Salvador de Jesús Cardenal Barquero, Nicaraguan singer songwriter born in Mexico (México DF, October 6, 1960 - Managua, March 8, 2010), was one of the most renown songwriters in Nicaragua and Central America, also a poet, painter and ecologist. Father of two children, Salvador Joaquín & Guillermo Nicolas.

Early life

Salvador Cardenal was the second born of Leyla María Barquero and Salvador Cardenal Vargas, in a family of five children. He spent most of his childhood in Managua, Nicaragua, where he studied in the Colegio Centro América

Colegio Centro América

The Colegio Centro América is a school located in Managua, Nicaragua. It was established in 1916 and serves as an Elementary, Middle, and High school. The school was created by the Jesuits in the city of Granada and quickly became the preferred boarding school for children of elite families...

. When he was 17 he started playing the guitar he got as a present during his years studying to be a Jesuit Novice in Panamá. He left the convent for music and went back to Nicaragua during the Nicaraguan Revolution

Nicaraguan Revolution

The Nicaraguan Revolution encompasses the rising opposition to the Somoza dictatorship in the 1960s and 1970s, the campaign led by the Sandinista National Liberation Front which led to the violent ousting of that dictatorship in 1979, and the...

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Artistic career

In 1980, Salvador formed the Duo Guardabarranco

Duo Guardabarranco

Duo Guardabarranco was a Nicaraguan duo consisting of siblings Katia Cardenal and Salvador Cardenal. The duo has been a significant worldwide ambassador for Nicaraguan and Latin-American folk music for the last three decades, and has gained a broad international audience with their poetical lyrics...

 with his sister, Katia Cardenal

Katia Cardenal

Katia Cardenal is a Nicaraguan singer/songwriter, and a part of the nueva trova movement. Katia and her brother Salvador Cardenal form the Duo Guardabarranco, one of the leading proponents of nueva trova, known for classical songs like Guerrero del amor, Guardabosques, Casa Abierta and Colibri...

. Their music expressed the love for nature, freedom and justice. They toured over 30 countries in folk and political festivals. They published ten LP's during their years together, which became very successful and influential in their homeland. In 1990 they won second place in the OTI festival of 1990, with their song "Dame tu Corazón".

He also published two albums as a soloist, one which was live. Later in his career, he would tour Nicaragua with ecological concerts.

During his lifetime Salvador Cardenal also dedicated much time to painting

Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...

. He would mainly paint portraits of bodies, angels, butterflies and Jesus Christ, in vivid and distinct colours.

Final Years

Salvador Cardenal died March 8 of 2010 , in the military hospital "Alejandro Dávila Bolaños" after being constantly hospitalized suffering from a rare disease called Cryoglobulinemia

Cryoglobulinemia

Cryoglobulinemia is a medical condition in which the blood contains large amounts of cryoglobulins - proteins that become insoluble at reduced temperatures. Cryoglobulins typically precipitate at temperatures below normal body temperature and will dissolve again if the blood is heated...

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