Biography
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Born
11 November 1911
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Born In
La Habana, Cuba
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Died
2 October 1971 (aged 59)
Bola de Nieve is the stagename for Ignacio Jacinto Villa (September 11, 1911, Guanabacoa, Havana City, Cuba – October 2, 1971, Mexico City, Mexico), a Cuban singer, pianist and songwriter. His nickname means "snowball."
Raised in Cuba, Villa studied at the Mateu Conservatoire of Havana. He started his artistic life as Rita Montaner's pianist in 1933. After Montaner returned to Cuba, Villa remained in Mexico and developed an original performance style as a pianist and singer. His friends included Andres Segovia and Pablo Neruda. He was openly gay despite discrimination at the time.
He sang mostly in Spanish, but also in English, Catalan, French, Italian and Portuguese. He was the subject of a 2003 documentary which includes interviews with fellow musicians, friends, relatives, and experts.
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