El Trio Matamoros

One of the most popular and influential Cuban groups of the '20s and '30s, Trio Matamoros was formed in 1925 by Miguel Matamoros, along with percussionist Siro Rodriguez and guitar player Rafael Cueto. The band performed from 1925 until it disbanded in 1969, hitting several creative peaks along the way. From the beginning, the trio made an impact with its own unique sound, the bolero-son. Their music was rich with harmonies, but also featured the strong rhythm of the son, which was blended with the romanticism of the bolero. The band also expanded and contracted several times during its tenure, at times performing as a trio, septet, orchestra, and conjunto.

In the '40s, Matamoros' voice began to falter and he recruited a number of singers to fill in for him. From 1945-1947, Beny Moré sang with the band, at first just filling in Matamoros' part in the trio's harmonies, then taking on a much more focal role. Over the years, the band incorporated elements of swing, mambo, and rhumba into their recordings, and benefited from the mambo craze in the United States in the '50s, eventually recording in a large-band format that better suited the dance fever that was sweeping America.