Tito Puente makes a good mood in today’s Google Doodle

If you click on the Google Doodle today, you will be surprised with a video. The clip is shown in honor of the musician Tito Puente, who strongly influenced the Latin American style of jazz, mambo and salsa.

In the foreground is a cheerful Tito Puente making music. In the background, a stage and skyline are suggested and he wears a red suit – colored suits were his trademark. Also on display is the flag of Puerto Rico, the homeland of his parents. The video is accompanied by his music.

The reason for the doodle is American Hispanic Heritage Month – every year from mid-September to mid-October, the history and culture of Americans who have their roots in a Latin American country is celebrated in the US. So we may see other artists from this region on Google in the coming days.

Tito Puente was born on April 20, 1923 in New York. The son of Puerto Rican parents, he grew up in “Spanish Harlem” – a Manhattan neighborhood. His full name was Ernest Anthony Puente – because his mother called him Ernestito, his stage name was later called Tito. He became known for his mambo and Latin American jazz compositions and was therefore also known as the King of Mambo. For half a century he played his music for the people, spreading good cheer and making his audience dance. So it’s not surprising that he originally wanted to become a mambo dancer.

The talented musician mastered many instruments: saxophone, piano, vibraphone, timbales, congas and bongos.
When he got a recording contract in 1948, he managed to bring Afro-Cuban and Caribbean music closer to a large mainstream audience and to enthuse it.

In total, he recorded 116 albums, received multiple Grammys for his work and even appeared in front of the camera, for example for the film The Mambo Kings, which was shot in 1992.

Tito Puente died in June 2000 at the age of 77 in a New York hospital.

(anb)