Yami Cabrera

Modernity in Cuban music continues to showcase excellent female artists, who make the culture grow on the island more and more. In the last 20 years, women musicians have stepped forward to create songs in various genres. Therefore, we could not end Women’s History Month without honoring the new generations of Cuban Women in Music. That’s why we are launching this second part of our blog CUBAN WOMEN IN MUSIC: SPOTIFY PLAYLIST TRIBUTE TO WOMEN ARTISTS – PART 1.
In this new edition of our tribu...

ByYami Cabrera (Cuban musicologist and Business Development Director of Havana Music Tours and Musical Getaways)

Cuban women are the inspiring soul of the great culture that Cuba preserves. Each sector of Cuban society and each bit of history contains the names of sovereign and courageous women who became examples for the nation and the world. That’s why we want to share this Spotify Playlist Tribute to honor the role of Cuban women in music during this Women’s History Month.

There is an exte...

The Caribbean area has an extensive and rich musical history. Its music roots connect with socio/cultural events from the indigenous migration to the European colonization, the wars of liberation, and the current Music industry display...

Parecía increíble que, con pocos meses de diferencia, pudiera tener en mis manos otra producción musical protagonizada por la Novia del Feeling, nuestra querida Omara Portuondo. Nuevamente rodeada de juventud y excelentes músicos, los muchachos de la Orquesta Failde, natos defensores de la música tradicional, para cantarle a un gigante de la historia musical cubana, nuestro Benny Moré, una figura que ella tuvo la oportunidad de conocer y que fungió como paradigma para su carrera.
Esta unión n...

The rumba is one of the most important and universal Cuban styles of music. Many travelers and music lovers go to the island of Cuba to learn and enjoy a good Cuban rumba. Without a doubt, it is a relevant cultural attraction of this Caribbean island. Therefore, in this article, we will be addressing some essential elements of this peculiar genre.

What does the term rumba mean?

The term rumba is included within a series of Afro-Cuban words that designate a type of collective and profane festi...

The Tonadas Trinitarias

[English]

Trinidad is a beautiful city in the center of Cuba. There we can find a very distinctive genre of this city, known as Tonadas Trinitarias. In the beginning, this musical expression was developed as part of a festive musician-dance event of a movement and purely profane nature. This style is currently performed by some of its main folkloric-traditional musical groups from Trinidad city.

Although its name refers to a generic species linked to country Cuban musi...

Por Yami Cabrera, musicóloga.
Desde el triunfo revolucionario de 1959 hasta la actualidad, la industria cultural cubana le concede un interés especial a las tradiciones folclóricas-populares como bienes y servicios culturales con valores artísticos que responden a una identidad nacional. El Licenciado en Estudios Socioculturales Reinaldo Enrique Ojeda en su artículo “La comercialización del producto cultural en Cuba” aborda este asunto como un cambio rotundo en la cultura política del país...

Surely you have tried a good Cuban sandwich, or a creamy and delicious Cuban-style flan. Well, those are just the tip of the iceberg of variety found in traditional Cuban cuisine.
There are so much attractions in Cuban culture and, without a doubt, food is one of them. Surprisingly simple and appetizing, Cuban recipes are hidden in a humble culinary style, far from many of the modern technological innovations.
The center of Cuban food is its intense and neutral flavor, a very well balanced ta...

The unique artist and producer Oji offers us a new musical proposal for 2020, “Shadow works”. This track is part of his latest record production Sono´Theism. This album is an interesting combination of different styles like experimental music, new age, psychedelic and Hip Hop. The music is dedicated to the art of meditation.
Oji’s music is full of cultural symbols charged with spirituality. His work proposes the experimentation of acoustic and electronic sounds, which focus on recreating a ve...

The composer, drummer, and producer Chaz Chambers just released his new single “Hopeful.”, a positive song totally coherent with these difficult and moving times. The track belongs to the artist’s first album, Coastal, that will be launching in the next few months. After almost four years of incessant work, the production is finally ready to captivate fans of indie, folk and experimental music.
The Atlanta, Georgia artist has been very clear that music is an inseparable part of his life from ...

De Cuba y la historia de su música
by Yami Cabrera
La Isla de la Música ya cuenta con poco más de 500 años de historia, nutrida de músicas de todas partes. Un pequeño archipiélago en dónde puedes encontrar sonoridades de casi todos los continentes, África, Europa, Asia, América Latina, etc.
Historia musical que nace desde el momento exacto en que los aborígenes antillanos arribaron a las costas de esta isla, con sus guamos –caracol grande utilizado como instrumento musical aerófono– y exót...

Fiesta del Tambor 2019 in Cuba
(English Translation)
Fiesta del Tambor is an event that finds space in every corner of Havana to begin the “rumba” and celebrate. In addition, it allows the exchange of musical cultures from around the world. The festival that we will be dedicated to this blogpost.
In the last 18 Edition of Festival and competition, Fiesta del Tambor “Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam”, a tribute was made to Spain, a country that gave birth to many styles of Cuban music and that st...

Music connects diverse people in different countries and continents in an incredible way. A song can unify experiences of human beings who never thought to associate. Today we see how music is also capable of uniting a family, and becoming the center of its strength. The Sidleys are an example to follow in this regard. This family has managed to build their history through the fascinating language of music. The composition and performance of this art has been the combining element between the...

The composer Paul Zambrano unfolds in a new musical production for 2020, Death is Beautiful. This new album was released October 2nd, and includes 13 musical pieces that describe a fascinating story of love and sacrifice.
Zambrano, despite his young age, has had a prolific artistic career as a composer and pianist. This is evident in the presence of his different artistic projects, located fundamentally in the field of incidental music for film and TV shows. Because of his excellent work with...

The most recent production of the artist Hoodooleen is one of those songs that make hearts vibrate. The single was released under the name “I will wear my suit tonight” on October 8th through the Croatian artist’s social media platforms.

“I will wear my suit tonight” unravels many meanings trapped in Robert James Hudulin´s life story. The sea and its movement; the deafening and peaceful loneliness; as well as the true meaning of human nature, are elements that stand out through the diverse mu...