Chito Latamblé

Chito Latamblé (right) playing with the Grupo Changüí de Guantánamo at the National Folk Festival in Havana, 1962. Reyes Latamblet Veranes (June 27, 1916 – March 6, 1993), better known as Chito Latamblé, was a Cuban tres player who specialized in the changüí genre of eastern Cuba. He is considered one of the most influential treseros, as well as a key exponent and promoter of the changüí in Cuba. From 1945, Latamblé co-directed with his brother the Grupo Changüí de Guantánamo, which featured the most "historically important" exponents of the genre.

Life and career Latamblé was born on June 27, 1916, in the Loma del Chivo neighbourhood of Guantánamo, Cuba, to Marcelino Latamblet y Mariana Veranes. He learned tres from his father and became a very active player from a very young age, despite his mother's wishes that he pursue a different career. Although he would work as a house painter and turbine oiler, he devoted his life to changüí, a music style that preceded the son cubano. After the departure of Martínez the band renamed itself Los Siete Amigos (The Seven Friends). Latamblé would also play in other groups such as Conjunto Sorpresa, which he joined in 1952. In 2007, a museum dedicated to Latamblé called Casa del Changüí (House of Changüí) was established in Guantánamo.

Awards and honors Latamblé received numerous awards from the Cuban government throughout his lifetime. Orden por la Cultura Cubana (Cuban Culture Order) Distinción por la Cultura Nacional (National Culture Distinction) Medalla Raúl Gómez García (Raúl Gómez García Medal)