VALERIO LONGORIA The "genius" of conjunto music, Valerio Longoria was born in Kenedy, Texas in 1924. He was the first of the post-World War II accordionists -- collectively known as the "nueva generación" (new generation) -- that launched the "classic" stage of the Texas-Mexican conjunto. The ensemble had been evolving slowly since the 1920s, especially after Narciso Martínez introduced his new technique, but Longoria radically changed the style, most notably through his addition of trap drums.

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