Sharlene Flores

Sharlene Flores, born in Trinidad and Tobago, is a singer of parang music.^[1] Flores de San José originates in St. Joseph. Sharlene Flores, the lead singer, has a style and sound of her own, and this coupled with the musical abilities of Wayne Flores, makes the sound of the band. The name Flores has been linked with Parang and St. Joseph for decades and the tradition is carried on through the group. They have made several recordings they were the first to ever produced a CD album of Parang and Latin music in the history of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and in the Caribbean. They are also solely responsible for modernizing Parang music, thus influencing the youths to get heavily involved into the art form. Sharlene Flores is also responsible for bringing changes to the traditional Amerindian outfits, worn by both males and females, as she opted out for more trendy styles.

Sharlene has been the recipient of many accolades and local and international awards such as the Nafita Award and the medal “Su la Trinite” from the island of Martinique. As a cultural ambassador, Flores has performed at the Sunshine Awards in New York City and at the Colony Hotel in Toronto, Canada. Flores has adopted an eclectic mosaic of musical flavours in the formation of a unique but universal Caribbean PotPourri of cogent music, using Zuc, Merringue, Soca and introducing Steelpan and Tassa drums in a combination of instruments and melodies in her effervescent and renascent rhythms. Sharlene who hails from the old capital of St. Joseph (San Jose) in Trinidad and Tobago accepted an invitation from a friend in 1975 to join the famed Parang Group San Jose Serenaders when he recognised her unique bi-lingual singing talents, Sharlene recorded her first LP with the group, as a background vocal, and in 1978 Gloria Alcazar’ chose Sharlene to be her successor of San Jose Serenaders. Sharlene recorded a five-track LP, one of which she composed and arranged entitled “Recuerdos” (memories) in tribute to the late Gloria Alcazar, whom she loved dearly. In 1982, the band “Flores De San Jose” was formed and immediately became a major force through their unique and infectious brand of Latin Parang Music and with a sagacious eye for fashion forever changed the image of the parrandero by introducing trendy, sartorial elegance to the stage. In 1988 Sharlene recorded her first six-track LP album with a hit “Si Yo Pudiera”, which occupied the charts for six weeks and copped “The National Award for Excellence in the Arts” (NAFITA) for her rendition of “Bendita tu Eres” written by hubby Wayne Flores, winning the best parang song of the year and creating history by becoming the first to win the Nafita award. Following her first six-track album Latin Fire, Flores again created history when she released the first ever compact disc of hits in 1983, like Parang Soca Fun, El Angel Gabriel, Recuerdos, Vamos, Vamos, Vamos, written and composed by Sharlene, capturing the ethos of the Caribbean Community with a ballad, "Burbujas De Amor”, Spanish Confusion and Margarita Christmas with her style of music. Flores took parang to the Sunshine Awards in New York City and in another first opened a special category for parang music, when she performed her hit and composition “Parang Soca Fun”. In 1995, Flores crossed over into the calypso arena singing her first calypso “Hurricane”, a pan composition played by Solo Harmonites, Sangre Grande Cordettes, and Pamberi, she entered the National Joint Action Committee’s Calypso Competition with a song entitled “Today tomorrow” composed by Alvin Daniel. In 1996 Flores recorded two more calypsos, entitled “Baby Dance with Me” and Latin Soca, written and composed by The Original De Fosto; they were never air played by any of the radio stations. In 1999, Sharlene was awarded the medal “Su la Trinite” by the Mayor of Martinique for her role in twinning both islands. On November 24, 2000, Flores continued her thrust as cultural ambassador, when she performed at the Colony hotel in Toronto, Canada. In 2009, Flores performed for Queen Sofia of Spain. In December 2010, Flores was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award, in recognition and appreciation of her long and outstanding contribution to the preservation, promotion and development of the Parang art form.

Songs

1. Abriendo Puertas Más Allá
2. Bendita tu Eres
3. Burbujas de Amor
4. Cantemos Pastores
5. El Angel Gabriel
6. Esta Noche es Nuestro
7. Frío Frío
8. La Capilla Esta
9. La Tierra de Tus Encantos
10. La Vida Fuera
11. Margarita Christmas
12. Milagro
13. Miran Chitos
14. Parang a la Trinidad
15. Parang Soca Fun
16. Parang with Me
17. Recuerdos
18. Sereno, Sereno
19. Si yo pudiera
20. Spanish Confusion
21. Tucusito
22. Yo Busco Inspiración
23. Vamos, Vamos, Vamos

References

External links

• http://parang.itgo.com