Adrián Cionco, bass player for Argentine pop/ska group La Mosca, died of a heart attack on Wednesday (Nov. 11), a few weeks after the band’s anniversary livestream concert in Argentina, and just one day after his birthday, the band’s manager, Santiago Ruiza, confirms to Billboard.
Cionco was 48 years old. He’d had previous heart problems.
Born in the small city of San Nicolás, Cionco started gigging with the band in 1997 when bandleader Guillermo Novellis asked him to sub for a series of shows because their regular bass player wasn’t available.
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Cionco ended up staying with the group the next 23 years, and by the group’s second album, Visperas de Carnaval in 1999, he was formally a member. This fall, Cionco had also debuted as an on air personality on afternoon radio show Tarde de Perros, a program on Argentine station Radio Noba that dealt with music and food.
“With immense sadness, we say goodbye to our friend, our brother and excellent musician,” wrote the band in an Instagram post. “Thank you for sharing this adventure of music!”