6th Grade Culture Project

“Tito” Puente:  Bandleader (1927-2000)   Ernesto Antonio Puente Jr. was born in Harlem Hospital, New York City to Puerto Rican parents.  “Tito” played piano and drums in elementary school.  He loved percussion and later played with an orchestra before serving three years with the U.S. Navy during World War II.  He returned home to study at he Juilliard School of Music and then began arranging music (writing songs) and playing percussion with popular Tito Puente And His Orchestra.  When disc jockey Dick “Ricardo” Sugar translated on of their best songs into English, “Abaniquito” became on the first crossover mambo hits on the mainstream charts.  During the 1950’s music era, Tito Puente reigned as a mambo king! He often played in New York dance halls, including “Home of the Mambo” Palladium career, Tito recorded 100 albums, including his all-time bestseller “Dance Mania.”  Four of them won Grammy Awards!  Tito “The Mambo King” has worked with numerous other musicians and experimented with may different music styles including salsa, pachanga, and jazz.  Marsh, Carole, The Best Book of Hispanic Biographies.,Galopade Interational:  2003 p.20.      

Helpful sites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tito_Puente

http://www.galegroup.com/free_resources/chh/bio/puente_t.htm

http://www.bookrags.com/biography-tito-puente/index.html