The Mystery of Synth Behind Selena’s Music

I was surprised to find that a synth from the 90s could get its own Wikipedia page. The Roland D-70 is a ROMpler synthesizer, Japanese-made in 1990. It doesn’t record any external sound, it only plays back full pre-fabricated audio samples. The price of memory chips that play these sounds dropped so ROMplers like these were attempting to topple FM and PCM digital synths in the market. This competition was so intense that the D-70’s production was extremely rushed. It was meant to function more like its predecessors, the Roland D-50 and D-550, but reflected the likes of a Roland U-series prototype, thus a notoriously horrible user interface. It has a variety of features like MIDI control, a TFV filter, Differential Loop Modulation, and PCM or RAM expansion. It also has real-time faders that effect the Level, Pan, Tuning, Cutoff, Resonance, Attack, and Release. Here you can find factory preset demos and detailed photos!

This is the only internet-confirmed synth used by Selena y Los Dinos. Confirmed because you can see videos of Joe Ojeda using it for their live performances. You can hear (at 1:50–1:57) Ojeda use the D-70’s 37th preset “Cool Jazz” to introduce Selena’s most iconic heartbreaking performance of ‘Como La Flor’ at the Houston Astrodome, her last big show before her tragic death. You can even see Selena accentuate its sparkly flow with her fingers before the beat kicks in. The Roland can be seen this night breathing life into songs like Techno Cumbia, Si Una Vez, and Ya Ves. You’ll also notice there’s quite a few more synthesizers on stage, but they’re not listed anywhere on the Selena side of the internet. The Roland D-70(top), Korg 01/WFD(bottom), and Korg M1(right) are manned by Joe Ojeda. The Fatar Studio 2001(top) and Yamaha SY77(bottom) are played by Ricky Vela. Selena’s music would not have the iconic catchy sound it does without these keyboardists and their synths.

While the presence of synthesizers in AB Quintanilla’s production of Selena’s music is strong, the details are relatively unknown. We know that the Roland was definitely used in Como La Flor live and in recording. I only listed the synths used on stage earlier because I studied the concert footage for hours. Yet these are the only synths known to contribute to her music at all. I was unable to find any others from other tours or songs. There’s no telling which of these synths were involved in the actual recordings of her songs other than the Roland. It wasn’t in forums, band interviews or on the keyboardist’s social media. I even checked the Selena Museum to no avail. These instruments are responsible for the sound that re-wrote Tejano.

If there’s any details I’m missing or getting wrong, comment to let me know! I’m looking at you AB, Ricky and Joe. Spill your synthesizer secrets!