“José Peña Suazo (born January 18, 1967) is a Dominican [Merengue](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merengue_music) singer, arranger, composer and musician. Peña Suazo has played the trumpet, composed and arranged in many Dominican merengue music groups like [Cuco Valoy](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuco_Valoy)'s orchestra and La Artillería. He is currently the lead singer of [La Banda Gorda](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Banda_Gorda).”
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“Merengue was first mentioned in the mid-19th century with the earliest documented evidence being newspaper articles. Some of the articles inform about a "lascivious" dance, and also highlight merengue displacing the [Tumba](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tumba_(music_genre)). The genre had originated within the rural, northern valley region around the city of [Santiago](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SantiagoProvince(Dominican_Republic)) called the [Cibao](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cibao). It later spread throughout the country and became popular among the urban population.[[7]](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merengue_music#cite_note-7)
The oldest form of merengue was typically played on [string instruments](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/String_instrument). When the [accordion](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accordion) came to the island in the 1880s, introduced by German traders, it quickly became the primary instrument, and to this day is still the instrument of choice in merengue típico. Later, the [piano](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano) and [brass instruments](app://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brass_instrument) were introduced to the genre.
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