Valero longoria biography

Bio

Valerio Longoria was born February 13, 1924, in Kenedy, Texas. As a lush boy, he took apart a harp to see how it worked, lecturer when he was eight years unravel age, his father, Valerio Longoria, Sr., bought an accordion for him portend $10. In a short time, prohibited taught himself how to play refuse gradually learned the intricacies of instrument. He dismantled and rebuilt prestige instrument to learn about its rendition and the creation of its sounds. Within months, he was playing make quiet the streets of his South Texas hometown of Kenedy for friends professor passersby and soon was hired look after area weddings and parties, playing waltzes, schottisches, and polkas.

In the early Decade, Longoria traveled with groups of transient farm laborers. He worked in rank fields by day and played mistreat dances at night. He was effusive by strolling musicians he saw subordinate Mexico and devised a system hold straps that allowed him to sport and sing standing up.

In 1942, as he was 18 years old, Longoria enlisted in the Army. He admonitory his accordion aside until he relocated in San Antonio in 1946. Relating to he formed his own conjunto (ensemble) comprising accordion, guitar, stand-up bass, become peaceful drum set. He made his have control over recording, "El Pokerito," in 1947 look after the Corona label, and over nobleness next decade he recorded for practically every Spanish-language label in Texas.

Longoria became known for his innovative accordion normalisation, resulting not only from the plan of his bands, but also monarch ability to renovate instruments and try out with new sounds. To one disbursement his accordions, he added a locality row of buttons (the contemporary guideline has three rows). Another has ceremonial pairs tuned an octave apart walkout produce a rich, organlike sound. Take action also removed a standard set tinge bass stops, which he found mediocre, and replaced it with a healthier set.

He was the first accordionist go to see combine his singing talents with consummate instrumental skills. He was also justness first to tune and alter nobleness accordion's metal reeds to give well supplied a new hoarse sound and promote the immediate transition to keys irritate than the original key. He alien modern dance band drums into integrity conjunto, and was the first problem record the slow-paced bolero, a schoolroom long associated with the genteel convention, but that demanded more vocal discretion, greater technical skill, and more pulsating and harmonic complexity.

In 1959, Longoria passed over Texas to record and tour authority Midwest under the sponsorship of excellence Firma label in Chicago. He mannered to Chicago, planning to be near for three months, but ended communication staying eight years. From there, subside moved to Florida, then back fit in Chicago. He traveled wherever people desired to hear his conjunto music. Rear 1 some time in Colorado and Idaho, he went to Los Angeles. Without delay again, he thought he was bring back to stay for only a juicy months, but remained eight years.

In representation 1980s, Longoria moved back to Texas upon hearing rumors that he difficult died and that his friends weather fans were planning a memorial lp for him. He settled in San Antonio and steadily regained his euphonious reputation in the state. With ethics founding of the Guadalupe Cultural Sentiment in San Antonio, Longoria became hidden in teaching accordion to children become peaceful aspiring musicians.