Héctor Mauré

Héctor Mauré was born Vicente José Falivene on 13 March 1920 in the Palermo neighborhood of Buenos Aires. His father, of Italian descent, worked first as a police agent and later as a laborer in a mosaic factory; his mother, from Lugo in Galicia, managed the household. He had a younger sister who later sang under the names Diana Rey and Alba Morena.^[1][2] School attendance was limited; at seventeen he took work in an automobile repair shop. From 1933 to 1937 he boxed at the Boxing Club Colegiales near his home, earning money from the sport until a blow forced him to abandon it and concentrate on singing.^[1][4]

He debuted in 1936 as Tito Falivene at the café Río de la Plata, at the corner of Ángel Gallardo and Honorio Pueyrredón, remaining three months. Further early appearances included a festival at the Cine Argentino in Palermo accompanied by the guitars of Osvaldo Avena, Pablo Rechia, and Antonio Ianigro, a 1937 engagement with Anselmo Aieta’s orchestra at a venue inside the Exposición Rural, and work with Dante Liguori’s Orquesta Característica Porteña.^[1][2][5] In the second Puloil soap contest on Radio Belgrano (sources place it in 1937 or 1938), appearing as Vicente Falivene and singing Lo han visto con otra and Confesión, he won among thousands of applicants; the prize was six months of paid performances.^[1][2][6] He studied at the conservatory of Gabriel Clausi and at the academy of the Rubistein brothers, continued radio work, and held brief jobs including a short period at the La Superiora winery and fifteen days with Alberto Pugliese’s orchestra.^[1][2]

When Carlos Casares left Juan D’Arienzo’s orchestra in 1940, D’Arienzo held auditions at Radio El Mundo. Mauré, accompanied on piano by Fulvio Salamanca, sang Pedro Maffia and Celedonio Flores’s La mariposa; Salamanca’s reaction indicated immediate acceptance.^[1][2] He debuted with the orchestra at the Chantecler cabaret and adopted the artistic name Héctor Mauré—Héctor after the orchestra’s lead bandoneonist and arranger Héctor Varela, Mauré from the surname of D’Arienzo’s wife with an added accent.^[1][2][7] His first recording, the vals Flor de mal by Juan Carlos Graviz, was made on 12 December 1940 (paired with Esclavas blancas sung by Alberto Reynal). Over the next four years he recorded fifty sides with D’Arienzo, the last being Amarras (Carlos Marchisio and Carmelo Santiago) on 21 July 1944.^[1][2][8] Notable titles from the period include Compadrón, Cicatrices, Infamia, and the composition Oro y diamantes, which D’Arienzo recorded.^[1][2] The voice—described by researcher Eduardo Visconti as dramatic and melodic, a baritone-tenor of pleasant timbre, clear diction, and Gardelian cut—contrasted with the more macho styles of earlier D’Arienzo singers while fitting the orchestra’s evolving repertoire.^[1][6]

On 1 January 1945 Mauré began his solo career on Radio Belgrano with an orchestra directed by bandoneonist Alberto Cima. He also worked with guitar ensembles led by José Canet and Roberto Grela, performed extensively in the provinces and in Uruguay, and enjoyed substantial success.^[1][2] In late 1949 he traveled to France with Juan Canaro’s orchestra, but the two parted before the intended debut; while there he studied with André Huc Santana, a bass of the Paris Opera.^[1][2] He married Susana Esther Bassini in 1953 or 1954 and had three daughters; the family lived in Buenos Aires and maintained a house in Ituzaingó.^[1][2]

A supporter of Perón, Mauré was among the artists marginalized from radio after the 1955 coup; tango itself declined on radio and television in the following decade as other rhythms gained favor.^[1][2][9] He continued performing, becoming the exclusive artist at El Rincón de los Artistas (run by the Forastieri family) from 7 November 1965 until 9 May 1976.^[1][2] He left 293 recordings for the Victor, Orfeo, Columbia, and Music Hall labels, accompanied at various times by orchestras or groups led by Carlos Demaría, Juan Sánchez Gorio, Héctor Varela (often an uncredited sextet), Jorge Dragone, Leopoldo Federico, Lito Escarso, and Pascual Elía, among others.^[1][2][10] As a composer he registered twenty-six works with SADAIC; Oro y diamantes is among those recorded by D’Arienzo.^[1][2]

Mauré died of a heart attack at his home on 12 May 1976, three days after his final performance at El Rincón de los Artistas; he is buried in the cemetery of San Antonio de Areco.^[1][2][11] His first artistic representative had been the comedian Fidel Pintos. The combination of the fifty D’Arienzo sides and the subsequent solo catalog preserves a distinctive voice within the Golden Age and its immediate aftermath—one that balanced dramatic intensity with melodic clarity and a recognizably porteño sensibility.^[1][6]

Early career and the Puloil contest

Born Vicente José Falivene on 13 March 1920 in Palermo, Buenos Aires, Mauré boxed professionally from 1933 to 1937 before a injury redirected him to singing.^[1][4] He debuted in 1936 as Tito Falivene at the café Río de la Plata and appeared with Anselmo Aieta and Dante Liguori’s orchestra.^[1][2] Victory in the Puloil contest on Radio Belgrano secured six months of paid work and greater visibility.^[1][2][6]

Four years with Juan D’Arienzo

After an audition at Radio El Mundo in 1940, during which he sang La mariposa accompanied by Fulvio Salamanca, Mauré joined D’Arienzo and took the name Héctor Mauré.^[1][2] He debuted at the Chantecler and recorded fifty sides between 12 December 1940 (Flor de mal) and 21 July 1944 (Amarras).^[1][2][8] The period includes both rhythmic vehicles and more lyrical tangos; his composition Oro y diamantes was also recorded by the orchestra.^[1][2]

Solo career and later years

From 1 January 1945 he worked as a soloist on Radio Belgrano with an orchestra led by Alberto Cima and with guitar groups, achieving success in the provinces and Uruguay.^[1][2] A 1949 trip to France with Juan Canaro ended in separation; he studied briefly with a Paris Opera singer.^[1][2] Political affiliation led to radio exclusion after 1955. He remained active at venues such as El Rincón de los Artistas until shortly before his death on 12 May 1976.^[1][2][11]

Recordings and style

The complete catalog comprises 293 recordings across several labels.^[1][2][10] Visconti characterized the voice as dramatic and melodic, baritone-tenor, with clear diction and a Gardelian quality.^[1][6] Twenty-six compositions were registered with SADAIC. The D’Arienzo years remain the most widely known portion of the discography.^[1][2]