Precise in its artistic and intense by its long sessions of concerts, Havana World Music will debut on the Island this Friday and Saturday at 5:00 PM both times where it will present its concept of cultural diversity, as faithful embassy of Cuban and universal sound.
Promoter of intercultural dialogue and a strong melodic proposal, the event will take place in the capital José Antonio Echavarria recreation center. There the curtains of a country rich in sound traditions, ranging from African and Spanish heritages, to the legacy of cultures such as the Chinese and Jewish will open, as its general director said, the Cuban singer Eme Alfonso.
Alfonso said Havana World Music is the son of her to Para mestizar project, a thorough documentary directed by filmmaker Joseph Ross, where they reflected this identy.
And in the event a good part of these traditions can be enjoyed, since the stage of José Antonio Echavarria on Friday and Saturday will feature The Cossiá and and the bagpipes group of the Sociedad Artistica, the contagious rhythm of Juan Formell and Los Van Van , troubadour William Vivanco, fusion-style rhythms by Deja Vu, this urban poetry that fills the work of Alfonso X, and a heavyweight national rock’n’roll and jazz scene: Synthesis. To them they will add a group of DJs with a commendable work in the treatment of folk music with elements of electronic melody, as Pauza and Djoy of Cuba.
Eme Alfonso was clear in her international pretensions; “music world will also come to Havana ” and the curtain opened to different ways of making art that coexist in a city that is itself an example of the cosmopolitan vision.
From Spain, the followers of flamenco and electronic music will delight with Fuel Fandango, while from Britain we have the visit of the Dj Auntie Flo and from Norway Thea Hjelmeland to lend us her own vision of pop and folk of his country. Finally, we refer to the group of Colombian Mákina Karibe, the unique representation of South America, which will bring to Havana that mixture of West Indian and African music that is grown on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
One of the highlights of Havana World Music, after the concerts, is its side proposals. Several spaces dedicated to understanding musical events will be organized by the event, including the use of drums and voices that Thea Hjelmeland and percussionist Peter Baden will teach at the Superior Institute of Art, and the Dj Auntie Flo dedicated to electronic music, in the Casona de Linea. Both will happen next Monday.
With a wide pitch, the World Music is a contemporary genre that integrates in its concept the traditional, folk, popular and ethnic music. It has in the former member of the group Genesis, Peter Gabriel, a born promoter. In Cuba we have another lover of this kind of aesthetic, Guille Vilar, who from his television program Music World, bring it to the national public.
For now, a strong promotion in addition to the media covers in the social networks, and is deployed for the younger to enjoy two days of intense concerts. A group of the sponsoring institutions: the Cuban Institute of Music and the National Centre for Popular Music, as well as travel agencies and embassies accredited in Havana.
Eme Alfonso expects Havana World Music to have long life, so she announced that it will be held in annual basis. “This is a super early festival and will walk in time. The important thing is that is being done in Cuba , ” the artist said.
Photo: Claudio Pelaez
