DIOMEDES MATOS
Puerto Rican Cuatro Builder and Jibaro Musician
For
many Puerto Ricans, the cuatro is an emblem of Puerto Rican culture and
identity. The ten-stringed instrument, much like a guitar, is used in
both traditional and contemporary Puerto Rican performance, but is especially
connected to the jibaro music of the countryside, a legacy of the Spanish
settlers of the island.
Matos is both an excellent performer of jibaro music and builder of the cuatro. His work is admired by musicians and luthiers on the island as well as the mainland. National Heritage Award-winning luthier William Cumpiano has described Matos as “the master’s master.” Legendary Puerto Rican musician Yomo Toro explains that “Yomi” has built all his instruments, and they have traveled the world with him.
The
Cuatro Project, based in New Brunswick, New Jersey, which has documented
numerous builders in its multi-continent preservation efforts, honored
Yomi in 1994 for his contributions to the conservation and advancement
of Puerto Rican music and instrument making. Popular singer Paul Simon
asked Yomi to build a guitar for him and to play accompaniment on the
soundtrack for the Broadway show “The Capeman.” Matos has
been included in many radio and television programs about Puerto Rican
tradition, has appeared in public programs and performances, participated
in school programs, had his instruments included in craft exhibitions,
and has served as Master Artist for numerous apprentices through the New
Jersey State Council on the Arts Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program (NJSCA).
Born in Camuy, Puerto Rico, Matos was surrounded by music and instrument makers from the beginning. His uncles and brothers made cuatros, but perhaps the man who had the greatest influence on him was master builder Roque Navarro. As a young boy, Yomi would quietly and unobtrusively watch outside Navarro’s shop. One day, he was invited inside, and from then on was welcome to visit and watch whenever he wished. By the age of twelve, Yomi had built his first guitar, and learned much from the effort:
I remember when I finished building the instrument, I needed to cut the fret slots. At that time we didn’t have the sophisticated tuners we have now, so the fret slots would be cut by ear. I would cut the lot, place the fret in, and then ask my brother Chago if the note was in tune. If it wasn’t, I filled the slot with toothpicks, sanded down and then cut a new slot according to whether it needed to be closer or further away from the nut. Once finished with the instrument, I had to fix so many slots with toothpicks that it looked like train tracks! It was very funny! I used to take that same guitar to play around the neighborhood and make a little bit of money, too !
He continued learning by trial and error, and built his first cuatro when he was twenty years old. Without exact measurements – because no builder had actually taken him in as an apprentice by that time – the instrument actually looked like a cello, albeit beautifully finished. It was large and a bit disproportionate. “My friend Yomo Toro came over to my house to look at it and he said ‘Yomi, this cuatro is ugly!’ We all laughed!” Matos was not discouraged, but continued perfecting his work until he was regularly building cuatros, requintos, classical guitars, and Puerto Ricantres for Toro, other musicians, himself, and eventually his son, Diomedes, Jr., known as “Pucho,” who is a well-known musician in his own right.
Patience became the hallmark of Matos’ approach:
I feel that one of the most important skills when building the Puerto Rican cuatro or any instrument is patience. When you are patient you work at a more slower pace, unhurried, and obviously the instrument comes out very good. When I build an instrument, I am very patient, but I work expeditiously because I do want to find out how the instrument is going to sound.
Accompanied with deeply felt sentiments:
When I make a cuatro for someone I become very gratified when I see the facial expression of the person when they come to pick up the instrument. It is very joyful to me. I can’t even explain it. But I become very emotional when I play the music of Puerto Rico with my cuatros. I take it to heart. One of the most important things I find out with building instruments is that what used to be a rough and unattractive piece of wood, something beautiful like the cuatro, that makes your heart sing, comes out. I’ve come to understand that strumming the cuatro once has the power to attract and unite the people from Puerto Rico and even other cultures. The cuatro has at least three hundred years of history to the people of Puerto Rico, and like many other people have said before, the cuatro to me is like the flag.
Matos’ incredible artistry, his devotion to his art, and his generosity in sharing his knowledge have made him well known and well loved in his Newark, NJ, community and among wider audiences, as well.
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