Buena Vista Social Club

Buena Vista Social Club

Infobox musical artist
Name = Buena Vista Social Club


Img_capt =
Background = group_or_band
Origin = flagicon|Cuba Cuba

Genre = Son
Bolero
Guajira
Years_active = 1996–present
Label = World Circuit / Nonesuch Records
Current_members = Luis Barzaga (backing vocals)
Orlando "Cachaito" López (double bass)
Joachim Cooder (drums)
Ry Cooder (guitar)
Juan de Marcos González (guitar, vocals, percussion)
Manuel Galbán (guitar)
Carlos González (bongos)
Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal (trumpet)
Eliades Ochoa (vocals, guitar)
Julienne Oviedo Sanchez (timbales)
Omara Portuondo (vocals)
Barbarito Torres (laúd)
Amadito Valdés (percussion)
Past_members = Manuel "Puntillita" Licea (vocals) "(d. 2000)"
Máximo Francisco Repilado Muñoz AKA Compay Segundo (vocals, tres) "(d. 2003)"
Rubén González (piano) "(d. 2003)"
Ibrahim Ferrer (vocals) "(d. 2005)"
Pío Leyva (vocals) "(d. 2006)"
Anga Díaz (percussion) "(d.2006)"
The Buena Vista Social Club was a members club in Havana, Cuba that held dances and musical activities, becoming a popular location for musicians to meet and play during the 1940s. In the 1990s, nearly 50 years after the club was closed, it inspired a recording made by Cuban musician Juan de Marcos González and American guitarist Ry Cooder with traditional Cuban musicians, some of whom were veterans who had performed at the club during the height of its popularity.

The recording, named "Buena Vista Social Club" after the Havana institution, became an international success, and the ensemble was encouraged to perform with a full line-up in Amsterdam in 1998. German director Wim Wenders captured the performance on film, followed by a second concert in Carnegie Hall, New York City for a documentary that included interviews with the musicians conducted in Havana. Wenders's film, also called "Buena Vista Social Club", was released to critical acclaim, receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary feature and winning numerous accolades including Best Documentary at the European Film Awards.

The success of both the album and film sparked a revival of international interest in traditional Cuban music and Latin American music in general. Some of the Cuban performers later released well-received solo albums and recorded collaborations with international stars from different musical genres. The "Buena Vista Social Club" name became an umbrella term to describe these performances and releases, and has been likened to a brand label that encapsulates Cuba's "musical golden age" between the 1930s and 1950s. The new success was fleeting for the most recognizable artists in the ensemble: Compay Segundo, Rubén González, and Ibrahim Ferrer, who died at the ages of ninety-five, eighty-four, and seventy-eight respectively; Segundo and González in 2003, then Ferrer in 2005.

Social club

The Buena Vista Social Club members-only club located in the populous Marianao neighborhood, in Cuba's capital Havana. According to Juan Cruz, a former master of ceremonies at the "Salon Rosado Benny Moré" nightclub in Havana, the club was located "on "Calle" 41 between 46 and 48".Godfried, Eugène. [http://afrocubaweb.com/eugenegodfried/juancruz.htm "Dialogue with Juan Cruz. Past President of "Mariano Social Club" - la Havana"] . AfroCubaWeb.com. Retrieved 12 April 2007 — [http://www.intute.ac.uk/artsandhumanities/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=humbul12408 AfroCubaweb] . Intute at The University of Manchester, Retrieved 18 March 2007.] When musicians Ry Cooder, Compay Segundo and a film crew attempted to identify the location of the club in the 1990s, local people could not agree on where it had stood. [http://www.pbs.org/buenavista/musicians/bios/cooder_int_2_excerpts.html "Interview with Ry Cooder in Los Angeles, by Betty Arcos, host, “The Global Village” Pacifica Radio June 27, 2000"] . "Buena Vista Social Club" site. Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). Retrieved 18 March 2007.]

The club was run along the lines of a Cabildo, a community "cofradía" (fraternity or guild) dating back to Spanish colonialism. Cabildos in Cuba developed into "Sociedades de Color", social clubs whose membership was determined by ethnicity, at a time when slavery and racial discrimination against Afro-Cubans was institutionalized.Godfried, Eugène. [http://afrocubaweb.com/eugenegodfried/sociedades.htm "The African Cuban Diaspora’s Cultural Shelters and their Sudden Disappearance in 1959"] . [http://www.intute.ac.uk/artsandhumanities/cgi-bin/fullrecord.pl?handle=humbul12408 AfroCubaWeb] . Retrieved 18 March 2007.] "Sociedades de Negros" (Black Societies) existed throughout Cuba, and Havana boasted a number of closely linked organizations including the Marianao Social Club, Union Fraternal, Club Atenas—whose members included doctors and engineers—and the Buena Vista Social Club itself.

According to American guitarist Ry Cooder, quotation|Society in Cuba and in the Caribbean including New Orleans, as far as I know, was organized around these fraternal social clubs. There were clubs of cigar wrappers, clubs for baseball players and they’d play sports and cards—whatever it is they did in their club—and they had mascots, like dogs. At the Buena Vista Social Club, musicians went there to hang out with each other, like they used to do at musicians’ unions in the U.S., and they’d have dances and activities. Prominent musicians that performed at the club during the 1930s and 40s include bassist Cachao López and bandleader Arsenio Rodríguez. Rodríguez's pianist Rubén González, who played piano on the 1990s recordings, described the 1940s as "an era of real musical life in Cuba, where there was very little money to earn, but everyone played because they really wanted to". [http://www.nonesuch.com/Hi_Band/index_frameset2.cfm?pointer=buena_vista.gif"Buena Vista Social Club". Musicians Biographies] . Rubén González. Nonesuch Records website. Retrieved 18 March 2007.] The era saw the birth of the jazz influenced mambo, the charanga, and dance forms such as the pachanga and the cha-cha-cha, as well as the continued development of traditional Afro-Cuban musical styles such as rumba and son, the latter transformed with the use of additional instruments by Arsenio Rodríguez to become son montuno. [Garcia, David F. "Cuban Music: A Review Essay". Notes - Volume 62, Number 1, September 2005, pp. 95–100] Son, described as "the bedrock of Cuban music," has shaped much of twentieth-century Latin music, [ [http://www.worldmusic.net/catalogue/cuba.html Cuba: Catalogue] . World Music Network. Retrieved 3 May 2007.] and had a strong impact on popular music, not only in Latin America, but also in the United States during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Shortly after the Cuban Revolution of 1959, new Cuban President Manuel Urrutia Lleó, a devout Christian, began a program of closing all gambling outlets, nightclubs, and other establishments associated with Havana's hedonistic reputation. This had an immediate impact on the livelihoods of local entertainers. [Quirk, Robert E. "Fidel Castro". W. W. Norton & Company; New Ed edition (August 1995). p229. ISBN 0393313271 ] As the Cuban government rapidly shifted towards communism and an effort to build a "classless and colorblind society", it struggled to define policy toward forms of cultural expression in the black community; expressions which had implicitly emphasized cultural differences. [Moore, Robin. "Black Music in a Raceless Society: Afrocuban Folklore and Socialism". Cuban Studies - Volume 37, 2006. University of Pittsburgh Press. pp. 1-32.] Consequently, the cultural and social centers were abolished, including the Afro-Cuban mutual aid "Sociedades de Color" in 1962, to make way for racially integrated societies. [Segal, Ronald. "The Black diaspora", Noonday Press, 1999. p.235. ISBN–10: 0374524904] Private festivities were limited to weekend parties and organizers' funds were confiscated. [Gott, Richard. "Cuba, A New History". Yale Nota Bene; New Ed edition (11 Nov 2005). p.174. ISBN 0300104111] The measures meant the closure of the Buena Vista Social Club. Although the Cuban government continued to support traditional music after the revolution, favor was given to the politically charged nueva trova, and poetic singer-songwriters such as Silvio Rodríguez. The emergence of pop music and salsa, a style derived from Cuban music but developed in the United States, meant that son music fell further out of favor with Cubans.

Album

Listen
filename=Chan Chan.ogg
title=Buena Vista Social Club "Chan Chan" (1997)
description=30 second sample from "Buena Vista Social Club"'s "Chan Chan", which, according to Ry Cooder, became the group's "calling card".
format=Ogg

In 1996, American guitarist Ry Cooder had been invited to Havana by British world music producer Nick Gold of World Circuit Records to record a session where two African High-life musicians from Mali were to collaborate with Cuban musicians. On Cooder's arrival (via Mexico to avoid the ongoing U.S. trade and travel embargo against Cuba), [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/1997/06/28/brcuba28.xml "Hurricane Cooder hits Cuba"] . Daily Telegraph (June 1997). Retrieved 20 March 2007.] it transpired that the musicians from Africa had not received their visas and were unable to travel to Havana. Cooder and Gold changed their plans and decided to record an album of Cuban son music with local musicians.

Already on board the African collaboration project were Cuban musicians including bassist Orlando "Cachaito" López, guitarist Eliades Ochoa and musical director Juan de Marcos González, who had himself been organizing a similar project for the Afro-Cuban All Stars. A search for additional musicians led the team to singer Manuel "Puntillita" Licea, pianist Rubén González and octogenarian singer Compay Segundo, who all agreed to record for the project.

Within three days of the project's birth, Cooder, Gold and de Marcos had organized a large group of performers and arranged for recording sessions to commence at Havana's EGREM Studios, formerly owned by RCA records, where the equipment and atmosphere had remained unchanged since the 1950s. [Steward, Sue. [http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/obituary/0,,999073,00.html Compay Segundo Obituary] Guardian Unlimited (16 July 2003). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] Communication between the Spanish and English speakers at the studio was conducted via an interpreter, although Cooder reflected that "musicians understand each other through means other than speaking".

The album was recorded in just six days and contained fourteen tracks; opening with "Chan Chan" written by Compay Segundo, a four chord son that was to become what Cooder described as "the Buena Vista's calling card"; [http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,,999647,00.html "Life began at ninety"] Guardian Unlimited (17 July 2003). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] and ending with a rendition of "La Bayamesa", a traditional Cuban patriotic song (not to be confused with the Cuban national anthem of the same name). [Zamora Céspedes, Bladimir. [http://www.lajiribilla.co.cu/2003/n103_04/aprende.html Las Bayamesas] . "La Jiribilla" magazine. Juventud Rebelde. Retrieved 18 March 2007. es icon "Desde finales de la segunda década del siglo pasado hasta nuestros días, no hay dudas de que en Bayamo se han escrito otras hermosas e importantes obras musicales, que podrían también llamarse bayamesas. Nadie puede negar sin embargo que las tres primeras bayamesas, compuestas ente 1851 y 1918, precisamente en un período rotundo de afirmación de nuestra identidad nacional, son parte entrañable del patrimonio de la nación cubana."
Translation: "From the end of the 1910s to the present day, there is no doubt that in Bayamo, beautiful and important music has been written that could also be called Bayamesas. Nobody can deny, nevertheless, that the first three Bayamesas, composed between 1851 and 1918 in a period of strong affirmation of our national identity, are a memorable component of the Cuban national heritage."
] The sessions also produced material for the subsequent release, "Introducing... Rubén González", which showcased the work of the Cuban pianist.Listen
filename=Buena Vista Social Club - Buena Vista Social Club.ogg
title=Buena Vista Social Club "Buena Vista Social Club" (1997)
description=30 second sample from "Buena Vista Social Club"' from the 1997 album of the same name, featuring the piano playing of Rubén González. The song was the Havana club's "mascot tune" in the 1940s.
format=Ogg
One of the songs that featured on the album was "Buena Vista Social Club", a song written by bass player "Cachaíto"’s uncle, Israel López, who also wrote Pueblo Nuevo, track 4 on the album. The song spotlighted the piano work of Rubén González and it was recorded after Cooder heard González improvising around the tune's musical theme before a day's recording session. After playing the piece, González explained to Cooder the history of the social club and that the song was the club's "mascot tune". When searching for a name for the overall project, manager Nick Gold chose the song's title. According to Cooder, quotation|It should be the thing that sets it apart. It was a kind of club by then. Everybody was hanging out and we had rum and coffee around two in the afternoon. It felt like a club, so let’s call it that. That’s what gave it a handle.

Upon release on 17 September 1997, the CD became a huge "word of mouth hit", far beyond that of most world music releases. [http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6626032/260_buena_vista_social_club Rolling Stone 500. #260: "Buena Vista Social Club"] . Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] [Milward, John. [http://www.salon.com/ent/music/feature/1998/07/16feature.html "The Latin Invasion"] . Salon.com: Entertainment (16 July 1998). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] It sold more than five million copies and won a Grammy award in 1998. [Clancy, Olive. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1269162.stm "Joining the "Buena Vista Social Club"] . BBC Online (9 April 2001). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] In 2003 it was listed by the New York based "Rolling Stone" magazine as #260 in The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Musicians

A total of twenty musicians contributed to the recording including Ry Cooder's son Joachim Cooder, (b. 1978) who at the time was a 19 year old scholar of Latin percussion and provided drums for the band. Ry Cooder himself played slide guitar on several songs and helped produce and mix the album, afterwards describing the sessions as "the greatest musical experience of my life". [ [http://www.worldcircuit.co.uk/#Buena_Vista_Social_Club::Biography "Buena Vista Social Club"] "World Circuit Records" site. Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Ry Cooder had been a successful American guitarist since the 1960s, recording with Captain Beefheart and the Rolling Stones. Known for his slide guitar work, his interest in roots music led him to record music from diverse genres including Tex-Mex, Hawaiian and Tuvan throat singing. He was later prosecuted and fined $25,000 by U.S. authorities for his work on the "Buena Vista Social Club", having broken the Trading with the Enemy Act, a clause that forms part of the ongoing United States embargo. [ [http://music.guardian.co.uk/rock/story/0,,2025914,00.html "From the Dust"] Guardian Unlimited (4 March 2007). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ]

Many of the Cuban musicians who featured on the album were at their musical prime in the 1940s and 50s. After the success of the 1997 record they became known in Cuba as "Los Superabuelos" (the Super-Grandfathers). [ [http://www.wim-wenders.com/movies/movies_spec/buenavistasocialclub/buenavistasocialclub.htm "Buena Vista Social Club"] Wim-wenders.com. Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Juan de Marcos González, a Cuban folk revivalist who was younger than the bulk of performers introduced Cooder to veteran singer Ibrahim Ferrer. Ferrer (1927–2005) had been lead vocalist for bandleader Pacho Alonso, and also sang for Beny Moré, Cuba's most prominent performer in the 1940s, before his soft singing style fell out of fashion. [http://www.pbs.org/buenavista/musicians/bios.html Buena Vista Social Club: Musicians biographies.] "Buena Vista Social Club" site. Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Having found the semi-retired seventy year old Ferrer taking his daily stroll on the streets of Havana and shining shoes for extra money, González signed him up for the project. Cooder later described the discovery as something that happens "perhaps once in your life", and Ferrer as "the Cuban Nat King Cole".Thigpen, David E. [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,28829,00.html?iid=chix-sphere "Forget Me Not"] . "Time magazine" (1 August 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Ferrer became a prominent member of the group, and the success of the record was attributed in part to the popularity of his vocal performances. The singer went on to record a number of successful solo records and performed with contemporary acts such as the Gorillaz before his death in 2005 at the age of 78. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/artist/vdxm/ Ibrahim Ferrer. In one minute.] BBC Online. Retrieved 18 March 2007.]

Virtuoso pianist Rubén González (1919–2003) also had further success releasing two solo albums after working on the initial project. González was a pianist for bandleader Arsenio Rodríguez in the 1940s, and is attributed with helping establish Cuban piano styles that were to dominate Latin music for the remainder of the century. [Douglas, Struan. [http://home.worldonline.co.za/~afribeat/archiveafrica_buenavista.html The Preservation of Grace.] Archive Africa. Afibeat.com. Retrieved 23 March 2007.] Despite suffering from arthritis and not even owning a piano at the time of recording with Cooder, (due to an infestation of termites whilst living in South America) the American guitarist described him as the "the greatest piano soloist I have ever heard". [Gibbs, Stephen. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/3302471.stm "Buena Vista pianist Gonzalez dies".] BBC Online (9 December 2003). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] After the success of the 1997 record, González recorded and toured with bassist Orlando "Cachaito" López, who was the only musician to play on all of the songs on the "Buena Vista Social Club" album. "Cachaito" (b. 1933), is the son of multi-instrumentalist Orestes López and the nephew of fellow bassist Israel "Cachao" López, the brothers often attributed with inventing the mambo. [Zwerin, Mike. [http://www.iht.com/articles/1995/03/23/fcachao_0.php "The Maestro Who Invented the Mambo"] . International Herald Tribune (23 March 1995). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Named after his prestigious uncle, "Cachaito" (little Cachao) was a leading Descarga musician in the 1950s and '60s, a musical form that takes its influence from modern jazz, and he became the ever present bassist at Buena Vista Social Club performances and recordings.

One of the first to come onboard the project was Compay Segundo (born Máximo Francisco Repilado Muñoz) (1907–2003), who at 89 years old was the oldest of the performers. During a discussion about politics, the veteran Segundo surprised Cooder by referring to Fidel Castro, who had been in power in Cuba for nearly 40 years, as "the new guy". (b.1930), a bolero singer and the only female in the collective, sang "Veinte Años" on the record and duetted with Segundo and Ibrahim Ferrer during live performances.

Other performers included singer Pío Leyva, (1917–2006) who had been working with Segundo since the early 1950s, [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4838222.stm "Buena Vista singer Pio Leyva dies"] . BBC Online (23 March 2006). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] and fellow and singer Manuel "Puntillita" Licea, (1927–2000), who had performed with Celia Cruz and Benny Moré. Additional improvised percussion was provided by Amadito Valdés and Carlos González. The youngest established member of the group was Barbarito Torres, (b.1956) a virtuoso player of the "laúd", a Cuban offshoot of the lute. Trumpet was provided by Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal, (b. 1933) who went on to release solo records under the "Buena Vista presents..." title.

Film

duetting on the song "Silencio" which appeared in Wim Wenders's 1999 film and on Ferrer's first solo release "Buena Vista Social Club Presents: Ibrahim Ferrer".] Shortly after returning from Havana to record the "Buena Vista Social Club" album, Ry Cooder began working with German film director Wim Wenders on the soundtrack to Wenders's film The End of Violence, the third such collaboration between the two artists. According to Wenders, it was an effort to force Cooder to focus on the project, "He always sort of looked in the distance and smiled, and I knew he was back in Havana."Rose, Charlie. [http://www.pbs.org/buenavista/film/crose.html Buena Vista Social Club: PBS Interview with Ry Cooder and Wim Wenders] PBS (17 September 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Although Wenders knew nothing about Cuban music at the time, he became enthused by tapes of the Havana sessions provided by Cooder, and agreed to travel to the island to film the recording of "Buena Vista Social Club Presents: Ibrahim Ferrer", the singer's first solo album, in 1998. [ [http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117490699.html?categoryid=31&cs=1&p=0 "Buena Vista Social Club" review] Variety (18 February 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ]

Wenders filmed the recording sessions on the recently enhanced format Digital Video with the help of long time collaborator, cinematographer Robert Müller, and then shot interviews with each "Buena Vista" ensemble member in different Havana locations. Wenders was also present to film the group's first performance with a full line-up in Amsterdam in 1999, and a second concert in Carnegie Hall, New York City. (October 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Upon completion of filming, Wenders felt that the film "didn't feel really like it was a documentary anymore. It felt like it was a true character piece".

The film became a box office success, grossing $23,002,182 worldwide. [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=buenavistasocialclub.htm "Buena Vista Social Club" (film) - Box office statistics] . Mojo Box Office. Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Critics were generally enthusiastic about the story and especially the music, [ [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1087935-buena_vista_social_club/ "Buena Vista Social Club". Critics. Average Rating: 7.4/10] . Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 18 March 2007.] although leading U.S. film critic Roger Ebert and the British Film Institute's Peter Curran felt that Wenders had lingered too long on Cooder during the performances; and the editing, which interspersed interviews with music, had disrupted the continuity of the songs. [Ebert, Roger. [http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19990625/REVIEWS/906250302/1023 "The Buena Vista Social Club" (film) review] . Chicago Sun Times (25 June 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] The film was nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary feature in 1997. It won best documentary at the European Film Awards and received seventeen other major accolades internationally. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0186508/awards Awards for Buena Vista Social Club (1999).] IMDb database. Retrieved 18 March 2007.]

Performances

The first performances by the full line up of "Buena Vista Social Club", including Cooder, were those filmed by Wenders in Amsterdam and New York. Other international shows and T.V. appearances soon followed with varying line ups. Ibrahim Ferrer and Rubén González performed together in Los Angeles in 1998 to an audience that included Alanis Morissette, Sean Combs, and Jennifer Lopez, Ferrer dedicating the song "Mami Me Gusto" to the Hispanic Lopez. [Milanovic Anji. [http://www.plume-noire.com/music/live/buenavista.html Buena Vista Social Club: Ibrahim Ferrer & Ruben González. The Wiltern, Los Angeles. Review.] Plume-Noire. Retrieved 18 March 2007. ] Performances in Florida, which has a large Cuban exile and Cuban American community, were rare after the release of the film due to the political climate. In the late 1990s, a concert by Cuban jazz pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba turned into a near riot when concert goers were attacked and spat at by protesters opposed to the Cuban government. [Levine, Art. [http://www.salon.com/ent/music/feature/1999/03/09feature.html "Viva 'Buena Vista Social Club'."] Salon entertainment (9 March 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] When "Buena Vista" musicians played for a music industry conference at Miami Beach in 1998, hundreds of protesters chanted outside and the convention center hall was cleared briefly because of a bomb threat. In 1999, Ferrer and Ruben González were forced to cancel Miami shows citing fears for their safety after fellow-Cubans Los Van Van drew 4,000 protesters at a previous show, and Compay Segundo was forced to cut short a 1999 Miami performance due to another bomb threat. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/482372.stm Cuban stars cancel concert.] BBC Online (22 October 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] When touring the U.S., the Cubans are only entitled to their "per diem" (transportation and lodging) and are not permitted performance fees due to the U.S. embargo. [ [http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/entertainment/july-dec99/buenavista_11-16.html Online newshour: Buena Vista Social Club.] Public Broadcasting Service (16 November 1999). Retrieved 18 March 2007.]

"Buena Vista Social Club" continue to tour throughout the world, and despite the deaths of five of the original members, the collective performs with many of the remaining ensemble members including Barbarito Torres, Orlando "Cachaito" López, and "Guajiro" Mirabal. [http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/live_reviews/article1499082.ece "Buena Vista Social Club": Live at the Hammersmith Apollo. Review by Clive Davis] . The Times Online (12 March 2007). Retrieved 18 March 2007.] Ry Cooder's guitar parts are handled by Manuel Galbán, a former member of Cuban vocal group Los Zafiros, who played on Ibrahim Ferrer's first solo record with Cooder and appeared in Wim Wenders's film. [Jones, Chris. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/wbxm/ "Album review :Ry Cooder and Manuel Galban, "Mambo Sinuendo"] . BBC online. Retrieved 18 March 2007.] Following a 2007 performance in London, a reviewer at The Independent newspaper described the ensemble as "something of an anomaly in music business terms, due to their changing line-up and the fact that they've never really had one defining front person", adding, "It's hard to know what to expect from what is more of a brand than a band." [Male, Howard. [http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/music/reviews/article2347989.ece "Buena Vista Social Club", Hammersmith Apollo, London".] Review, "The Independent" (12 March 2007). Retrieved 23 March 2007.]

Impact and analysis

The international success of the Buena Vista Social Club generated a revival of interest in traditional Cuban music and Latin American music as a whole.Torres, George. "Cuban Fire: The Story of Salsa and Latin Jazz (review)". "Notes", Volume 60, Number 2, December 2003, pp. 426-428.] Musical director Juan de Marcos felt that the recordings serve "as a symbol of the power of Cuban music, and which to a certain degree have contributed to Cuban music regaining the status it always had in Latin American and world music." [ [http://www.pbs.org/buenavista/musicians/bios/demarcos_edited_int_eng.html "Interview with Juan de Marco González in Havana, by Betty Arcos, host, ”The Global Village” Pacifica Radio January 1, 1998"] . "Buena Vista Social Club" site. Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). Retrieved 23 March 2007.]

Cuba's burgeoning tourist industry of the late 1990s benefited from this rebirth of interest. According to The Economist magazine, "In the tourist quarters of Old Havana it can seem at times as if every Cuban with a guitar has come out to sing the songs that Buena Vista made famous. It's as if you were to go to Liverpool and find bands singing Beatles songs on every street corner." [ [http://www.economist.com/research/articlesBySubject/displayStory.cfm?story_ID=8401940&subjectid=7933598 "Now we make politics".] "The Economist" (15 December 2006). Retrieved 23 March 2007.] Despite the appeal of the "Buena Vista" ambience to tourists, Cubans themselves were less aware of the "Buena Vista Social Club" than international music listeners. This was due to the foreign nature of the production, and the dominance of modern salsa, pop music and other musical forms such as reggaetón on the island.Santiago, Chiori. [http://www.globalrhythm.net/WorldMusicLegends/BuenaVistaSocialClub.cfm "Buena Vista Social Club".] Global Rhythm (9 October 2005). Retrieved 23 March 2007.]

Mari Marques, a Cuban American who leads cultural tours to Cuba, contests that the preponderance of traditional musicians was not solely a consequence of the "Buena Vista Social Club". Marques believes the notion that son music had been completely neglected in Cuba is "a romantic exaggeration that was propagated by U.S. media coverage", and the reality is that son trios have existed "everywhere in cities such as Santiago de Cuba in the east of the island." British world music record label Tumi Music, who had worked with de Marcos and many of the ensemble musicians prior to Cooder, asserted that Cuba has over 50,000 musicians all as good as, and some as old as the "Buena Vista" participants, "but these people hardly ever have the opportunity to share their talents with the outside world." The label lamented that, "for the West to pay any real attention and consume the product, you needed someone like Ry Cooder to give it a stamp of approval first." [ [http://www.tumimusic.com/english/newsletter.htm "Tumi celebrate their 100th recording after two decades dedicated to bringing Latin American music, arts and culture to Europe."] Tumi music. Home page. Retrieved 23 March 2007.]

Writer and academic Mike Gonzalez believes the ensemble provoked a backward glance to "timeless, sensual places where dreams and desire merged in a comfortable, evocative music". Gonzalez asserts that the aura evoked did not represent "the real Cuba" before the revolution of 1959, nor Cuba in the modern era, but that the Cuban government were happy for the tourist industry to "enjoy the fruits of this confusion". [Gonzalez, Mike. [http://www.socialistreview.org.uk/article.php?articlenumber=8730 "Music, Dreams and Desire".] Socialist review (June 2004). Retrieved 23 March 2007.] The American Historical Review suggested that the "Buena Vista Social Club"'s mise en scène fueled nostalgic, idealistic feelings not only of many Americans and Cubans in the United States who remember the Havana of the 1950s, but also of Cubans in Cuba. The result was a reminiscence about the pre-revolutionary era—dominated by the politics of Gerardo Machado in the 1920s–30s and then General Fulgencio Batista until 1959—which "no longer seems so bad". [ [http://www.historycooperative.org/cgi-bin/justtop.cgi?act=justtop&url=http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/ahr/105.2/mr_4.html "Buena Vista Social Club" Film review] . American Historical review. Retrieved 23 March 2007.]

Discography

* "Buena Vista Social Club" (16 September 1997). World Circuit / Nonesuch Records.

Other releases

The below discography includes solo albums released since the first "Buena Vista Social Club" album that feature the musicians in the ensemble, and that are considered to be under the "Buena Vista Social Club" aegis. [ [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:3vfixqtjldfe~T1 "Buena Vista Social Club"] All Music Guide. Retrieved 21 March 2007.]

* Rubén González
** "Introducing... Rubén González" (17 September 1997). Elektra/Asylum.

(Guest Musicians include Ry Cooder, Manuel Galbán, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez and Manuel "El Guajiro" Mirabal.)

** "Chanchullo" (17 September 2000). Elektra.
(Guest musicians include Joachim Cooder, Eliades Ochoa, Ibrahim Ferrer and Amadito Valdés.)

* Barbarito Torres
** "Havana Cafe" (6 April 1999). Atlantic Records.
(Guest musicians include Manuel "El Guajiro" Mirabal, Ibrahim Ferrer, Pío Leyva and Omara Portuondo.)

* Ibrahim Ferrer
** "Buena Vista Social Club Presents: Ibrahim Ferrer" (8 June 1999). World Circuit / Nonesuch Records.
(Guest Musicians include Rubén González, Ry Cooder, Manuel Galbán, and Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez.)

** "Buenos Hermanos" (18 March 2003). Nonesuch Records.
(Guest musicians include Ry Cooder, Manuel Galbán, and Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez.)

** "Mi Sueño" (26 Mar 2007). World Circuit.
(Guest musicians include Orlando "Cachaíto" López, Manuel Galbán, Rubén González, Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal, Omara Portuondo, Amadito Valdés.)

* Eliades Ochoa
** "Sublime Illusion" (29 June 1999). Higher Octave.
(Guest musicians include Ry Cooder.)

* Omara Portuondo
** "Buena Vista Social Club Presents: Omara Portuondo" (25 April 2000). World Circuit / Nonesuch Records.
(Guest musicians include Pío Leyva, Rubén González, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, Eliades Ochoa, Compay Segundo and Amadito Valdés.)

** "Flor de Amor" (25 May 2004). World Circuit / Nonesuch Records.
(Guest musicians include Barbarito Torres, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez and Manuel Galbán.)
* Orlando "Cachaito" López
** "Cachaito" (22 May 2001). Elektra/Asylum.
(Guest musicians include Juan de Marcos González, Amadito Valdés and Ibrahim Ferrer.)

* Amadito Valdés
** "Bajando Gervasio" (10 December 2002). Primienta Records.
(Guest musicians include Barbarito Torres.)

* Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal
** "Buena Vista Social Club Presents: Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal" (4 January 2005).Nonesuch Records.
(Guest musicians include Ibrahim Ferrer, Pío Leyva, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, Omara Portuondo, Juan de Marcos González and Manuel Galbán.)

* Various artists
** "" (14 November 2006). Hip-O
(musicians include Ibrahim Ferrer, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, Barbarito Torres, Amadito Valdés, Omara Portunondo performing alongside Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys, Dido, Quincy Jones, Kaiser Chiefs, Radiohead, U2 and Jack Johnson.)

See also

* Anacaona
* Tropicana Club
* Marcelino Guerra
* Afro-Latinos
* List of topics related to Black and African people

Notes

Further reading


* Wenders, Wim and Wenders, Donata: "Buena Vista Social Club: The Book of the Film." Wim Wenders, Donata Wenders. Thames & Hudson Ltd. (Mar 2000). ISBN–10: 050028220X
* Roy, Maya: "Cuban Music: From Son and Rumba to the Buena Vista Social Club and Timba Cubana". Wiener (Markus) Publishing Inc. (May 2002). ISBN–10: 1558762825

External links

* [http://www.nonesuch.com/artists/buena-vista-social-club Buena Vista Social Club biography at Nonesuch Records] .
* [http://www.pbs.org/buenavista/ Buena Vista Social Club site on PBS]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Buena vista social club — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Buena Vista Social Club (proyecto musical) Buena Vista Social Club fue un club social de La Habana, Cuba, donde sus miembros practicaban actividades relativas al baile y a la música, volviéndose un sitio muy popular… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Buena Vista Social Club — Буэна Виста Соушл Клаб Жанры сон, болеро, гуахира Годы 1996 настоящее время …   Википедия

  • Buena vista social club — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Buena Vista Social Club peut désigner : Buena Vista Social Club, célèbre club de musique de la banlieue de La Havane ; Buena Vista Social Club,… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Buena Vista Social Club —    Documentaire musical de Wim Wenders, avec les musiciens du Buena Vista Social Club: Compay Segundo, Ibrahim Ferrer, Eliades Ochoa, Omara Portuondo, etc.   Pays: Allemagne / États Unis   Date de sortie: 1998   Technique: couleurs   Durée: 1 h… …   Dictionnaire mondial des Films

  • Buena Vista Social Club — es un club en La Habana. También es el título de un álbum de música cubana producida por Ry Cooder y un documental de Wim Wenders …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Buena Vista Social Club — var et spillested i Havana på Cuba før Fidel Castro tog magten i landet. I midten af 1990 erne tog den amerikanske musiker Ry Cooder til Cuba for at indspille en cd med en række aldrende cubanske musikere, blandt andre Ibrahim Ferrer, Compay… …   Danske encyklopædi

  • Buena Vista Social Club — Filmdaten Deutscher Titel Buena Vista Social Club Produktionsland D / USA / UK / …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Buena Vista Social Club — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Buena Vista Social Club peut désigner : Buena Vista Social Club, groupe de musique cubain tirant son nom d un ancien club de musique de la banlieue… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Buena Vista Social Club (album) — Buena Vista Social Club Studio album by Buena Vista Social Club Released Se …   Wikipedia

  • Buena Vista Social Club (альбом) — Buena Vista Social Club …   Википедия

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”