Jose Efren Puig-Gonzalez

Efren Puig, legally known as Jose E. Puig Gonzalez, was born in Camaguey, Cuba on March 19, 1941.  After moving to Havana at the age of 17, his voice came to the attention of the late Ernesto Lecuona, the internationally famous composer of zarzuela in Cuba.   Lecuona wrote a letter of recommendation so he received a scholarship to the Havana Conservatory of Music, where, early in his studies they determined that his voice and definitely, not the piano, would be the best vehicle for his musical studies.  Efren left Cuba within 2 years after the takeover by Fidel Castro, moving to the Houston, Texas area, where he sang in the opera chorus for at least one season.   During this time, one of the leading tenors who sang at the Houston Opera heard him sing and suggested that he should move to New York City to study at Juilliard, which he did.  He spent a semester at Juilliard before it became obvious that he needed to work and could not continue those studies even though he was on full scholarship for those studies.   He worked for a couple of years at the new Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center as a security guard where he met many famous singers.    During this time he entered the Metropolitan Opera competition and advanced to the semi-finals before it was determined that he could not win because he was not American born, nor even a citizen.  Repertorio Espanol became a musical home for him and he was their principal tenor for many years.  During this time, he toured with them to various areas that had large Hispanic communities where he performed dozens of revues of Hispanic music and many different roles in zarzuela, the Spanish language operetta.   He replaced Placido Domingo in the world-wide tour “Antologia de la Zarzuela”, performing throughout Spain, Portugal and the Canary Islands on two different tours.  Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Columbia and Ecuador are among the countries where he sang leading roles in zarzuela.Mr. Puig sang over 50 roles in opera, the most performances being as the Canio, the clown, in I PAGLIACCI, Manrico in IL TROVATORE and Don Jose in CARMEN.  Many of his performances were with New Jersey State Opera, Opera Delaware, Opera Northeast, Treasure Coast Opera, Miami Opera and the Miami Symphony.  During 1994 and 1995, In a tour sponsored by a Bulgarian impresario, he toured France, Spain and Portugal, singing the role of Cavaradossi in TOSCA more than 35 times in a six-week period.   In 2000 and 2001, he participated in two tours of Italy, Germany and Scandinavia with “Andrew Lloyd Webber and more”, consistently bringing the house down with “Bring Him Home” from Les Miserables.  His Eastern European debut was a memorial concert for 9/11 in Sarajevo, Bosnia Herzegovina on September 11, 2002.  This event was co-sponsored by the Bosnia-Herzegovina and American consulates and also featured Sasha Toperich and soprano, Kathleen Cuvelier.The mid-90’s through 2010, saw Mr. Puig singing in the more dramatic opera literature including Otello in OTELLO, Riccardo in UN BALLO IN MASCHERA, Don Carlo in LA FORZA DEL DESTINO and Turiddu in CAVALLERIA RUSTlCANA.  He retired in 2010 to Prescott Valley, Arizona with his wife, soprano, Kathleen Cuvelier, a frequent partner in operas and concerts over many decades.  He leaves behind a daughter, Christina Farrell, who lives in Houston, Texas and a son, Jonathan Miller, who resides with his wife and young family in Modesto, California.   He also is survived by his wife of 36 years, Kathleen Cuvelier, who resides in Prescott Valley, Arizona.  He leaves behind a legacy of thrilling vocal performances in many genres throughout the United States, South America and Europe.   He continued his musical involvement in Arizona by teaching a number of students and participating with them in concerts to raise funds for various organizations. His final concert was on February 9, 2020 at First Congregational Church in Prescott, a fundraiser for the Food Pantry of Prescott.Mr. Puig would encourage anyone who would like to honor him, to plant a tree in his name.