Sylvia Rexach
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
January 22, 1922
- Comedy scriptwriter
- poet
- singer
- composer
| Sylvia Rexach | |
|---|---|
 Rexach was the founder of the "Las Damiselas", the first Combo in Puerto Rico consisting entirely of women. | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Sylvia Regina Rexach González January 22, 1922 |
| Died | October 20, 1961 (aged 39) |
| Genres | Bolero |
| Occupations |
|
Sylvia Regina Rexach González[1] (January 22, 1922 – October 20, 1961) was a Puerto Rican comedy scriptwriter, poet, singer and composer of boleros.
Rexach was born and raised in Santurce, Puerto Rico. Her parents were Julio E. Rexach of Fajardo, and María Teresa González, of San Juan, Puerto Rico. There she attended public school and received her primary education. She then went to a private school where she finished her secondary education before attending the Central High School of Santurce. During her high school years, when she was 14 years old, she wrote several poems which were to become part of her musical compositions. She amazed her teachers when she composed "Di, Corazón" (Tell me, Heart) and "Matiz de Amor" (Calm Love). Rexach also learned how to play musical instruments, such as the guitar, the piano and the saxophone at a young age.[2]
World War II
Rexach enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico, where she was going to take a pre-legal course; however, when the United States entered World War II in 1942, Rexach dropped-out of the university and joined the United States Army as a member of the WACS (Women Army Corps Service), where she served as an office clerk.[2][3]
Post-World War II
After the war, Rexach was discharged from the armed forces. She married army officer William J. Riley, with whom she had three children, including actress/singer Sharon Riley.[4] The marriage eventually ended in a divorce and she returned to Puerto Rico, where she went to work for a radio station as a comical script writer, first for producer Tommy Muñiz, and later for comedian Ramón Rivero "Diplo". She was the founder of the first Combo in Puerto Rico consisting entirely of women. They were named Las Damiselas (The Damsels), and besides Rexach included: Idalia Rosario, Marta Romero, Millita Quiñones, Elena Rita Ortiz, and Ketty Cabán.[2]
Singing career
In 1951, Rexach had a newspaper column called "A Sotto Voce", where she was a music critic.[2] She was also a co-founder of The Puerto Rican Society of Authors, Composers and Music Editors (Sociedad Puertorriqueña de Autores, Compositores y Editores de Música).[2] She was its Secretary Director, a position she held until the day of her death.[5] Musicologist Cristóbal Díaz Ayala described Rexach as "virtually unclassifiable" within the Latin American music of her time, noting how her boleros projected frank sexuality and a calm defiance unusual for the genre.[1]
The tones of Rexach's compositions varied from the soft and romantic to the harsh and tormented. Among her compositions that became hits in Puerto Rico and abroad were: "Alma Adentro" (Inner Soul, actually a homage to a brother who died in an accident), "Idilio", "Olas y Arenas" (Waves and Sands), "Mi Versión" (My Version), "Nave sin Rumbo" (Wandering Ship), "Di, Corazón" and "Matiz de Amor". She even wrote a humorous novelty song, "Cuchú cuchía", which features Rafael Hernández Marín as a co-composer.[5]
Rexach was an alcoholic at the time of her death October 20, 1961, in San Juan, Puerto Rico.[6] Her death certificate states the cause as an intestinal obstruction, complicated by a duodenal atresia. She was buried at Cementerio Buxeda in Carolina, Puerto Rico.
