Abel Antonio Villa
Abel Antonio Villa | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Abel Antonio Villa Villa[1] |
| Also known as | Padre del acordeón[2] |
| Born | 1 October 1924 Tenerife, Colombia |
| Died | 10 June 2006 (aged 81) Barranquilla, Colombia |
| Genres | vallenato |
| Spouse | Débora Cañas |
| Children | 11 |
Abel Antonio Villa Villa (1924–2006) was a Colombian accordionist and songwriter. He appeared on the first commercial vallenato record in 1944, and wrote more than 500 songs in a decades-long career. In 1998 he was given the title "King for life" at the Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata.
Biography
Abel Antonio Villa was born on 1 October 1924 in Tenerife in the department of Magdalena, Colombia, to Antonio Villa Salas and María del Tránsito Villa Barrio. He had 10 siblings.[3]
Villa began learning accordion at age 9 after hearing Gilberto Bermúdez play, and was later taught by Pacho Rada.[3] He formed his first band together with his brother Fabián, Julio Bovea, and Virgilio Riasco.[3] In 1944 Villa played on the first commercial vallenato record, alongside Ezequiel Rodríguez, Guillermo Buitrago, and his brother Fabián, a song called "Las Cosas de las Mujeres" that was released on Odeon Records.[1] He later signed to Discos Fuentes, where he released his first LP in 1947; by 1979 he had released 22 LPs and more than 500 singles.[3]
Villa competed only once in the accordionist competition of the Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata, and did not win. In 1998 he was given the title "King for life" (Spanish: Rey vitalicio) by the festival, alongside Andrés Landero, Antonio Salas, Pacho Rada, and Lorenzo Morales.[2][4]
Villa was married to Débora Cañas, and had 11 children. He died on 10 June 2006 in Barranquilla.[2]
Musical style and compositions
Villa wrote over 500 songs in the vallenato rhythms of paseo, merengue, and puya, as well as cumbias.[3] His best-known composition is "El Higuerón", which was popularised by Binomio de Oro.[2] Other notable compositions by Villa are "Mi Candelaria", "Zoila", and "Amalia Vergara".[2]
"La Muerte de Abel Antonio"
In 1943, when returning home from military service, Villa stopped to play accordion in various towns in Magdalena. He was in El Banco when a man called Abel Antonio Fernández, who looked like Villa, died. The news that "Abel Antonio has died" got back to his family in Piedras de Moler; his father telegrammed the mayor of El Banco, who confirmed his death. Five days into the wake, Villa appeared.[5] From that time on he exclusively dressed in white, and he wrote the song "La Muerte de Abel Antonio" (The death of Abel Antonio) about the experience, which has been recorded by several artists including Alfredo Gutiérrez and Binomio de Oro.[5][6]
References
- ^ a b "¡Inolvidable! Abel Antonio Villa: el centenario del 'Padre del Acordeón'" [Unforgettable! Abel Antonio Villa: the centenary of the 'Padre del Acordeón'], Radio Nacional de Colombia (in Spanish), 30 September 2024, retrieved 27 April 2025
- ^ a b c d e "Ahora sí murió el maestro Abel Antonio" [The maestro Abel Antonio has died], El Tiempo (in Spanish), 11 June 2006, retrieved 27 April 2025
- ^ a b c d e José I. Pinilla Aguilar (1980). "Villa Abel Antonio". Cultores de la Música Colombiana (in Spanish). Editorial Ariana. pp. 411–413. OCLC 253182806.
- ^ Leonardo Herera Delghams (18 July 2003), "Murió el Tigre de la Montaña" [The Tiger of the Mountain has died], El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 30 July 2025
- ^ a b Liliana Martínez Polo (28 September 2022), "Los premios Abel Antonio Villa, el juglar al que 'mataron' por accidente", El Tiempo (in Spanish), retrieved 27 April 2025
- ^ Marcos Fidel Vega Seña (2005). "Juglares: Abel Antonio Villa". Vallenato: Cultura y Sentimiento (in Spanish). Bogotá: Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia. pp. 75–76. ISBN 958-8205-69-7.
External links
- Abel Antonio Villa discography at Discogs