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

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

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

Rock en Español Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band Fiel a la Vega. Auger is also the band's main

songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates 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 genre and film scoring. ...

, together with Ricky Laureano.

Biography

Early years and schooling

Auger was born in

Hato Rey, Puerto Rico Hato Rey ( Spanish for ''king’s cattle farm''), often considered the central business district of Puerto Rico, is a highly urbanized financial, commercial, and residential district in San Juan, the capital municipality of the archipelago a ...

, 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. He followed his studies at the

Universidad del Sagrado Corazón Universidad del Sagrado Corazón (English: University of the Sacred Heart), abbreviated "USC" and often called simply Sagrado, is a private Catholic Church, Catholic university in Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is one of the oldest and larg ...

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

where he received a

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

Communication Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...

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

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

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 Vega Baja, and primarily played

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 released ...

s of popular American artists of the time like

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born November 5, 1959) is a British and Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, and photographer. He is estimated to have sold between 75 million and more than 100 million album, records and Single (music), si ...

REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon), or simply REO, was an American Rock music, rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial suc ...

, and others. Around this time, he began writing music, with his first song "Neverending Wait", written in English. 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 themselve ...

Ricky Laureano. 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 Fiel a la Vega. 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, town and municipality of Puerto Rico, and together with Culebra, it is geographically part of the Spanish Virgin Islands. Vieques lies about east of the mainland of Puerto Rico, measuri ...

Other collaborations

Outside of the band, Auger has collaborated with other artists as both a performer and songwriter. Recently, he collaborated with popular Puerto Rican folk singer, Roy Brown, and American folk musician

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), 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. 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", 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