In Havana, when we lived there, competitions of amateurs were in the radio since immemorial times but they were not well organized or supported by cash rewards for contestants. Angel Cambó and Miguel Gabriel (CMQ radio station) introduced changes and launched a radio program, «The Supreme Court of Art», with prizes in cash for outstanding weekly winners, and a chance for professionalism
The winner in the daily elimination received a cash prize of $10; for the winners of the week two highest places there were, for the first place $25 and for the second $20. (Take into account that those were amounts in exchange values of many years ago.)
My wife Teresa Fernandez (née Rodriguez) says that she and a high school fellow student, Rosita Molina, were encouraged by friends to appear in the Supreme Court of Art, in the program of 11 AM. They counted on the presence at the studio of many other students, including Fina, a sister two years older than she.
Rosita and she sang a duet, and Teresa interpreted a solo, «No Vale la Pena” (Not Worth the Efforts), a bolero by a well known composer and piano player, Orlando de la Rosa. Orlando de la Rosa was then the accompanying pianist of the program. Teresa recalls that there was no rehearsal, just a few phrases from the bolero so that Orlando de la Rosa arranged her accompaniment to the tone of her voice.
She won the first place that day!
A neighbor of Teresa’s family, who lived on the second floor of their house, was listening to the program, and when Teresa was on the air, she shouted to Teresa’s mother «María, María, Teresita is singing in the Supreme Court.»
That was the end for Teresa’s public singing in Havana. In first place, her mother did no allow her to compete in the weekend program.
She and Fina had not said anything in their home. When they arrived at the house, the mother gave them tremendous scolding, which the blame mainly placed on Fina, with their mother saying that she was responsible by being the eldest.
Teresa continued singing in the high school choir. When she enrolled at the University of Havana, she joined the University Chorale, where her sister (Yeyé) was deputy director.
Yeyé had Teresa as the leader of her voice cord. During the years she sang in the choral, Yeyé rehearsed with Teresa the songs of the programs, accompanying her to the piano in their house, to ensure the performance of the choral cord of the group of which she was leader.
That, in short, was an excellent musical training for Teresa, and I think it allowed her, over the years, to be always in control of the tone of the songs she has interpreted.
Yo la acompañaba a ensayar con el coro, lo que hacían en los escalones del frente del edificio de la Facultad de Filosofía.
Subíamos la escalinata, dejando a un lado la estatua del Alma Mater.
Cuando caminábamos a través de la Plaza Cadenas, al acercarnos al grupo de los compañeros de la coral, ellos le cantaban:
“Sun sun sun sun sun babaé, llegó Teresa, la hermana’e Yeyé.”
El sunsún, también conocido como picaflor o colibrí, es muy común en toda Cuba. Revoletean entre las ramas de los árboles pequeños, sus alas se mueven a una increíble velocidad y del ruido de este rápido movimiento se puede claramente escuchar, sun sun. Una canción popular, el Sun Sun Babae, pájaro lindo de la “madrugá”, los hizo famosos en toda Cuba.
Sun Sun fué compuesta por Rogelio Martínez, cantante, fundador y director de la orquesta Sonora Matancera. He leído que la tonadilla viene del siglo XIX, y que Rogelio Martínez fué quien la puso en un pentagrama, en un arreglo musical.
Esta es una interpretación de Celia Cruz:
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=sun+sun+CANCION+CUBANA&mkt=en-us&httpsmsn=1&msnews=1&rec_search=1&plvar=0&refig=262de0a933524a74a03c1acefb621240&sp=-1&pq=sun+sun+cancion+cubana&sc=0-2&qs=n&sk=&cvid=262de0a933524a74a03c1acefb621240&ru=%2fsearch%3fq%3dsun%2bsun%2bCANCION%2bCUBANA%26form%3dEDGSPH%26mkt%3den-us%26httpsmsn%3d1%26msnews%3d1%26rec_search%3d1%26plvar%3d0%26refig%3d262de0a933524a74a03c1acefb621240%26sp%3d-1%26pq%3dsun%2bsun%2bcancion%2bcubana%26sc%3d0-22%26qs%3dn%26sk%3d%26cvid%3d262de0a933524a74a03c1acefb621240&view=detail&mmscn=vwrc&mid=B027FD46761251701FA6B027FD46761251701FA6&FORM=WRVORC
Foto de la Coral. Teresa en la primera fila, a la extrema derecha; y su hemana Yeyé, al centro, al lado de Ada Iglesias, directora, con flores en sus manos.
… as time goes by… after we came to USA, other stories.
Some years ago, a nephew asked Teresa to sing the “Ave María” at his wedding. Teresa sought a person to prepare this song and took classes with her, continuing with another voice teacher until today.
Her training in Raleigh is of Operatic Arias and art songs, while singing the popular music of Cuba, and other Latin American and Spanish countries.
Her singing style reflects both the traditional techniques of Bel Canto and the characteristics of the country’s folklore in particular.
Evoco un programa que exploró la música latina desde diferentes puntos de vista, interpretada por Irene Burke, flauta; Jean Bynum, violín y viola; Ariana Dewar cello; Lanette Lind piano; and Jim Wiliams, clarinete.
El programa incluyó estas cuatro canciones por la soprano solista Teresa Fernandez:
La Flor de la Canela (The Cinnamon Flower) Letra y música, Isabel Chabuca Grande (Peruvian Waltz)
Capullito de Alelí (Alelí Little Bud) Letra y música, Rafael Hernández (Puerto Rican Bolero)
Aquellos Ojos Verdes (Those Green Eyes) Letra Adolfo Utrera, música Nilo Méndez (Cuban Bolero)
Chiquillin de Bachín (Little Street Boy) Letra Horacio Ferrer, y música Astor Piazzola (Argentinian tango/Waltz)
La música de Piazzola es delicada y emocionante, y la letra de Horacio Ferrer merece los comentarios siguientes:
Descripción breve de Chiquilín de Bachín, Chiquillín siendo una denominación porteña (de Buenos Aires) para un un niño con pocos años de edad. Esta es una traducción al español de una reseña por Roy C. Dicks, en el 2003, sobre una interpretación de Teresa de esta canción en concierto de The Free Spirits.
Bachín es el nombre de un bar.
“… En Chiquilin de Bachin, la cantante habla de su verguenza al presenciar la difícil situación de un pobre niño callejero, hambriento y desharrapado. Fernández comunicó las emociones con gran expresividad, mientras mostraba un fino control de las notas altas y terminando con una nota en un murmullo…”
Al final del concierto nuestra hija Cristina me comentó que Chiquilín de Bachín le había sacado lágrimas.
Como curiosidad anecdótica se adjunta una foto de un recorte de periódico de enero 23, 2009, donde se comentaba sobre la presentación de The Free Spirits, con Teresa Fernandez como soprano solista.
Por dificultades técnicas no pude subir las canciones interpretadas por Teresa.