacha", "Se me rompió el bongó" and "A caridad le da santo", as well as

boleros Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It h ...

such as "Pecador". He also wrote numerous

soundtracks A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured ...

for Cuban and American films, such as ''

When Women Rule ''When Women Rule'' (Spanish: ''Cuando las mujeres mandan'') is a 1951 Cuban musical comedy film directed by Joseph P. Mawra and starring Federico Piñero, Alberto Garrido (comedian), Alberto Garrido and Germán Valdés. The Mexican star Valdés, ...

''. Born in

Guantánamo Guantánamo (, , ) is a municipality and city in southeast Cuba and capital of Guantánamo Province. Guantánamo is served by the Caimanera port near the site of a U.S. naval base. The area produces sugarcane and cotton wool. These are traditi ...

, Rodríguez Silva studied law at the

University of Havana The University of Havana (UH; ) is a public university located in the Vedado district of Havana, the capital of Cuba. Founded on 5 January 1728, the university is the oldest in Cuba, and one of the first to be founded in the Americas. Originall ...

and later worked as a judge in the town of

Yateras Yateras is a municipality in the Guantánamo Province of Cuba. The municipal seat is located in the town of Palenque, in the northern part of the province. Alejandro de Humboldt National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site is partly located in thi ...

, near Guantánamo. At the same time, he decided to pursue a career as a songwriter, and became famous for his guarachas. In 1943, a special concert devoted to his music was held in Havana, where his songs were performed by Zoraida Marrero & Alicia Llorente, Trío Cancioneras del Caribe, Panchita Trigo, Delia Casanova and Sara Santana, and presented by musicologist José Luis Vidaurreta.

References

External links

Humberto Rodríguez Silva
Discogs.com. 1908 births 1952 deaths Cuban songwriters Male songwriters Cuban judges People from Guantánamo Musicians from Havana 20th-century male musicians {{Cuba-law-bio-stub