from Wanda I. Orengo para Fundación Nacional para la Cultura Popular
Legendary Puerto Rican tenor César Hernández was born in Brooklyn on October 13, 1958 and at the age of six he moved to Puerto Rico. In his childhood he was characterized by being silent, shy and animal-loving. His love for singing came from his maternal grandfather, who was an opera fan and predicted that his grandson was going to be tenor.
However, before this desire became a reality and that he managed to record his name in the international operatic scene, after completing his school studies he entered the University of the Sacred Heart. At the same time, he entered the Franciscan Frausians Seminary. There he remained for three years in which he studied theology, philosophy and psychology, but met music. He completed his academic preparation at the Conservatory of Puerto Rico and continued studies at the prestigious Juilliard School in New York.
Although he thought that his vocation was to be a music teacher, fate had prepared a life with an apotheosic career and full of adventures that made him one of the most outstanding singers in the world of opera worldwide. He began his professional career in 1989, at the New Jersey Opera when he played the Rudolf of Puccini’s “La Bohéme.”
Among his momentous moments is his participation with Luciano Pavarotti in the famous televised concert to the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico “Pavarotti Plus Concert”; a private recital for Prince Charles of England in 1992, and in 1993 he sang in Monaco for Prince Rainier.
From then on, in the mid 90’s, he shined in the Staatsoper in Vienna, L’Opera de Monte Carlo, the Staatsoper in Hamburg, the Staatsopera of Bavaria in Munich, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Gran Theatre de Geneve, the Teatro de la Zarzuela in Madrid and in other important cities in Europe, Central and South America. He performed at operas in Los Angeles, San Diego, Costa Mesa, Austin, Detroit, Tulsa, Eugene, Nashville, Las Vegas, San Antonio, Charleston, Baltimore, Houston, New Orleans, Denver, Miami, among others. While in Europe he performed in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, Aachen, Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Krefeld, Monte Carlo, Madrid, Oviedo, Antwerp, London, Edinburgh, Trieste, Catania, Genoa and Spoleto, to name a few. In Copenhagen, Denmark, he sang at a major festival and was applauded by more than 100,000 spectators.
He was acclaimed for his performances in the stellar roles of famous operas such as “La Traviata”, “La Bohéme”, “Lucia di Lammermoor”, “Romeo et Juliette”, “Rigoletto”, “Madama Butterfly”, “Goya”, “Amaya”, “Macbeth”, “Pagliacci”, “Tosca”, “Carmen”, “Don Carlo”, “Requiem de Verdi”, “Requiem de Verdi”, Critics called his performances “one of the most exciting, passionate, compelling that exist in the world”; “pure lyrical romanticism thanks to the powerful and sweet voice of a tenor that gives all his passion and love for opera in each aria.” “A perfect diction, a commitment to interpretive excellence, incredible sensitivity.” “Extraordinary and touching.” “The beauty of the bell of his voice, capable of excelling in the strongest moments of the orchestra, always demonstrating histrionic dominance and great stage presence.” And, in every presentation, Hernandez carried Borinquen in his heart.
Behind that fame, a simple, dignified, humble man was hiding, with a gift of people, who linked his name to events that supported educational and cultural institutions, and who took advantage of every moment to intervene in the need for the existence of a group of patrons on the island who encouraged and encouraged the artistic development of young artists.
In 2007, in an interview with the newspaper El Vocero, he commented that the most he treasured of having followed the call of his talent was “Check the universal character of that language called music. The experience of singing the same role before audiences of different cultures and feeling how they react; that you do perceive that they react in different ways, but it is from the same message. Moreover, beyond the glamour that can represent visiting so many diverse places in the world and the material aspect, I admit that my main motivation is the applause of the public.” A round of applause that was always present for this unique bel canto star that left a very large void in the opera, as he died suddenly at the age of 48 during a family vacation in Orlando, Florida, on June 17, 2019.
Starting from the physical plane his voice was eternalized in recordings such as “Cantanta del unhappy Alfonso Ramírez”, the opera “Goya”, “Cantata Antillana”, an album of opera arias with the London Symphony Orchestra, directed by the master Lalo Schifrin, a compact of the Requiem de Verdsi directed by Giorgio Morandi and a production of classics of the Latin American romantic pentagram entitled “Where are you heart”.
