[1] Born in Panama City, he studied composition under Ernst Krenek and conducting under Dimitri Mitropoulos, Stanley Chapple, and Léon Barzin before becoming director of the Institute of Music and Artistic Director and conductor of the National Symphony of his native country.
Later he was assistant director of the Latin American Music Center (LAMúsiCa), professor of composition at Indiana University School of Music, and, from 1972, distinguished professor emeritus at Illinois State University.
He has appeared as guest conductor in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, and in the United States.
[3] They were recorded by Dr. Tuyen Tonnu, Associate Professor of Piano, at Illinois State University.
After retiring he spent the last eight years of his life living with his family in Dayton, Ohio, where he died at age 91.