Andrés Landero

• Name — Andrés Landero • Born — 4 February 1932 • Died — 1 March 2000 • Origin — San Jacinto, Bolívar, Colombia • Genre — Cumbia, vallenato • Years Active — 1962–2000 • Instruments — Accordion

Andrés Landero was born in San Jacinto, Bolívar, on February 4, 1932. His father was the gaitero Isaías Guerra and his mother Rosalba Landero. As a boy, he visited the mountains and learned the sounds of nature. In 1950, he began performing in his region. He bought his first accordion from his friend Francisco Rada, and formed his first musical group with Antonio Yaspes, Juan Gregorio Ortega and Vicente Fernández. He was invited by Delia Zapata Olivella to be part of her dance group that was touring Europe. He arranged and recorded "La Hamaca Grande", composed by Adolfo Pacheco. Landero best-known songs include "La Pava Congona", "Bailando Cumbia", "Perdí las Abarcas", "Las Miradas de Magaly", "Flamenco", and "La Muerte de Eduardo Lora". In an interview for the documentary series Landero la Tierra que Canta, Celso Piña praised Landero's simple, vivid lyricism. With his own group, Landero won several music festival competitions, including the Cumbia Festival in El Banco, Magdalena, the Sabanero Festival in Sincelejo, and the Bolivarian Accordion Festival in Arjona, Bolívar. He participated five times in the Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata, achieving two second places and two third places. Landero made tours of Venezuela, Panama, the Dominican Republic and Mexico. In Colombia, he was declared "King of Cumbia." Landero fathered 24 children. He died of a heart attack on March 1, 2000, in Cartagena after being hospitalized in the same city.