Bola De Nieve

Bola De Nieve

Bola de Nieve (literally Snowball) (11 September 1911 -2 October 1971), born as Ignacio Jacinto Villa Fernandez, was a Cuban singer-pianist and songwriter. Villa Fernandez was born in Guanabacoa, and studied at the Mateu Conservatoire of Havana. He worked as a chauffeur and played piano for silent films until his friend Rita Montaner took him on as an accompanist in the early 1930s. After Montaner returned to Cuba, Villa Fernández remained in Mexico and developed an original performance style as a pianist and singer. He was an elite rather than a popular figure, a sophisticated cabaret stylist known for ironic patter, subtle musical interpretation, with a repertoire that included songs in French, English, Catalan, Portuguese and Italian. He toured widely in Europe and the Americas, and his friends included Andres Segovia and Pablo Neruda. He was self-confident in his personality, and accepted for what he was: a memorable talent.