Rafael Ithier, the legendary founder, pianist, composer and arranger of the world-renowned salsa orchestra El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico, has died. He was 99.

On Sunday, the group confirmed Ithier’s death in an Instagram post, praising “El Maestro” for his lasting impact on modern salsa and Latin music.

“Today we bid farewell to not only a great musician, but the architect of a sound that marked generations,” reads a statement shared on the orchestra’s social media accounts on Sunday. “A leader whose discipline, vision and love for salsa forged the history of El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico and of Latin music in the world.”

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A post shared by El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico (@elgrancombodepuertorico)

Who was Rafael Ithier?

Ithier was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1926. He began playing guitar at age 10. Due to financial pressures, he had to leave school at 14 to support his family. By 15, he started his music career while working odd jobs to stay afloat. He continued learning new instruments, including the Cuban tres, the double bass, and ultimately the piano, which became his signature instrument, according to the Puerto Rican nonprofit Fundación Nacional Para La Cultura Popular and NPR.

In 1952, Ithier was drafted into the U.S. Army and stationed in Korea. Though initially reluctant, he later credited the Army with teaching him discipline, which he said shaped both his personal and professional life.

“I have to confess that I cried when I was sworn in as a soldier, because I did not want to be a soldier,” he said in a 2016 interview with the newspaper Primera Hora. “It was obligatory service. Every time I remember, I think about how wrong I was. I’m eternally grateful because I learned the discipline of the Army; I learned to be a man and to obey an order. That discipline is what I apply to my life, and what I base my life on.”

After his service, he joined the New York City group The Borinqueneers Mambo Kings, named after the segregated all-Hispanic Army unit, before returning to Puerto Rico to play with Cortijo y Su Combo. The group, led by percussionist Rafael Cortijo, disbanded in 1962 after its star vocalist, Ismael Rivera, was arrested for drug possession, per Fundación Nacional Para La Cultura Popular and NPR.

Ithier originally planned to leave music behind, pursue a career in banking, and eventually study law. However, the founders of El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico convinced him to stay, and he went on to lead the orchestra through salsa’s golden age in the 1970s, turning it into a household name in Puerto Rico and beyond.

Ithier and El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico’s impact on salsa and Latin music

For more than six decades, Ithier spent his entire musical career on the piano, and led the group through more than 50 albums, international tours and an extensive list of awards and other achievements, LaMezcla.com reported.

El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico, also nicknamed “la universidad de la salsa,” had many hits, including “El Verano de Nueva York,” “Brujería,” “No Hago Más Ná,” “Me Liberé” and “Ojos Chinos.” Under Ithier’s leadership, the group also collaborated with legendary musicians such as Andy Montañez, Charlie Aponte, Jerry Rivas and Papo Rosario, blending mambo, Afro-Cuban rumba, merengue and jazz.

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Following the announcement of his death, musicians, collaborators, politicians and fans took to social media, offering condolences to Ithier’s friends and family and shared tributes honoring the salsa icon.

El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico

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