A La Memoria del Vivo - Homenaje a Fruko
The "A La Memoria del Vivo" collection seeks to honor the life and work of iconic artists while they are still with us.
Julio Ernesto Estrada, better known by his stage name "Fruko," and his various nicknames—El de los Tesos, El Bueno, El Bravo, El Violento—is ultimately, and simply, "Fruko." His contribution to tropical music, and in particular to salsa in Colombia, is undeniable. For more than five decades, Fruko has been a leading figure in this genre, lifting Afro-Antillean and Cuban sounds to new musical peaks, imbued with the influence and vibrancy from places as diverse as Venezuela, Havana, Peru, and New York.
Fruko exemplifies how music can transcend borders and become enriched with influences from various corners of the world. His ability to blend sounds from different cultures and deliver that unique flavor in Colombia is a testament to his artistic genius.
Beyond his talent for creating infectious rhythms, Fruko is a virtuoso multi-instrumentalist with a keen ear for the beats that get people moving on the dance floor. His legacy is an essential chapter in Colombia's musical history, and his influence remains vibrant in the current music scene.
In this collection, five artists were invited to create graphic works that encapsulate different aspects of Fruko's musical universe. Each design pays homage to a piece of the extensive discography in which this iconic Colombian artist has participated or led. This is a unique opportunity to reinterpret the various stages of Fruko's life with a contemporary vision, using old-time technology that has witnessed his journey through emblematic places like Cali.
The La Linterna studio and its team of collaborators have produced these works that act as graphic references for the enduring musical legacy of maestro Fruko.
A La Memoria del Vivo Playlist
Intro
By Pablo Yglesias
aka DJ Bongohead
Julio Ernesto “Fruko” Estrada, the multi-talented Colombian musician, composer, engineer, producer and band leader, is a national cultural treasure and is still going strong after seven decades in the music industry. Fruko was born in Medellín, Colombia on July 7th, 1951. Music was a part of his growing up, as his uncles were involved in the recording industry and lots of music could be heard in his household. He started his career in the music industry as a studio helper at Discos Fuentes in 1963. During his more than four decades with the label he was involved in a vast and diverse musical project that boggles the mind. Fruko has participated in hundreds of recordings, composed scores of songs, and was a member or leader/founder of many tropical orchestras and bands over the decades, including Los Corraleros de Majagual, Fruko y sus Tesos, The Latin Brothers, Galileo y su Banda, Los Titanes, Los Nemus del Pacífico, Michi Sarmiento y sus Bravos, Los Pambele, La Integración, Los Bestiales, Los Diplomáticos, Afrosound, Pianonegro, Los Líderes, Wganda Kenya, Kammpala Grupo, Los Ídolos and Grupo Entebe. He worked with and nurtured the careers of some of the most famous singers in Colombia during the 1970s and 80s, including Piper Pimienta, Wilson Saoko and Joe Arroyo. He is credited with being one of the most important progenitors of salsa in Colombia, but has also been involved in many other types of music, from psychedelic cumbia to afro funk, and throughout it all, has displayed an adventurous, rebellious, and at times experimental creativity that was allowed free reign during his prolific tenure with Discos Fuentes.
It is important, even crucial, to celebrate Fruko (and other Colombian musical artists of the past) while they are still alive not only because so many others have died in obscurity before them, but also because the younger generations need to know the roots of the music they listen to today and how it is directly related to the music and musicians of the past, whether they know it or not. Often times, these musical rebels and pioneers are overlooked or thought of as old-fashioned, out of style, when in fact they were just the opposite in their time, and are still very vibrant, relevant and deserving of our attention today. Fruko is significant for his role as a visionary artist who was a focal point for a tropical musical movement that coalesced at a time of upheaval and strife, violence, change and resistance in Colombia, a cultural product and practice that was eventually felt all around the world. Also important is the fact that he attracted and nurtured talent, and was leading powerfully creative teams of people. Ultimately, perhaps his greatest achievement was in his role as a catalyst for a daring musical project that managed to gather disparate ingredients and combine them into a universal, positive force that resisted authority, reinvigorating and reimagining Colombian culture, something that is still felt today.
Much like Fruko in the realm of music, the historic printing studio La Linterna of Cali, Colombia, has had a long and fruitful career. And like Fruko, it is a site of resistance, creativity and communication through cultural expression. In La Linterna’s case, the message is expressed through the age-old medium of poster design, printing and public display. La Linterna is also a community catalyst that generates an astounding array of cultural projects that serve to educate as well as adorn and entertain.
One of La Linterna’s main focuses is on music, and what better way to continue this path than with a tribute to the living legend, Julio Ernesto “Fruko” Estrada. For this project, titled A La Memoria del Vivo, which is a play on one of Fruko’s most famous songs, “A La Memoria del Muerto,” La Linterna’s team of invited artists have created a series of posters inspired by the man and his music. The work can be seen as a visual representation of certain songs that define a moment in Fruko’s life. In creating their pieces, the artists are not only mindful of Fruko and his musical collaborators (some of whom have died), and his status as a living legend that needs to be celebrated, but are also inspired by his connection to the visual and graphic landscape of Colombia, and how the packaging of his discography, though album cover art, helped define the particular look of an era.
Homenaje A Los Embajadores
by: Jose Berrio @joseberriolesmes
Cancion: Homenaje a los Embajadores
Interpreta: Wganda Kenya
Album: Homenaje A Los Embajadores
Año: 1976
Escrita por: Ramón Veloz
Se trata de una abstracción de la cara de Fruko, inspirado en patrones textiles del occidente de África. El concepto hace alusión a la idea detrás del origen del proyecto "Wganda Kenya", con el cual buscaban rendir tributo a las raíces africanas de la música que sonaba por aquellos años en los picós de la costa caribe. El título de la obra, "Homenaje A Los Embajadores", además de ser el nombre de uno de los primeros éxitos del proyecto, se refiere a Fruko como uno de los máximos embajadores de la música Colombiana.
-Jose Berrio
Artist Bio:
José Berrío, diseñador gráfico e ilustrador Colombiano nacido en 1987 en Bogotá y actualmente radicado en la ciudad Nueva York. Utiliza tipografía e ilustración con una arraigada pasión por la música. Baterista de corazon, su trabajo esta lleno de elementos ritmicos a la hora de crear un lenguaje visual. Nueva York, le ha permitido enriquecer su arte, contribuyendo visualmente a los sonidos de bandas como Tame Impala, Max Richter y Leon Bridges, entre otros. El portafolio de Berrío también incluye colaboraciones con nombres prestigiosos como The New York Times, The New Yorker y Converse, mostrando su versatilidad y capacidad para traducir melodías en historias visuales cautivadoras.
Fruko Presidente
by: Johana Paez @yodax____
Cancion: Fruko Presidente
Canta: Joe Arroyo
Año: 1972
Escrita por: Frankie Dante
Es un tributo a la figura de Julio Ernesto Estrada como Presidente de la Salsa, tal como narra la canción, dirigiendo un ejercito musical que se revela contra la violencia, se trata de ese país construido por el pueblo bailador donde el mejor proyectil es un sólo de Gaviria en la trompeta, en esta tropa bailan blancos, negros, indios y mestizos por lo que este cartel esta destinado a ser material propagandístico del movimiento mundial salsero por la paz con un cencerro.
-Johana Paez
Artist Bio:
Johana Paez, conocida como Yodax, es una artista visual visionaria de Bogotá, cuyas creaciones vibrantes mezclan vivamente la esencia del arte popular latinoamericano, el tropicalismo y las culturas de danza globales. Especializada en la representación visual de la música, Yodax ha forjado una estética única para proyectos musicales en todo el mundo, colaborando con sellos reconocidos y artistas diversos a través de los continentes. Su trabajo, que celebra la intersección del sonido y el arte visual, no solo adorna, sino que también narra las historias rítmicas de diversos géneros musicales, convirtiéndola en una figura influyente en la fusión de las artes visuales y musicales.
Si Yo Encontrara Un Amor
by: Carlos Malagón @gonikus.studio
Cancion: Si Yo Encotrara un Amor
Canta: Wilson Saoko
Album: El Grande
Año: 1975
Escrita por: Arturo Colón
About Saoco visto como un superhéroe de Barrio. homenaje al cómic, al barrio y la obra musical de Fruko.
-Carlos Malagón
Artist Bio:
Nacido en la capital de la salsa, Cali, Colombia, Carlos Malagón, conocido como Gonikus Studio, es un artista visual que ha estado orquestando diseño y música durante más de dos décadas. Es capaz de destilar la esencia de la salsa y sus ritmos en forma gráfica, con elementos dinámicos y colores exuberantes que hablan el idioma de este querido género. Reconocido por sus vibrantes representaciones de personajes históricos de la salsa, Malagón continúa siendo una figura clave en la narración de la saga visual del alma rítmica de Colombia y la grafica Caleña.
¡Ay que solo estoy!
by: Juan Manuel Leal Granados @manuelito.desleal
Cancion: El Preso
Canta: Wilson Saoko
Album: El Grande
Año: 1975
Escrita por: Álvaro Velásquez
La música decembrina es parte vital de la cultura colombiana, sin embargo sus letras suelen contar con una carga emocional abrumadora y "el preso" no es la excepción, el dolor y la pena de tener un familiar tras las rejas o de estar en sí mismo privado de la libertad tumba hasta el más parado, es así como cada año está canción nos recuerda que las luces navideñas no brillan para todos.
-Juan Manuel Leal Granados
Artist Bio:
Nacido en la cúspide del nuevo milenio en el año 2000, Juan Manuel Leal es un artista visual oriundo de Villamaría, en el corazón de la región cafetera de Colombia. Su arte, arraigado en la interpretación poética de los momentos cotidianos, encontró su expresión a través de las melodías de la música y las vías del diseño gráfico. Talento emergente de la Universidad de Caldas, Leal encarna a una generación que se comunica mediante la fusión de influencias tradicionales y narrativas modernas, creando arte que refleja el vibrante pulso de la vida contemporánea.
El Caminante
by: Veronica Villegas @madamevacile
Song: El Caminante
Escrita por: Giberto Mejias
Canta: Joe Arroyo
Album: El Caminante
Año: 1974
About
El diseño es una propuesta de la gráfica popular barranquillera con una pequeña parte de la letra que para mi es una de las más populares en la costa atlántica de Fruko cantada por Joe Arroyo, jugué con los espacios y la diagramacion solo para conocedores para hacer un poco dinámica la lectura e identificación de la canción
-Veronica Villegas
Artist Bio:
Originaria de la colorida y rítmica ciudad de Barranquilla, Colombia, Verónica Villegas, mejor conocida como Madame Vacile, encarna el espíritu de su tierra natal a través de sus empeños profesionales y personales. Con una sólida base en diseño gráfico, ha perfeccionado sus habilidades trabajando en eventos alternativos en Barranquilla, donde ha creado arte para artistas locales e internacionales. Sin embargo, es su ardiente pasión por la música lo que verdaderamente la define. El corazón de Madame Vacile late al son de la música, encontrando su expresión en su álter ego como DJ. En los ritmos que mezcla y en los visuales que crea, Madame Vacile celebra el rico mosaico cultural de Colombia, un testimonio de su amor y dedicación a su arte.
