Harold Orozco | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 24, 1947 |
| Died | May 1, 2007 (aged 60) |
| Spouse |
María Cristina Correa
(m. 1973–1994)María Auxilio Vélez (date missing) |
| Relatives | Harold Orozco Correa (brother) |
Harold Orozco Rengifo (February 24, 1947 - May 1, 2007)[1] was a Colombian singer and composer. Known as one of the Colombia's New Wave interpreters, his main influences included Elvis Presley and Paul Anka. Inspired by his work, others such as Kenny Pacheco, Ernesto Castro, Mariluz, Vicky, Claudia of Colombia, Lida Zamora, Óscar Golden, The Flippers, The Yetis, The Ampex, and Juan Nicolás Estela also began to take part. He was the leading promoter of the Colombian New Wave until 1980.
Biography
editHarold grew up in Cali's San Fernando neighborhood, alongside his parents, Malek and Alba. At the age of 7, on Christmas, his parents gave him a guitar, and he then began taking classical technique lessons with Professor Nino Subelli. During his childhood and adolescence, he listened to tangos, boleros, and sones, which his family enjoyed, and watched movies dedicated to youth in the 1950s. However, everything changed when Elvis Presley's records arrived at his house. He became enthusiastic about his music, his persona, and his language, with which he was familiar with thanks to his bilingual school.
After that, he got a Teisco electric guitar and began to participate in contests or to participate in any stage he could find at soda fountains. There he got involved with the tropical group "Los Bobby Soxers," who quickly combined cumbia and guacharaca with rock 'n roll.[2] He quickly looked for a way to travel to Bogotá to expand his professional circle. On the condition that he finish his studies, his parents authorized his trip and helped him look for options at the Universidad Libre de Colombia, which offered him the possibility of studying in a single day.[2]
- ^ "Adiós a Harold Orozco, cantante de la 'nueva ola'" [Goodbye to Harold Orozco, singer of the 'new wave'] (in Spanish). El Heraldo. May 1, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
- ^ a b Pérez, Umberto; Vega, Luis Daniel (2023). Una idea descabellada: instantáneas del rock en Bogotá (1957 - 1975) [An absurd idea: Snapshots of rock in Bogotá (1957 - 1975)] (in Spanish). ISBN 9789585125315.