Composer, Author, Puerto Rican cultural icon. Best known as the author of the definitive musical history of his native Puerto Rico from the Spanish colonial period to the 1800's, Ferrer was also the composer of 48 symphonies, musical theatre scores, and marches. A professional musician and teacher of music, he was born in San Juan, the son of a distinguished orchestral conductor and professor of music. After completing his early schooling in his homeland, he continued his education in Spain, where he studied music and philosophy from 1884-1889, and went on to make his mark in European musical circles. He returned to live in Manati, where he supported his large family by also serving as postmaster of this scenic Puerto Rican coastal town. In addition to his musical activities there, he also taught music in San Juan, Ponce, and Utuado, and by the end of the 19th Century was a well-known and highly regarded cultural authority in his homeland. His comprehensive musical history, "Musica Y Musocoas Portorrequenos", was published in 1915. Ferrer continued his career in New York during the last decade of his life, where he resided in Harlem and Brooklyn before moving to Rutherford, NJ, in the 1920's. He was 64 when died there in December 1926. His survivors at the time of his death included his wife, the former Maria Luisa de la Trinidad Correa, and his daughter Cecilia (1907-2003), who as "Cecilia Callejo" went on to appear in Latina roles in such Hollywood films as "The Cisco Kid Returns" and "Outlaw Express".
Composer, Author, Puerto Rican cultural icon. Best known as the author of the definitive musical history of his native Puerto Rico from the Spanish colonial period to the 1800's, Ferrer was also the composer of 48 symphonies, musical theatre scores, and marches. A professional musician and teacher of music, he was born in San Juan, the son of a distinguished orchestral conductor and professor of music. After completing his early schooling in his homeland, he continued his education in Spain, where he studied music and philosophy from 1884-1889, and went on to make his mark in European musical circles. He returned to live in Manati, where he supported his large family by also serving as postmaster of this scenic Puerto Rican coastal town. In addition to his musical activities there, he also taught music in San Juan, Ponce, and Utuado, and by the end of the 19th Century was a well-known and highly regarded cultural authority in his homeland. His comprehensive musical history, "Musica Y Musocoas Portorrequenos", was published in 1915. Ferrer continued his career in New York during the last decade of his life, where he resided in Harlem and Brooklyn before moving to Rutherford, NJ, in the 1920's. He was 64 when died there in December 1926. His survivors at the time of his death included his wife, the former Maria Luisa de la Trinidad Correa, and his daughter Cecilia (1907-2003), who as "Cecilia Callejo" went on to appear in Latina roles in such Hollywood films as "The Cisco Kid Returns" and "Outlaw Express".
Bio by: Nikita Barlow
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