Pedro Flores

Pedro Flores born (March 9, 1894 – July 14, 1979) was one of Puerto Rico's best known composers of ballads and boleros.

Early years Flores (birth name: Pedro Juan Flores Córdova) was one of twelve children born into a poor family in the town of Naguabo, Puerto Rico. Flores' father died when he was only nine years old, which meant he had to do work from a young age. When Flores was sixteen years old, he took a special course at the University of Puerto Rico (Universidad de Puerto Rico) and received his teaching certificate. Flores then taught for five years, and worked for one year at a sugar mill on the island of Vieques. In 1918, he served in a clerical position in the United States Army, and was honorably discharged when he was twenty-four years old.

Trío Borinquen In 1926, Flores went to New York City without having any formal musical education. There, he joined another Puerto Rican composer, Rafael Hernández, in his Trío Borinquen. Even though Flores and Hernández became very good friends, they also became competitors as composers. When Flores wrote "Sin Bandera," Hernández rushed to write Preciosa.