Music of Puerto Rico - Artists: Lunna

Lunna - Other/Pop

Born María Socorro García de la Noceda, in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Lunna started her formal musical training at age 12, studying voice and guitar.

In 1978 she joined the well known vocal group Allegro, known for their harmony, with five voices including Tito Lara. She also sang in many broadcast commercial ads.

Just three years later she represented her native Puerto Rico in the OTI Music Festival held in Peru, with the song "Eres mi música" but her solo debut came four years after that, in 1985. Together with Glenn Monroig she recorded "A todo dar", produced by Cucco Peña. The album was re-released with a change in the cover and entitled Motivos, which became a hit the following years, with songs including "Yo perdí", "Son cosas", "Tiempo de vivir" and "Yo sé que volverás", a duet with Glenn Monroig, were well received.

Following this success, A&M Records signed her and in 1987 produced her namesake album Lunna with hits such as "No digas nada" and Fugitivo amante. Lunna became one of the leading female pop vocalists in Puerto Rico and one of the first to receive a Grammy nomination.

In 1988 Lunna recorded her album, Seré tuya esta noche on the Sony label, which included the hit songs "Soledad" and "Quién no ha sentido". A year later she released the Ventanas album on the Capitol-EMI label with the hit song "Cómo ser amantes" written by Michael Bolton. She worked again with Glenn Monroig on her Yo que te adoré album, released in 1992, with hit songs "Yo que te adoré", "Mientras vivas", "Fuerza interior" and "Si pudiera".

Her vocal range, artistic flexibility and popularity won her the honor of being the only female Puerto Rican artist to participate in the "Heineken Jazz Jam Sessions" where she sang various of her songs in the jazz style. Those same strengths earned her a contract to sing in the artistically well received ad campaign called "Puerto Rico, The Shinning Star of the Caribbean" produced the Puerto Rico Tourism Board and broadcast nationally in the United States.

Lunna's jazz experience helped her in various recordings with jazz trumpeter Humberto Ramírez and she was similarly invited to perform with other artists such as Paquito D'Rivera, Néstor Torres and Michel Camilo in the "Tropical Night at the Seaport".

Most recently (2003) Lunna has released her first album since 1995: Bohemia on the AJ Records label. The album was begun shortly after the death of her son from her 20 year marriage to Angel "Cucco" Peña. The album was produced by Luis "Perico" Ortiz and features the string section of the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra and the Trio Borinquen as backup. Musically, the album ranges from bolero to big-band sounds and even jazz.