Pedro Ayala
World Music Singer
El Monarca del Acordeón was one of the most renowned norteno and conjunto musicians in the 1950s.
He started playing guitar at a young age, then switched to accordion and by age 14 could play along with his favorite musicians on both instruments.
He was not able to devote himself to his music full-time, yet he managed to compose numerous polkas, waltzes, and redovas, recording many of them on 10 of his albums.
He was born in the Mexican town of General Terán in Nuevo León and relocated to Texas with his family at the age of eight.
He and Esteban Jordan were both legends of the accordion, and Jordan popularized the Tejano style of music.