Francisco Gabilondo Soler

Francisco Gabilondo Soler (October 6, 1907, Orizaba, Veracruz – December 14, 1990, Texcoco, State of Mexico) was a Mexican composer and performer of children's songs. He recorded and performed those songs under the name of Cri-Cri: El Grillito Cantor ("Cri-Cri: The Little Singing Cricket").

Gabilondo was born in the city of Orizaba, Veracruz. During his childhood he read the stories of the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen, as well as the adventure stories of such writers as Jules Verne and Emilio Salgari. He also taught himself to play the pianola. In 1928, he entered the National Observatory of Mexico to study astronomy but, unfortunately, his studies were cut short by a lack of resources. Before dedicating himself to music full-time, he practiced boxing, bullfighting and swimming. He also worked for a time as a linotypist.

When he was 25 years old, he began performing as a professional musician, interpreting humorous subjects of his inspiration. At first he played in public bath houses. He entered the new radio field to become one of the main figures in the "Golden Age of Mexican Radio," beginning with humorous and social criticism programs, using the sobriquet El Guasón del Teclado (The Joker of the Keyboard). He used the experiences of his childhood to write some children's songs, and on October 15, 1934, he appeared, for the first time, on Radio Station XEW in Mexico City, singing many of the songs he had previously written. This marked the first performance in his persona as 'Cri-Cri'. The first songs to be played were "El ratón vaquero" (The cowboy mouse), "Los mosquitos trompeteros" (The trumpeter mosquitoes), "Negrito Sandía" (Little Black Boy Watermelon), "Cucurumbé", and "La Muñeca fea" (The ugly doll).

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