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Biography
Born Juan Seijas in 1957, Guerra turned to muisic relatively late in his life, at least compared to most other pop and rock stars of his calibre. Despite music always being a passion of his, Guerra only turned to it as a career path after completing a degree in Philosophy and Literature at the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo. However, once he left university his next stop was to study guitar and music theory Santo Domingo National Conservatory of Music. He proved so adept at the course that he was able to transfer to the Berklee College Of Music in Boston during the course, and left with a diploma in Jazz composition.
He returned to the Dominican Republic in 1982 and set about starting his career in music, which began in earnest with the release of his first album in 1984. “Soplando” was recorded with a group of local musicians that later became his full time backing band Cuatro Cuarenta (Four Forty). The record was never intended to be a commercial hit, being as it was a set of Jazz-inflected ideas he’d come up with while still at Berklee. Once he’d got his first record out of his system, he began writing Merengues, music native to his home country of the Dominican Republic.
However, his first record had gotten him some acclaim and notice in the Dominican music scene, and he was signed to Karen Records in 1984. The label were, fortunately, understanding of Guerra’s desire to go in a different musical direction and he immediately set to work on his next two records, 1985’s “Mudanza y Acarreo” and 1987’s “Mientras Más Lo Pienso...Tú”. Guerra had already picked up a loyal following around his native country but “Mientras…” was what really grabbed people’s attention, and with his next two albums he became one of music’s biggest names in many Latin American countries. His 1991 album “Bachata Rose” especially put him on the map, selling five million copies the world over.
Ever since then, he’s remained an icon in the world of Latin muisic. He’s won an abundance of Latin Grammy awards and has had four of his albums certified Platinum. He’s even made an impact in the English speaking rock world as well, supporting The Rolling Stones in San Juan, Puerto Rico and collaborating with Sting to name but a few. He remains one of the Dominican Republic’s premier musical exports, and for that, he comes highly recommended.
Live reviews
I consider Juan Luis Guerra to be a legend, and in my opinion one of the best artist in his genre of music. So when I heard that he was actually going to be playing a concert in a city only a few hours away from my home, I felt like it was a once in a lifetime chance to see him, as his touring dates are limited and being in my part of the world in concert had never happened before.
So the day of the show arrived and my wife and I jumped in the car with a stack of his CD's and made the drive. We arrived and made our way into the coliseum. We were both so excited and so was everyone else in the building. The chatter of 1000's of conversations radiated this amazing positive energy and just got us more and more excited for the show to start. When Juan and his band stepped out on stage, the crowd erupted and the show began. It was truly beautiful and full of so much energy.
That positive, happy energy that comes from his music, as well as his genre of music. They played for over 2 hours, which was the best part, as they have such a vast catalog of songs, by the end of the show, we had heard almost every song that we were hoping to hear. The stage show was lively and entertaining, as Juan is just one of those musicians that knows how to entertain a crowd! We left the show completely satisfied and overly happy about the experience!!
A critically acclaimed artist who has been working the circuit for over thirty years, Juan Luis Guerra is one of the most internationally enjoyed Latin artists of all time. His vocal abilities are surpassable and he has a wonderfully warm stage demeanour which crowds really respond well to.
They are always up for being involved in the show and Juan frequently gets them to sing, sway and dance along to his music. He has a huge band setup to recreate the tropical beats of his discography to the very highest quality and the outcome is music that sounds as near perfect to the recording you could almost be persuaded to think Guerra was miming.
However the man himself makes sure his vocal is heard as he performs impressive tricks and holds huge notes with ease to the amazement of the masses. It is clear to see why he has won so many Grammy awards, the man oozes star quality and his music backs up his credibility.
sean-ward
I had a great time at the concert having a busy schedule driving big rigs cross country i took time off to take my mother to the concert it was a surprise for her to go see her favorite singer Juan Luis Guerra i was more happy to see that she enjoy herself I got more pleasure of my mother enjoying it more then me but it was great can't wait until next concert of his and great job of putting the concert together.
victormjiminian
Excelent concert, one of the best that I have ever seen!
Great performance!
The venue was great but was no adapted to this type of concerts, where the audience is mostly Latin and they want to dance and not being sit down, but this didn't stop us either way!
rafael-seco-nunez
The concert was amazing! I've loved it, we really enjoy it! The show was great, the sound and we really liked the venue. I totally recommend Juan Luis Guerra, I've always wanted to go to a concert of him! I am so happy that I've went!
Aliciajaen
Simplemente Genial. Ikaragarria. Wicked. Grande como siempre Juan Luis Guerra. I will assist to your concerts any time I can. special mention to all your team members, and chapeau for the musicians.
kilkea
One of the greatest concerts I’ve ever been!
It lasted almost two hours and there was even space to dance. The organization was amazing as well. There was food and drink stands.
maria-isabel-rojas
Awesome concert! Best vibes. Acoustics weren't the best at the back of the standing stalls. There was enough space to dance and jump without being pushed. It was a great night.
albert-peiro
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