Talk:Sonora Matancera

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Untitled

The expression "salsa" for Cuban music was invented long after the group was created, so it is a bit misleading to have it mentioned as the only comment on the group's style. ROGNNTUDJUU! 14:12, 26 March 2006 (UTC)

Dear Sirs:

My name is Humberto Corredor. At the present time I live at 49-15 Colden St., Flushing, New York 11355. I am a record collector for over 40 years. I have been related all this time with La Sonora Matancera and also did travel with the group as a bandman assistant for over 6 years. During this period I met almost 80% of the singers that were part of this Cuban group. The group was officially organized on January 12,1924 in Matanzas, Cuba. The leaders were Valentín Cané and Pablo Gobín (not Vásquez), Eugenio Pérez, Julio Gobín, Juan Bautista Llópis, Domingo Medina, Manuel Sánchez, and Juan Manuel Valera. The original name was Sexteto Soprano. Later, for political reasons, became Tuna Liberal. The first singer was Eugenio, then Carlos Manuel Díaz Alonso "Caíto", who later on brought Rogelio Martínez. At this time, the son was the big hit in Cuba. They add Ismael Goberna on the trumpet and José Rosario Chávez "Manteca" on timbales and moved to Havana in 1927. They arrived as "Estudiantina Sonora Matancera" and recorded in 1928 for RCA Victor Records the tunes: El porqué tus ojos, Fuera fuera chino - Victor 46225, December 10,1927. Also: Cotorrita and Eres bella como el sol, Victor 46447. On January 30,1928 and February 9,1928: A mi Cuba and No te equivoques conmigo, Victor 80658 and De Oriente a Occidente, Matanzas, tierra de fuego: Victor 81407. Composers were Valentín Cané, Juan Manuel Valera and Ismael Goberna.

In 1935, Calixto Leicea replaces Goberna. In 1944, Lino Frías and Pedro Knight joined the band and they recorded Coquito Acaramelado and El viandero, RCA-Victor 23-0187. Bienvenido Granda was the singer since 1942 till 1953. Also Humberto Cané.

On August 8,1950, Celia Caridad Cruz became the female singer, replacing a female vocalist that La Sonora use to accompany in her shows, Myrta Silva.

The director and maestro of this great success was Rogelio Martínez, who was appointed by all the rest because Valentín Cané was ill. This conjunto was a cooperative.

The late 40s and the 50s were amazing for Cuban music, especially for this group. The constellation of stars that performed cannot be duplicated.

Musically yours,

Humberto Corredor—Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.52.16.207 (talk) 16:43, 25 February 2009 (UTC)

I agree with the first comment in relation to the use of the commercially-driven term "salsa" to describe Cuban/Afro-Cuban urban popular dance music in general and the style of Conjunto Sonora Matancera in particular. La Sonora Matancera long predates the word "salsa" and its recorded music, deeply rooted as it is in the traditions of Cuban/Afro-Cuban culture, will be played by its legion of fans long after "salsa" ceases to exist. At this point I will proceed to the main concern of my brief comments. With all due respect, Humberto Corredor errs when he says that the original name of this musical collective was Sexteto Soprano, later being called Tuna Liberal. Such is not the case. The original name of the band was — for political considerations — Tuna Liberal. In 1926, the group changed its name to Septeto Soprano, not Sexteto Soprano. Additionally, the band did not adopt the name Estudiantina Sonora Matancera till the early 1930s, several years after it established residence in Havana. The group took on its definitive name, Conjunto Sonora Matancera, in 1935. Mr. Corredor states as much in the liner notes to the Seeco Records double album "50 Años de la Sonora Matancera". In these same liner notes he cites Pablo Vázquez as a co-founder of this conjunto. His full name was Pablo Vázquez Gobín. Being Hispanic himself, Humberto Corredor well knows that Vázquez is Pablo's paternal surname while Gobín is his maternal surname. It would appear that Mr. Corredor contradicts himself. Furthermore, he may have been associated with Conjunto Sonora Matancera for a number of years but, still and all, Humberto Corredor is mistaken when he states that Bienvenido Granda was the lead singer with the band in question from 1942 till 1953. Bienvenido Granda was a member of La Sonora Matancera from 1940 until 1954. The last song which he recorded with this musical institution was the guaracha "Sujétate la lengua", nowadays considered to be a classic of this genre. It was recorded on February 9,1954. There is one other matter I wish to touch upon. I am the person who edited and expanded the article on Conjunto Sonora Matancera from June 2012 inclusive to December 2013. Originally, said article consisted of a mere three paragraphs with scarce data. Some of this information was misleading. I incorporated data and analyzed same, reaching logical conclusions.

Sonorally yours,

Alan Bobé-Vélez

Concerns over content, tone, and ownership

I'm copying the following discussion from my talk page:

The information that I have included concerning Tata Güines and Patato is common knowledge. Therefore, your edit is unwarranted.

Alan1-11-1951 (talk) 19:10, 20 December 2013 (UTC)Alan1-11-1951Alan1-11-1951 (talk) 19:10, 20 December 2013 (UTC)

• To the contrary. 'Common knowledge' is generally not an acceptable rationale for adding content to an encyclopedia. However, including an acceptable reference with the content, per WP:RELIABLE, is always welcome. JNW (talk) 19:12, 20 December 2013 (UTC)

I kindly ask you and any other editor who has changed my article to restore the pages that have been deleted. I am writing a comprehensive article on the history of this Cuban/Afro-Cuban band. The edits which have been made do a disservice to the comprehensiveness that I am aiming for. Thank you. Alan1-11-1951 (talk) 19:43, 20 December 2013 (UTC)

Obviously, you and the other editors who have fundamentally and systematically altered my article have no idea how much effort I have put into writing this essay. If you did you would not have deleted all of the priceless data that you arbitrarily found to be superfluous. That this monograph was long is undeniable. A proper treatment of the history of La Sonora required no less.

Alan1-11-1951 (talk) 20:28, 20 December 2013 (UTC)

(talk page stalker) User:Alan1-11-1951: Comments like this show that you do not understand Wikipedia's policies on ownership of articles. You do not have the right to tell anyone else that they cannot make changes in good faith. --Drm310 (talk) 20:49, 20 December 2013 (UTC)

Many experienced editors have made great efforts here to expand content--I've done so for hundreds of articles, and am far from alone in that respect. But WP:OWNERSHIP is a real concern, as is the tone of much of the writing in this article:

• Septeto Soprano had arrived. The ensemble was no longer merely a provincial phenomenon;
• Over such an abbreviated period, these musicians and singers—with contributions by composers and arrangers—brought into being a memorable catalog;
• Rogelio's support was validated through dint of her prodigious ability and hard work;
• A new challenge, greater than any ever presented by other Cuban/Afro-Cuban ensembles, was now faced by La Sonora Matancera. How was the collective to continue cultivating the native rhythms of their homeland in a foreign setting?;
• Obviously, the singers and musicians of La Sonora Matancera were highly respected by their peers;
• Conjunto Sonora Matancera was, to say the least, much admired. Cognoscenti view this album as one of the top ones in Latin jazz descargas and, quite possibly, the best recording produced by the Fania Records behemoth before its embrace of crass commercialism;
• After the 1970s decline inevitably reared its head as Conjunto Sonora Matancera entered into its extended twilight period. The glory years were shortly a thing of the past

These will suffice as examples of rhetorical flourishes that don't belong in an encyclopedia. These constitute hagiography rather than the neutrality that's necessary here. JNW (talk) 20:56, 20 December 2013 (UTC)

For the record, this is what the article looked like prior to Drmies' cropping of it earlier today [1]. The assumption here is that user Alan1 is the same editor as the 68 IP. JNW (talk) 21:10, 20 December 2013 (UTC)

I want to clarify a misconception concerning my relationship with Conjunto Sonora Matancera. I have never been nor am I now affiliated with this band in any way. Additionally, I am not a talk page stalker.

I did not engage either in rhetorical flourishes or in hagiography. The sentences you cite as proof of such are well-written presentations of data. I merely introduced said information to buttress my argument.

Where necessary, I pointed out when different sources contradicted themselves with respect to the facts. By the same token, I have not created original research. Once again, I only incorporated data which allowed for an understanding of the history of La Sonora Matancera and interpreted this information in a logical manner.

The tone of the article is in no way similar to the writings to be found in album liner notes nor in a fanzine. Some editors believe this is the case. Not once did I write that La Sonora is the greatest group in the history of Cuban/Afro-Cuban urban popular dance music. I wrote in a neutral voice.

The editors who cropped the essay were overzealous. For example, Minino is mentioned as having stayed in Cuba when the collective left. My prior explanation of his replacing Manteca was deleted. Therefore, this deletion would result in a gap in the logical presentation of data. I reintroduced said explanation and two others so as to maintain the logical progression of the article.

Entire sections were erased. A discussion of a musical ensemble has to include the singers and composers associated with it, the recordings made by the band, and an assessment of its influence and importance. The chapters covering these topics were excised. The essay on Conjunto Sonora Matancera written in Spanish on the Wikipedia Spanish language website covers a number of the vocalists and songwriters affiliated with the cooperative as well as some of the recordings made by this group. I do not understand why it is acceptable to include this information in one language but not in another.

The editors are not infallible. In their revisions they misspelled some words. I corrected the misspellings.

I well understand Wikipedia's policy in relation to ownership of this article. I have no problem with that. Neither do I have a problem with anyone making changes in good faith. What I do object to is changes that subvert the logical progression of the presentation of facts.

I disagree with the manner in which em dashes are placed, references are cited, and the positioning of footnotes. I follow the guidelines established by Kate L. Turabian in her manual for writers of term papers, theses, and dissertations. Nevertheless, I accept Wikipedia's policy with respect to em dashes, references and footnotes.

The essay, after the changes made by the editors, gives only a passing understanding of La Sonora's history. An encyclopedia entry should be comprehensive. As it is now constituted the article is far from being so.

68.173.246.248 (talk) 16:47, 27 December 2013 (UTC)Alan1-11-1951

• I think the disagreements here concern matters of both style and substance. I'll stand by my characterization of certain phrases as not compatible with encyclopedic norms; those issues are compounded by a lack of supporting references, so that such statements as the examples I entered above read like original research and editorial commentary. But I'm happy to ask others who have not written these passages to offer their opinions. One unintentional side-effect of cropping unsourced material is that chronological and stylistic flow may be compromised, and such omissions can be corrected, again, so long as the gaps are filled with properly sourced content. As for differences between Wikipedia articles in various languages, that is inevitably a result of better, worse, or just different levels of scholarship and copy editing. Finally, I'd conclude that an encyclopedic entry is not intended to be comprehensive--I believe many writers misconstrue the function of an encyclopedia in this manner--but to summarize scholarship from available reliable sources. JNW (talk) 22:03, 27 December 2013 (UTC)
• I just had a look at the Spanish language entry [2]; there's not a single reference. JNW (talk) 22:07, 27 December 2013 (UTC)

Name of the band

For us Cubans who, for the most part, are lovers of music as well as our heritage, which includes the great exodus of musicians and artists who went to the United States after the 1959 Revolution, as well as other parts of the globe, it is quite appalling that the author of this article profusely referes to this group as Cojunto Sonora Matancera. This group never in it's existance styled itself this way. They are and always have been for the most part of their history, and at least since their recordings with Celia Cruz in La Habana in the mid-1940s, La Sonora Matancera, which translated means The Sonora Matancera. This is something that needs recognition as well as correction in this article. Their efforts are commendable at redacting the colorful history of this group, but this must be addressed. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 160.93.246.73 (talk) 17:07, 31 December 2013 (UTC)

I am the author of this article. The misspelling of "conjunto" is not my doing. It was Wikipedia's editors who misspelled the word "conjunto" as "cojunto". I corrected said error.

The official name of the band is Conjunto Sonora Matancera even though it referred to itself, and was referred to by others, as La Sonora Matancera. Furthermore, Celia Cruz did not record with La Sonora in the mid-1940s as she only joined the group in December 1950.68.173.246.248 (talk) 17:46, 3 January 2014 (UTC)Alan1-11-1951

Whatever the "official" name, La Sonora Matancera is what appears on almost every album cover, posters, media coverage, isn't it?[3] There are instances of Conjunto Sonora Matancera, but I think it's in the decided minority. Why are we emphasizing a name that they, and their fans, didn't use for them? __ E L A Q U E A T E 22:42, 3 January 2014 (UTC)

After some time has passed, I don't see that there was any consensus to rename most of the instances of the article subject's name as "Conjunto Sonora Matancera", The majority of sources we have either refer to the band generally as Sonora Matancera or they keep the "La" as part of the name. Honestly, it doesn't look like there is a single source that uses "Conjunto Sonora Matancera" when it refers to the band generally. The only reason we would use "Conjunto" is if the sources used it, or there was a source that used it that was more defining than all of our sources and the band themselves, or if you had a policy-based argument to ignore all of the sources. I'm going to change it to "La Sonora Matancera", the name used in many of our sources, and throughout the talk page by all involved editors. There is also an argument for changing to "Sonora Matancera" as per [4] and other scholarly sources. That one might read better. But the use of Conjunto against the use of all of our current citations has not been sourced at this time, and looks like the preference of a single editor alone. __ E L A Q U E A T E 16:23, 8 January 2014 (UTC)

It was not a question of emphasizing the use of a name that the band and their fans didn't use for La Sonora. Rather, it was a question of writing style. I wanted to avoid having to repeat ad infinitum the name "La Sonora Matancera" so I resorted to alternating three names. These were, as you saw, "Conjunto Sonora Matancera", "La Sonora Matancera" and "La Sonora", in that order. To use the first name does not, so to speak, muddy the waters for everyone knows that "Conjunto Sonora Matancera" refers to "La Sonora Matancera". ELAQUEATE, I wanted the reader of this article to understand that La Sonora was one of the principal bands working in the conjunto format as opposed to doing so in a big band setting.

There is one other point which I would like to make. I well understand that Wikipedia's editors hold all the cards, to use a colloquial expression, and that writers of articles are subject to a rewriting of their works. Still and all, I strongly feel that any treatment of the history of La Sonora Matancera must include mention of the singers, composers and recordings associated with this band, as well as a listing of songs by vocalist and date. Likewise, its influence and importance must be addressed. The chapters wherein I discussed these topics were deleted. I feel such action is arbitrary, capricious and unwarranted. What is the protocol for lodging an appeal? Please advise. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 17:30, 9 January 2014 (UTC)

* 1.Articles are better when they avoid long comprehensive lists of every work an artist has done. A list of records could probably be moved out to a separate page, as the entire List_of_compositions_by_Ludwig_van_Beethoven is not sitting on the Ludwig van Beethoven page. You should have a serious exploration of Category:Discographies, and, to a lesser extent, Category:Lists_of_songs_by_recording_artists. There are page that deal with artists that have hundreds of albums or a dozen, across genre styles. If there's a format that works, you could edit one for what you've found in sources. Then this article could have a link to that page at the bottom, and this article could maintain a focus on the significant events on the career of the band. This would result in the article being more readable, and more useful. You could add composers, notable singers, and it could be the way to document that raw history.

* 2. The chapters wherein I discussed these topics were deleted. On wikipedia, nobody is going to defend the inclusion of stuff you write yourself only sourced to your own opinions. Nobody has any idea of who you are, whether you're making stuff up, whether you're writing down dreams, whether you wrote it in a bad mood, etc. Wikipedia has a stated goal of being verifiable. That means that if somebody comes along in a couple of years to reference this page, they can see where the ideas were sourced from so they can decide for themselves how trustworthy the source is. Opinions have to be sourced as well as physical events. If we write "this was the most beautiful song they played." then people have every right to ask, "Who thinks it's the most beautiful?" If the answer to that question is you, then you should try to get it published somewhere else. Without a source, your opinion is similarly seen as arbitrary.

The story of the group that you see, can most likely be told, but not the way you were trying to do it, which would've required everybody, now and in the future, believing you to be correct about everything you say, for no reason. All of this being said, I recommend you look at Category:Discographies....__ E L A Q U E A T E 18:48, 9 January 2014 (UTC)

ELAQUEATE, thank you for your reply. Additionally, thank you for including the sidebar and the pictures of Cuba (showing the location of Matanzas), Havana and different artists affiliated with La Sonora Matancera. I wanted to do so but I didn't know how to go about doing this. By the same token, thank you for your efforts at correcting any perceived shortcomings in relation to this article. Though I may not agree with all of the edits made by you and others I accept these changes. I have no choice.

I want to address some issues. To start with, I will incorporate a discography when time allows.

Contrary to what some editors believe, I avoided interjecting my opinions. My discussion of "salsa" is a common complaint of many aficionados of Cuban music. Your use of the phrase "...American salsa..." is misleading in that "salsa" was created primarily by Puerto Rican artists residing in New York. With the exception of Barry Rogers and Larry Harlow, very few, if any, American artists contributed to the creation of this musical genre. Therefore, "American" should be eliminated from this phrase.

In your discussion of notable singers associated with the band you did not include Bienvenido Granda. You mention Daniel Santos, Myrta Silva and Celia Cruz. Bienvenido should be mentioned as he was the first important vocalist to perform and record with La Sonora and the one who recorded the most songs with the group. Similarly, Leo Marini, Miguelito Valdés, Nelson Pinedo, Estanislao "Laíto" Sureda, Carlos Argentino, and Celio González, in that order, merit being mentioned as among the notable singers who were part of the band at one time or another. They should be included right after Celia Cruz so as to maintain the chronological order of their appearance with La Sonora Matancera.

An editor accused me of writing in a style more appropriate of album liner notes or a fanzine. With all due respect, your description of the song "Cao cao, maní picao" borders on this.

Finally, my discussion of Lino Frías illustrated his importance not only as the pianist most identified with the band but, as well, his importance as an arranger and composer. To delete this discussion is a disservice to him and to the history of La Sonora. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 17:49, 10 January 2014 (UTC)

I removed the “American” from “American salsa”. I had considered doing that at the time, but I was thinking it was more referring to “of the Americas” than “of the United States”. Either way, it’s not necessary, and gone.

Regarding the lead, it needs to be rewritten at some point, as it is not yet in encyclopedic style. The starting paragraphs are supposed to be a summary of the article as a whole, and should explain the most important things about the subject. I haven’t done much with it myself, but it can be improved in other places as well. (Also it’s not “my” discussion.) The sources back up putting Granda in more prominently of course.

Again, I can’t really speak to other editors’ actions or comments. I will say again that even if you have “correct” or “common” opinions, all things that people might reasonably question need to be sourced to third-party sources. I don’t think anyone is arguing that Lino Frías shouldn’t be included. But we can’t include broad opinions about him without sources that are independent of editors (which includes you, me, and the others.).

Your example of Cao cao maní picao is very useful here. You describe it as “my” description. It was some previous editor who added it, but most importantly: The opinion is sourced to Ned Sublette; it’s not a random editor who has given this opinion, it is tied to a source that people can research, and weigh the importance of. This is the most important thing to understand about people's objections. Simply put, Wikipedia is for pointing to other’s opinions, not giving our own, and you have to show where the opinion came from, in writing, if it's something people might question. Like any other editor, you can give opinions about edits on the talk page, and you can make changes to the article, but it has to be in line with the limits every editor has. But most of what has been challenged from your contributions seems to be because it wasn’t sourced to anyone but you personally, not whether particular history was important. __ E L A Q U E A T E 18:58, 10 January 2014 (UTC)

Thank you, ELAQUEATE, for your response to my latest e mail. Thank you, as well, for removing the "American" from "American salsa". I would think only Hispanics understand the correct usage of the word "American" as referring not solely to the people of the United States but to all the peoples of this hemisphere.

Forgive me if I classified the edits made to this article as being "yours". I realize that many persons had a hand in editing said article.

Would it be permissible for me to include Bienvenido Granda, along with the other singers mentioned by me in my most recent e mail, in the paragraph wherein Daniel Santos, Myrta Silva and Celia Cruz are named as notable singers with the band? Please advise.

My comments in relation to Lino Frías are supported by verifiable sources. I was scrupulous in supporting whatever I wrote with sourcing to third-party sources. I never presented myself as a source, third-party or otherwise. My contributions were based on facts supported by third-party sources.

Thank you for saying that my example of "Cao cao, maní picao" was useful. Once again, I apologize for saying that the sentence describing this song was your description.

I have two questions. How often is a link to be made? For example, there are more than one link in relation to Daniel Santos, among others. Isn't one link sufficient? My second question is as follows: Why aren't links to other Wikipedia articles allowed if these contribute verifiable data? I made links to several such articles but said links were deleted. Once more, please advise. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 02:44, 11 January 2014 (UTC)

ELAQUEATE, I overlooked to mention one thing. I wrote a paragraph which showed that La Sonora Matancera's first overseas tour was prior to 1955. It was cropped. I feel it should be reinserted because the data used by me is verifiable. The paragraph in question is not my opinion. It is based on fact. At the same time, said paragraph points out that different sources contradict themselves. I would like for those reading this article to realize that an air of uncertainty encompasses some of the information concerning the history of La Sonora. It appears that the editors, in too many instances, were overzealous, throwing out the proverbial baby with the bath water. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 03:21, 11 January 2014 (UTC)

You should probably sign in to your account to make edits. Your signature is showing up as your IP address. If you log in, then people can leave messages about general editing on your talk page, etc.

When you make an edit, you should fill in a short note in the "Edit summary" field about the change. That's useful when looking at the the edit history of the page. If you don't, it's hard to find old edits you may have made. You can also link to a specific edit using this technique That would be helpful when discussing an edit made in the past.

How often is a link to be made? As often as needed to avoid reasonable challenges. This varies. Please read Wikipedia:Verifiability

Why aren't links to other Wikipedia articles allowed... Internal links are allowed (like this one) to point people in interesting directions. But Wikipedia is not a reference for a whole paragraph of asserted opinion. Look at the example of the Machado Birthday invitation: When it was originally added, it had no source but a note to look at a different Wikipedia page. This is too indirect. The reader would have to go to that page to see if there was any citation for the incident. The citation of the source (the book from a reliable source) generally needs to be directly referenced on the page where the claim is being made. (In a year that other Wikipedia page could be deleted or changed. Maybe the reference to the birthday invitation is changed... The future reader of this article would have no reference then). Please re-read Wikipedia:Verifiability. A "baby" that has been thrown out can be re-added, but it needs to have a clear and direct source. This isn't required in order to keep good information out, it's required to keep Wikipedia as a more reliable resource for what is included.

I can try to re-write the lead later. A raw list of nine people might not be the best way to summarize the band's use of notable singers. __ E L A Q U E A T E 11:05, 11 January 2014 (UTC)

ELAQUEATE, thank you for your feedback. I will follow your advice.

With respect to the paragraph concerning an overseas tour made by La Sonora Matancera prior to 1955, this entry has a clear and direct source. I did not make up this or any other information. All of the sources which I used to generate data are verifiable. I respect the established norms for composing a scholarly work. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 17:37, 11 January 2014 (UTC)

ELAQUEATE, I took the liberty of putting Bienvenido Granda in the opening paragraph of the article. By your own admission, the "...sources back up putting Granda in more prominently...". This is as it should be for four reasons. One, Bienvenido Granda was the first important singer with the band. Two, he was with the collective for some fourteen years. Three, he made the cooperative famous throughout the Hispanic Caribbean. Four, Bienvenido Granda was the artist who made the most recordings with La Sonora Matancera. All four reasons are verifiable. These are not my personal opinions.

As you can see, I still do not know how to log in to my account. Please advise. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 23:47, 11 January 2014 (UTC)

ELAQUEATE, I corrected a mistake concerning the song "Cao cao, maní picao". This song is not the initial recording made for Seeco Records by La Sonora Matancera. That distinction is held by "Tocando madera" since it was recorded in 1949, more than a year before Celia Cruz first stepped into a recording studio with the band.

Celia Cruz

There are two other matters I would like to address. For one, I feel that the photograph of Celia Cruz which accompanies the article is not appropriate because it dates from the 1980s, long after she ceased being a featured lead singer with the collective. There are photos of Celia with the ensemble which are readily available. Any of these would be more appropriate. For another, I also feel that too much importance is attached to the incorporation, if you will, of Celia Cruz into the ranks of the group. Sonora Matancera made Celia famous, not the other way around. As such, I find that it is misleading to have a chapter heading which highlights the addition of Celia Cruz to La Sonora. Yes, Celia was a great vocalist. Yes, she was, without a doubt, the most important female singer to have been a member of the band. Having said that, the fact remains that Celia Cruz is not the most important vocalist, male or female, to have performed and recorded with La Sonora Matancera. Many hold to the opinion that such is the case. I am among those who disagree. Why? What about Bienvenido Granda? What about Daniel Santos? Their contributions, as we say in New York City, are not chopped liver. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 03:25, 18 January 2014 (UTC)

The photos are based on their copyright availability and whether people have uploaded them to Wikimedia Commons] If more photos were available there I would add them. It would be great to have Granda, and a couple of group shots from the fifties. The photo of Celia Cruz in 1980 is currently attached to our section where she recorded two albums with the group in 1980/81. It would be odd to have the 1980 picture anywhere else, and it's the only usable pic of Celia Cruz we have at the moment. As far as the prominence given to Celia Cruz in the article, I would personally rank it as being as almost non-prominent as it is possible to go, considering she is the singer that most sources give preference to, who mention her even when no other singer is mentioned. If sources give her the most prominence, we shouldn't be trying to downplay her involvement because you personally rank other singers higher. I have no problem with documenting all the significant singers, but the weight should be comparable to sources, not personal judgement in the face of sources. You say Sonora Matancera made Celia famous, not the other way around. This is just silly and a little petty. If Sonora Matancera somehow had the magical ability to "gift" fame on a person, then they should have done the same thing for all of their singers and there'd be no complaints about one singer being more famous than others. Nobody "made" anybody famous here. __ E L A Q U E A T E 20:56, 20 January 2014 (UTC)

ELAQUEATE, the point made by you concerning the photo of Celia Cruz is well taken. Yes, it "...would be great to have Granda, and a couple of group shots from the fifties."

I do not rank other singers higher than Celia. I am bereft of objective criteria allowing me to do so. In line with this, I feel that there should be a balanced assessment of the significant singers associated with the band. Too often sources act as shills for a particular point of view. I believe such is the case in relation to Celia Cruz and her affiliation with Sonora Matancera. Possibly my choice of words was not appropriate. I meant to say that Celia achieved stardom while a featured lead vocalist with the collective and that La Sonora, which had been around for almost twenty-seven years when she first recorded with the ensemble, did not become famous because of its association with her. I was not trying to be either silly or petty. La Sonora Matancera did make some singers famous. Alberto Beltrán and Carlos Argentino are two such vocalists.

With your permission I would like to mention in the article the song which was the first recording the group made for Seeco Records. This was the guaracha "Tocando madera", Bienvenido Granda on lead vocals, in 1949.

There is one final point I would like to raise. I want to collaborate closely with you and any other editor so as to have this article meet Wikipedia's protocols. Alan1-11-195168.173.246.248 (talk) 03:49, 25 January 2014 (UTC)

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• Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20081203090210/http://library.fiu.edu/latinpop/SECCION04Mpt1.pdf to http://library.fiu.edu/latinpop/SECCION04Mpt1.pdf

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