In Europe, Asia or Africa... It doesn't matter where you are in the world. If you ask for a famous name in Cuban music, the chances are that someone will mention Omara Portuondo, or if not, Buenavista Social Club®, a music group that performed between 1996 and 2015, where the artist experienced some of the best moments of her career and of recent Cuban music. Since then, she has been the woman who was “the diva of Buenavista Social Club®” and also, “the bride of feeling”, another way of referring to this outstanding artist who was born in 1930. She was the daughter of a woman from a wealthy family of Spanish descent who refused to marry a member of high society and ran away with a baseball player instead. Born in the Cayo Hueso neighbourhood of Havana, as a young girl she started to sing a rhythm with jazz influences that was known as feeling or, in the Cuban version, filin, with some friends and her sister, a Tropicana dancer. A member of various bands, she made her solo debut in 1959 with the album Magia negra [Black Magic]. Since then, she has never stopped singing and touring. In the 1970s, she was already famous, touring European venues, as well as being the subject of documentaries. This momentum continued and, at the start of the 21st century, led to a world tour with the other members of the Buenavista Social Club ®. She has performed with the all-time greats (on stage with Edith Piaf, Benny Moré and Bola de Nieve), and the big names of South American music, from yesterday and today, have all paid tribute to her talent. In both musical and human terms, she is something of a character. Although deserving of the name “diva”, she has always been a humble artist, being especially sincere and given to real feelings and emotions, using her voice as an instrument to express them. She has stated that this concert will be her farewell performance in Barcelona. Get ready for surprises, and there will be some big ones, as the artist will be joined on stage by some of the good friends she has in the city. We will be able to hear her sing some of the great numbers from her long career, accompanied by a quartet led by pianist Roberto Fonseca. This is an intimate-style concert, (piano, bass, drums and percussion) which promises to be an unforgettable evening with one of the great voices of our time.
A Montuno Producciones production
Musicians: Omara Portuondo (vocals), Roberto Fonseca (piano), Yandy Martínez (bass), Ruly Herrera (drums), Andrés Coayo (percussion) Artistic director: Roberto Fonseca Photography: Johann Sauty
