Orestes López

Orestes López Valdés (August 29, 1908 – January 26, 1991), nicknamed Macho, was a Cuban multi-instrumentalist, composer and bandleader, founder of the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Cuba. He is considered the co-creator of mambo, together with his brother Israel "Cachao" López, and one of the most prolific danzón composers of the 20th century.

Biography

Early life and career

Orestes López was born in Old Havana on August 29, 1908. As a pre-teenager he studied piano, cello, violin and the five-key ebony flute. In 1924, at age 16, he played cello with maestro Pedro San Juan's Philharmonic Orchestra. A few years later, he was playing bass for Miguel "El Moro" Vázquez's charanga. According to his brother Cachao, in 1926 he was a member of Grupo Apolo, the first septeto to include a trumpet.

Arcaño y sus Maravillas

In the 1930s he was the musical director of three dance orchestras: López-Barroso, Orquesta de Orestes López and La Unión, before joining Antonio Arcaño y sus Maravillas in 1937 as a founding member. López, a multi-instrumentalist, composed and orchestrated danzones, most notably "Camina Juan Pescao", "El truco de Regatillo", "Los tres bailadores" and "Mambo", which launched a new style of danzón, the so-called danzón-mambo. Subsequently, the syncopated bass in the tune gave rise on the one hand to the dance genre known as mambo popularized by Pérez Prado, and on the other hand to the cha-cha-chá, created by Enrique Jorrín.