Principal Members

Mercedes was born on September 4, 1934, in Guavatá, Santander and passed away on September 14, 2018, in Bucaramanga. She learned the guabinas songs from her parents Ignacio Hernández Quitian and Evangelina Cepeda at family gatherings that were held in the countryside. She married Segundo Rivera on September 25, 1954, and together they had eight children: Miguel Roberto, Ana Cecilia, Jose Rogerio, Blanca Maria, Ignacio, Luz Mery, Doris, and Horacio, three of whom have passed away (Jose Rogerio, Ignacio and Horacio). Mercedes was commonly called by her family and friends Mechitas, or Mana Mechas.

Mercedes was a founder of Corazón Santandereano and she designed and customized all the costumes of Corazón Santandereano, reflecting her love and commitment to the group. She taught and passed the guabinas, dances, and instrument playing to her entire family and to different people in the Velez region.

I was born on January 1, 1926, in Bolívar, Santander. I am the fifth son of Eufemiano Rivera Tellez and Edelmira Guzmán, both of whom have already passed away. I learned the music of Vélez since I was little, observing my elders and my father. From the age of eightI learned to sing guabina and I also learned to play tiple with my brothers Isidro, Saúl, Ana, Isabel, Francisco, Juvenal, Cipriano, Flor, Esther and Odalinda. At that time the positions of the tiple were different since I remember that the position of the G major we called five false and the stringed instruments were brought from Chiquinquirá. I married Ana Mercedes Hernandez in 1954 and together we had eight children.Together with my wife Mercedes we pass on to our children all our love and knowledge of Velez's folk music. We created the folk group Los Ruiseñores del Zulia in which fiveof our children participated. I was also part of the group Pregoneros del folclor. and later, together with my wife and our children, we founded the musical group Corazón Santandereano in 1978.

For me, Corazón Santandereano represents the pride of having a family united in music and in love. It is being able to see my children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren share and grow musically and as people.

I was born in Onzaga, Santander in 1956 and I am the second of seven siblings. My parents are Juan de la Cruz Aponte and Ana Aidé Aponte. My dad was amusician who played stringed instruments, the clarinet, and the accordion. My musical training took place at home, accompanying my father in his plays [AH1] in a very elementary way. Later, I undertook music studies at the Luis A. Calvo Academy in Bogotá where I studied music theory and tiple. I moved to Bucaramanga where I continued my studies at the Escuela Departamental de Musica (DICAS), part of the artistic culture department of Santander’s division. Later I was a tiple teacher at this institution and also coordinator of the folklore, dance and music division attached to the department's secretariat of culture and tourism. Currently, I have the school Siempre Viva el Tiple, in FUSADER (Santander foundation for regional development).

Within Corazon Santandereano I am the musical director and I principal requinto player. For me, Corazón Santander has allowed me to grow musically around the family and to be able to spread this musical legacy through the folk music of the province of Vélez. CorazónSantandereano continues to preserve the folkloric and autochthonous roots of the Santander region, which it has done for many years in different national settings. For me, the most important thing is to be able to make the music that is so valued by my family.

My name is Blanca María la Rivera Hernández. I was born on March 23, 1959, in Guavatá. I am the fourth daughter of Segundo Eufemiano Rivera Guzmán and Ana Mercedes Hernández de Rivera. My family is made up of my husband Néstor José Cáceres Aponte and my daughters Nelly Paola Cáceres Rivera and Sonia Carolina Cáceres Rivera.

Within Corazón Santandereano, I perform the Tiple, I sing, dance and play various percussion instruments. I studied music at DICAS (Department of Santander’s department of artistic culture). My musical training began with my parents Mercedes Hernandez and Segundo Rivera, who taught me to play the musical instruments of Velez and they transferred the songs of the guabinas to me. I also learned from my paternal uncles and my maternal and paternal grandparents. I am a business administrator with a specialization in public management. I worked for 39 years in a public entity in the department of Santander and Atlántico in Colombia. I am currently retired.

Corazón Santandereano represents for me a tradition where the music, the guabinas songs, and the tonadas, were transferred from one generation to another with a very important ingredient: the love of my mother and my father. They sang the tunes and I listened to them from a very young age. My maternal and paternal grandparents also sang in the parrandas (referencing to the Vélez parties), and I listened to them. Later my mother taught me the guabinas when I was very little to be able to perform on the stage. Corazón Santandereano is synonymous with love, resilience, work, living in harmony, having a big heart to represent all the things that we are: music, folklore tradition, love, fraternity and the most beautiful thing, a united and peaceful family.

I was born on August 28, 1955, in Guavatá Santander. I am the second daughter of Segundo Rivera and Ana Mercedes Hernández. I have three children: Diego Hernando Cantor Rivera, Fredy Andrés Cantor Rivera and Jonathan Cantor Rivera. In Corazón Santandereano I play percussion (usually zambumbia) and I sing. My musical training started at a very young age listening to my parents. I am a public administrator with a specialization in public management, and I am currently retired.

Corazón Santandereano represents my essence personally and spiritually. It has always been the perfect excuse to keep us together, just as my mommy taught us!

I was born on February 3, 1963, in Guavatá Santander. I am Mercedes’s and Segundo Rivera’s sixth daughter. I have two children: Fabio Alejandro Cantor Rivera and Juan Camilo Cantor Rivera. I am a member of Corazón Santandereano, I play percussion instruments, especially the tambourine. We learned from my parents who taught us to sing and play and to love our folklore. I am a business administrator, and I am currently retired.

Corazón Santandereano is our family and cultural identity, where we express our folklore and transmit love, our traditions. The most important thing is family unity, an example of our parents.

I was born in Vélez, Santander on December 14, 1964. I am the youngest daughter of Segundo Rivera and Ana Mercedes Hernández. I have three children (Viviana, Andrés, Diego) and two granddaughters (Marianella, Anny) who are part of our folk group. Within the group I have played the tiple, percussion instruments, and I dance and sing. I usually play the carraca. I am proud and blessed to say that my musical education began at the age of three, being guided by my parents, uncles and grandparents and then by my older brothers. I studied music at DICAS (Dirección cultura artística de Santander - Santander Artistic Culture Directorate). Currently, I am a Spanish high school teacher and primary school teacher.

Corazón Santandereano represents for me a cradle of great values that has allowed me to strengthen the teachings of my parents, uncles and grandparents, strengthening the most important thing in a society ... Family ties! Therein lies the infinite wisdom of the universe.

José Rogerio was born on July 10, 1957, in the municipality of Guavatá, Santander and died in September 2020 in Floridablanca, Santander. He was the third son of Segundo Eufemiano Rivera and Ana Mercedes Hernández de Rivera. He married Alcira Ruiz with whom he had his daughter Carolina Rivera Ruiz. Rogerio always showed ease not only in music but also in crafts and in working with wood. Within Corazón Santandereano, José Rogerio played the tiple, the guitar and percussion instruments, particularly the guacharaca. Rogerio was in charge of building the percussion instruments that the group needed, and he customized them depending on the needs and age of the members of the group at the time. José Rogerio transmitted all his love and knowledge for music to his daughter and grandchildren.

I was born on July 28, 1952, in Guavatá, Santander. I am the first child of Segundo Rivera and Ana Mercedes Hernández. I have three children: Angie Xiomara, Marlon Roberto and María Paula. In the folk ensemble Corazón Santandereano I play the tiple, the guitar and I sing. My musical training started from a very young age listening to my parents. I am a self-taught musician and a composer. I mainly compose songs using Andean Colombian rhythms such as: pasillo, bambuco, guabina, y danza. I was a music teacher at the Escuela Folclorica (Folk School) of Vélez and later I joined the judiciary system where I retired.

Corazón Santandereano represents my opportunity to share with others our folkloric roots and the opportunity to share as a family not only music but also our experiences, our space to share hugs, anecdotes, laughter and to stay together

Ignacio was born on June 6, 1961, in the municipality of Guavatá, Santander and died in May 1998 in Aguazul, Casanare. He was the fifth son of Segundo Eufemiano Rivera and Ana Mercedes Hernández de Rivera. He married Nelly Ariza with whom he had three sons Jorge Ignacio, Sergio Alexander, and Andres Julian. Ignacio was one of the most talented members of the ensemble. In Corazon Santandereano, he played the melodic tiple and sang. Additionally, his music passion led him to learn other instruments such as: Guitarra, violin and trumpet.

In addition he was part of the municipal band (marcial) of Vélez and the Colegio Universitario’s (highschool) tuna. He also played in other music ensambles including llanera music, Andean music and mariachi ensambles.

I was born on January 26, 1984, in Bucaramanga, Santander Colombia. My parents are Doris Rivera and Manuel Díaz. I am a telecommunications engineer. In Corazón Santandereano I have played the tiple and different percussion instruments. My maternal grandparents, Segundo and Mercedes, were the ones who taught me this music.

For me, Corazón Santandereano represents union, love for tradition, family, and pride in representing our province of Vélez.

I was born on February 9, 1990, Bucaramanga, Santander, Colombia. My parents are Néstor José Cáceres Aponte and Blanca María Rivera Hernández. I have a degree in music and am a music therapist. I learned from an early age to perform the music of Vélez since my family taught me. I learned by observing my grandparents, my parents, my uncles who gave me an instrument and guided me learning how to play it. In Corazón Santandereano I play the tiple and percussion, and I sing and dance. In 2009 I won the Revelacion del requinto contest in Velez, Santander and in 2020 I was part of the qualifying jury of the guabina and tiple festival.

For me Corazon Santandereano represents the most beautiful memories of my childhood, youth and adulthood; it is living around music and knowing that we will always be united in a very special and indescribable way.

I was born on March 9, 1995, in Bucaramanga Santander. I am the youngest daughter of Blanca Rivera and Nestor Caceres. I studied music at the Industrial University of Santander and later traveled to Canada to continue my professional studies. I completed a program in Violin Performance at the University of Ottawa in 2019 and I am currently a Master of Music and Culture student at Carleton University.

From an early age I participated in Corazón Santander since my parents always took me to any event where they had to play, including the Festival de la Guabina y el Tiple. These experiences allowed me to be musically stimulated from a young age. With time, my motor skills improved, letting me perform different instruments in the ensemble as well as singing and dancing.

My maternal grandparents were very present in my upbringing. I remember being in their living room where they taught us to dance the Torbellino, to sing guabinas and to recite couplets together with my cousins. My grandmother Mercedes taught me how to dance and wear with elegance and pride the traditional clothing that she had embroidered for me.

For me Corazon Santandereano goes beyond my interaction with music. This musical group represents my family and brings back the most beautiful memories of my childhood. It allows me to know that we all have a place and a role in our family and that we will all be welcome.

My name is Diego Alejandro Hernández Rivera. I was born on August 25, 1998 in Bucaramanga, Santander, the youngest son of three siblings. My parents are Doris Rivera Hernández and Edgar José Hernández Sandoval. I have been a member of Corazón Santandereano since I was in my mother's womb, since our group has been in force since the time of our grandparents. In the group I have played a variety of string and percussion musical instruments such as guitar, tiple, pooch, spoons, guacharaca, quiribillos, carraca, and alfandoque, among others. All this knowledge is thanks to the ear that little by little I was developing in the bosom of my home which was complemented by the teachings of the elders.

I am currently a member of the National Police of Colombia with the rank of Patrolman.

For me, Corazón Santandereano is the greatest opportunity that life has given me to obtain not only musical but ethical and moral bases thanks to the teachings from a family strengthened in the aforementioned aspects. The influence of this ensemble is evident in my personal and work opportunities, and for this I am grateful.

My name is Edgar Andrés Hernández Rivera. I was born on March 13, 1994 in Bucaramanga, Santander, I am the second son of Doris Rivera Hernández and Edgar José Hernández Sandoval. I have been a member of Corazón Santandereano since I was little because my mother used to bring me to all music performances. In the group I have played a variety of instruments, however, I usually play the cucharas. I learn all this music thanks to my maternal grandparents. They used to teach me how to dance and play percussion instruments in their house while taking care of me. I am currently a member of the National Police of Colombia with the rank of Patrolman.

I was born on August 26, 2006 in the city of Bucaramanga. My parents are Viviana Diaz and William Molinares. I'm currently a high school student. From an early age, I participated in Corazón Santandereano since my mother took me to the Guabina and Tiple festival in Vélez; she used to go with my family to the flower parade where she would also bring me to the stage performances. My great-grandparents (Segundo and Mercedes), my grandmother (Doris), my aunts (Blanca, Cecy and Mery) and my parents were the ones who taught me to interpret Vélez's music. In Corazón Santandereano, I usually play the quiribillos and I also sing.

For me, Corazón Santandereano represents family union, folklore and pride.