The Cuban tune, Lagrimas Negras, was one of several songs written by composer, singer, and guitarist Miguel Matamoros (1894-1971). Miguel Matamoros had a very popular group called Trio Matamoros that was formed in 1925, and was active until 1961. They recorded many of Matamoros’ songs and were very popular. Miguel Matamoros was a singer in the group. If you do a search of Trio Matamoros on YouTube, you can find many of their recordings.

Lagrimas Negras (Black Tears) was recorded by Trio Matamoros in 1931 and became a huge hit. The song is about profound sadness over the loss of a lover. Despite the sad subject matter of the song, the sad melody is creatively mixed together with a lively and upbeat rhythm. Here is a recording of Lagrimas Negras that I made on the violin and piano. I played both parts in this recording. The piano part is based on a solo by the great Cuban pianist Bebo Valdés. Enjoy.